Compassed About in Love

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Compassed About in Love

Andrea Lende • August 18, 2022

Psalm 94:12-13

Compassed About in Love

You can listen to the devotion and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Compassed-About-in-Love-e1mltuc

Psalm 94:12-13

Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whom You discipline and instruct, O Lord, and teach out of Your law,

That You may give him power to keep himself calm in the days of adversity, until the [inevitable] pit of corruption is dug for the wicked.

As I read our verses today, I cringed a little because I don’t enjoy discipline.

However, the psalmist tells us we are blessed when God disciplines and instructs us.

In actuality, I don’t feel like I’ve ever been disciplined by God in the way we think of discipline.

I usually consider discipline as harsh, hard, or militaristic.

But God isn’t any of those things.

He is pure love.

And He teaches in the most loving way.

When I fall short or falter, the Lord is there to pick me up not put me down.

I thought about my children when reading these passages.

I thought about when they’ve made mistakes and would come to me feeling so badly.

I didn’t feel it was necessary to add to their pain.

Of course, we would talk about the situation and learn the lesson it taught, but I didn’t add to their distress with harsh or unkind words.

They had to suffer the repercussions of their behavior.

They had to correct their errors.

But I didn’t hold it over them.

The lesson did the teaching.

God is far more loving than we are, and He knows exactly how to teach us what we need to learn.

He allows the space for us to fail, the space to learn, and continues to love us through the process.

However, if we’re not open to learning, there is nothing that can be received.

Our second verse tells us the Lord gives us power to keep ourselves calm in the days of adversity.

We will have everything we need in the day of trouble because the Lord has taught us and brought us up in Him and His ways.

Today I choose the Lord’s instruction and teaching, so I can learn more of Him and be able to receive His power on troubled days.

May you find the Lord will compass you about in His mercy as He teaches you more about Him, and you will be strong in the days of trouble.

Daily Prayer:

O Lord, thank You for being a God of mercy and love. Thank You for teaching us while You compass us about in love. Thank You for always forgiving our short comings and failures. Thank You for allowing us space to miss the mark as You show us a better way. Help us be open and willing to learn, Lord. Show us more of You and how we can be more like You. Open our hearts to receive Your knowledge and wisdom. We pray for an extra measure of wisdom. Help us be obedient to You and willing to change, Lord. Help us bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing our prayer.

Answer: I enjoy teaching you and will continue to pour My wisdom into you.

Response: Help us learn all You have to teach us, Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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