April 29                                         Judg 9 - 12

BE THANKFUL

MEMORISE: 'Praise ye the LORD. O gives thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.' (Ps 106: 1)
READ: Psalm 100: 1-5

Many Christians find it difficult to thank God for anything because of the difficulties and problems surrounding them. This is very wrong. Refusing to thank God for whatever he has done for you in the past can keep you perpetually in that state of siege. Look at your life. You have many reasons to thank God. A saying goes, 'I was complaining I had no food to eat when I saw someone without hands.' 'I was grumbling I had no shoes until I saw someone without legs.'

In the story of the siege of Samaria, they were really in dire straits: a situation where they began to eat their children for food. Thank God that whatever situation is presently confronting you, it is not as bad as to make you eat your children and it will never get to that extent, in Jesus' Name. David encountered great agonies and difficulties in life, yet in Psalm42:9-11, he resolved still to praise the Rock of his salvation. The truth is that whatever situation you may find yourself, things could be worse. The widow, with just one more meal left for her and her son in 1 Kings 17:8-16, was in a tight corner, yet it was not as bad as to make her eat her son. So thank God things are not as bad in your life as it could have been.

Another lesson we learnt from the siege in Samaria is that even when parental love fails, divine love does not fail. 'Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee' (Isa 49:15).

No matter how much your parents love you, they may face a situation where the limit of that love is shown. A man went fishing with his wife and daughter one day and the boat capsized. The man, being the only one who knew how to swim, held the wife one hand and the daughter with the other, as he swam to the shore. By and by his hands became weak and to prevent all of them from drowning he had to decide whom to leave behind. Finally, he left his daughter and took his wife. Her screams haunted him for life. That is the limitation of a man. Jesus will never leave anyone, since he has the whole world in his hands. The battle is hottest just it's always darkest before dawn. If your situation is bad, be prepared for a glorious change. Stick to Jesus. Never give up.

ACTION POINT
Thank God for his unfailing, everlasting love towards you.
Demonstrate God's love to at least three people in need this week.