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The Lord is My Steady
Andrea Lende • January 17, 2021
Psalm 55:22
The Lord is My Steady
You can also listen to the devotion and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/The-Lord-is-My-Steady-ep2q7s
Psalm 55:22
“Cast your burden on the Lord [releasing the weight of it] and He will sustain you; He will never allow the [consistently] righteous to be moved (made to slip, fall, or fail).”
This passage comforted me today.
As the burdens of this world become heavy, I am thankful God’s Word reminds me I can give those burdens to the Lord.
Not only give them to the Lord but cast them onto the Lord.
Literally throw them His way.
Vigorously thrust them.
I’ve never realized the word cast used in our passage was so aggressive until today.
But I’m thankful for this realization.
We can aggressively cast our burdens on the Lord.
We do not have to wonder how we can possibly carry our burdens.
We do not have to be careful about giving them to God wondering if we should them to Him.
We can literally toss our burdens into God’s lap.
Who said we had to carry our own burdens anyway?
When did we learn we had to lift the difficulties of this world by ourselves?
The Lord is our Strength and Creator of everything.
Our burdens are not too heavy for Him.
He is not hesitant to help us.
There is nothing He cannot do.
He is greater than we can imagine.
He can carry us.
He can carry us and our burdens.
Our passage also says that God will not allow us to “slip, fall, or fail”.
The Lord is our Steady.
He lifts us up when we cannot stand.
Just as a parent holds their children up as they learn to walk, God holds us up.
Just as a parent steadies their child learning to ride a bicycle, the Lord steadies us as we learn new things.
He is our Guide.
He is our Keeper.
His love for us is deeper than we have the ability to understand.
And we can lean on Him.
Today I choose to cast my burdens – literally thrown my burdens – to the Lord and expect Him to steady me as I embark on the new He is leading me to.
May you find the Lord will steady your balance and lead you to into the unknown as He leads you into His perfect plan.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for reminding me that I can cast my burdens on You. Thank You for showing me I can literally throw my burdens Your way. As I do You keep me from sinking from the weight of them. You take my burdens from me and steady my feet. You will not let me slip or fall. Thank You, Father, for Your promise to care for me. Help me give all the hard things in my life to You. Help me give my fears to You. Help me give the difficulties I face to You. Help me give my pain to You. May you replace all this with peace and comfort. May Your arms wrap around me, so I do not lose heart. May You put joy in my heart, Lord. May I sit in Your presence for a few precious moments today. Thank You for renewing my mind and my spirit with Your Spirit. Help me stay connected to You throughout this day. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I AM with you My child, to lift the burdens you carry and keep you from falling.
Response: Thank You, most gracious and merciful Lord.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.