DEVOTION – DAY 120

2 Cor.1:9 “Depending Upon God Always”

 

2 Cor.1:9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.

 

Paul wrote this verse to encourage the people of Corinth. Paul revealed to them that he had experienced great trials and troubles. He had experienced much pressure and at one stage, his own life was under threat. This could refer to the time when he was in the city of Ephesus when a riot broke out and the rioters wanted to put to death all Christians in the city. But Paul in this verse testified that even though the situation seemed like a death sentence had been given to him, he did not give up hope. He realized that he could turn to God for help. He expected God to deliver him from danger. His deliverance by God would be the same as if God raised him from the dead.

In our Christian life, God wants us to seek His help in all situations because God wants to reveal His glory and power through us. But many of us would think of seeking God’s help for serious matters. For what we think are minor matters, we think we can solve them ourselves using our own abilities, resources and the help of people we know. When we do that, we are in fact telling God that we can manage on our own and that we only need Him for the big things in our lives that we think we cannot handle. Isn’t that true? But we need to realize that God allows troubles into our lives to help us learn that we should not be relying on our own self-will, to try to work things out on our own. God wants us to acknowledge that we need His divine help, for all the big and small things in our lives. He wants us to live in daily dependence upon Him.

I have to learn this too. When I go out to buy groceries, I do not want to pray first for a parking spot for my car because I think I can find one on my own. It is only when I go round the car park a few times and cannot find a parking spot that I start to pray for a parking spot. And God is gracious that after I pray, I find an available parking spot. By this simple example, God is teaching me that I need to pray first even for this small need because it will save me having to go round the carpark several times. Through this simple way, God is teaching me to depend upon Him and not on my own self-will. I thank Him for these daily life lessons.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, please help us not to complain about our troubles but to believe that You have placed these situations in our lives to cause us to turn to you and depend upon Your help. Thank you for being with us always. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen.

 

Questions

  1. Name a few situations where you try to solve them yourselves before you think of turning to God for help?
  2. Why do you naturally try to solve things yourself and not go to God for help?
  3. Do you think you should turn to God for guidance and help for everything, big and small? Discuss.
  4. What will you do now differently having read this devotion?