My Defender in Times of Need
ICS Daily Devotions
Isaiah 43:1-2 (NKJV) But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.
We live in a broken and fallen world, so there will be suffering in this world. In addition, we have an enemy who wants to use tribulation, adversity and persecution to steal the Word of God from our hearts, so how do we deal with tribulations in our lives? Having the right convictions in the Word, or the right seeds sown will cause us to respond rightly to tribulations and afflictions, and help us to weather through the storms of life.
In the opening Scripture, God has promised never to leave or forsake us. His presence is always with us. In fact, the Holy Spirit literally lives inside us. Nothing, whether now or in the future, anything in the natural or spiritual will ever cause His love to depart from us. He is bound by His covenant of promise to be with us. As our covenant partner, He will face all situations with us and has made every resource available to us. It is His grace that sustains those who are hard pressed between the rock and a hard place; it is what gives the cushioning effect to carry us through the period of crisis. We will be more than conquerors since His presence, His assurance and His resources are always made available to us. No tribulation will be able to harm us because He will walk through it with us. He promised to listen to our prayers when we are afflicted, in distress, going through a tribulation, or facing an adversity in our lives. He will deliver us, though it may take some time and require us to be patient. He has not given us a spirit of fear but of love, power and a sound mind, so that we can think clearly, strategically, and wisely.
Some people are angry, offended, and bitter with God when they are going through or have gone through a time of adversity, tribulation, and distress, because the Word has not taken root in their lives, or they may not have taken time to process whether God is good, so they might take whatever lies and deception that the devil throws at them. Therefore, we must bear in mind that God is good all the time, but there is a devil who wants to steal, kill and destroy. We also need to be a good student of the Word to rightly divide the Word in order to identify the work of God and the scheme of the devil. Finally, we need to make a decisive choice to make our hearts good soil so the seed can multiply a hundredfold.
Sermon Series: Don’t Let It Be Stolen
