Now may the LORD value my life, even as I have valued yours today. May he rescue me from all my troubles. 1 SAMUEL 26:24 (NLT)

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There are moments of desperation when even prayerless souls pray. No doubt this pandemic has stirred many hearts into humble recognition of their powerlessness against such a vicious foe. When there are no cures, no remedies, no vaccines, where do we go?

David went to God. Again and again, he turned to God in prayer. Scan the book of Psalms and see how many times he sought God’s deliverance. Hear how God in his mercy and kindness saved him. Peruse Psalms 7, 27, 31, 34, 54, 69 to start. Listen to 34:4:

I sought the LORD,
and he answered me
and rescued me from all
my fears.
CSB

When doctors bear bad news, go to God. When your employer says your job has been eliminated, go to God. When threats multiply and opportunities wither, go to God. 

Today’s verse says, “May he (God) rescue me from all my troubles.” God did just that. He did that again and again for David. He has done that for many across the ages. He has done that for you. He will do that for you again. 

To be sure, this is no bargaining session. “Dear God, save me and I will . . .” There is nothing to fill in that blank that motivates and animates the heart of God. He is already poised to do for you what only he can do. He is simply waiting for you to realize you have come to the end of yourself, that you cannot rescue yourself. 

Our Father in heaven wants to give you his gift of eternal life. Yes, these bodies wear down and die. Yet the very essence of who we are does not. Those who trust Jesus for salvation, who fall asleep in death, awaken to an eternal day in what R. G. Lee called, “The most beautiful place the mind of God can imagine and the hand of God can create.” Mountains? Oceans? Forests? Starry skies? You ain’t seen nothing yet.

Today is a good day to pray, “Rescue me from all my troubles. Forgive me for my sin. I want to live, really live. I want to know and experience you.” Jesus is more ready to answer such a prayer than we ever could be to pray it. Our Father in heaven loves you with an everlasting love. He wants to save you from all your troubles.

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I will seek God’s solutions to all my troubles.

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Our Father, you know my fears. You know my needs. I need you. Rescue me from all my troubles. Deliver me from evil. Save me in your everlasting love. Amen.