Weekly Devotional: Crying Out To God

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” — 2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV

Some people love to set goals. Some people may create a daily to-do list with everything they want to accomplish in that day, like walking the dog or paying bills. Others may make huge life-changing plans that they intend to accomplish over time like becoming the best in sport or saving up to buy a house. However, goals are much simpler to set than they are to keep.

Oftentimes, in life, we may find that we fail. Our goals remain unaccomplished leaving our shortcomings on full display. Fortunately for us as Christians, we know our worth does not depend on our ability to succeed or our accomplishments. Rather, we are known by what Christ has done and when we are struggling with weakness, hardship or anything else we may face, we can cry out to God and he will hear us.

Stay Strong in the Lord in Times of Trouble

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” — Ephesians 6:10, NIV

When we rely on our own strength to get us through our circumstances, we will often find ourselves disappointed and frustrated. Life can be a constant battle to measure up. It may be by God’s standards, our standards or the standards of others, but no matter the situation we will fall short. However, these failures do not define who we are, God does. Thankfully, we do not have to rely on our own strength.

It is only through his strength and following his will that we can live lives free from a quest of temporary success and continual failure. In Ephesians 6:10, when Paul was introducing the Armor of God, he wrote “be strong in the Lord and his mighty power.” Our pride is not in our own strength, but in God’s.

We are living for him and not our own gain. Our goals in comparison to God’s plan are nothing. His plans are perfect and better than what we could imagine. He gives us the strength we need to be strong and stand firm as we go through life. We can cry out to him because he is listening and will answer, in the good and bad. On our own it may be impossible, but not with God and his strength.

My Rock and My Fortress

“The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” — Psalm 18:2, NIV

As Christians, God does not look at us and see all our shortcomings. He is not keeping track of our failures and unachieved goals, ready to point out every flaw. Rather, he loves us and sent his son to son to die for us. We may be weak, but he is a stronghold, ready to embrace us.

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