Straying

Monday 10/12/2015 5:07 AM

Yesterday I sang with the praise team at worship. The last song we sang was an oldie but goodie, Alleluia, by Michael W. Smith. I did some hand motions I had learned a number of years ago and became overwhelmed with emotion as I sang about God being holy, almighty, reigning over creation, and worthy of praise.

The theme of my devotions this week is trust. My opening prayer is, “Remembering your faithfulness from age to age, O Lord, let us trust that you have our best interests in mind as you respond to our cries for help in times of need. By your grace, teach us to rely more and more on your strong hand to support and guide us in the face of adversity.” Rueben Job, the author of my devotional book, suggests that regular times of prayer and corporate worship offer opportunities to establish a relationship of companionship with the God who made me and loves me.

I have attended corporate worship quite regularly over the past year but my regular times of personal prayer and meditation have been sparse. The result of my haphazard commitment to a regular time of prayer is that God seems somewhat distant and aloof. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. I am simply unaware of his love and his working in the world because I have severed the lines of communication.

Today my assigned reading includes Exodus 34:6-7, God’s word to Moses after Moses had broken the two tablets of the law. “And (God) passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.’” God does not leave me in isolation when I abandon him. He calls me back with words of love and forgiveness. Lord, give me the grace to maintain my relationship with you through regular times of prayer.