Wednesday Words of Encouragement: Reminders in the Midst of the Storm

Today I'm wrapping up the series I started a few weeks ago entitled, In the Midst of the Storm.  We are looking at Psalm 27 and find that there are four things we can learn from this Psalm.

1. We are to have Courage in the storm.
2. We have a Shelter in the midst of the storm.
3. We are to Pray in the storm.
4. We are to Remind ourselves of God's goodness during the storm.

Psalm 27:11-14 (HCSB) ~

Because of my adversaries,show me Your way, Lord,
and lead me on a level path.
Do not give me over to the will of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
breathing violence.

I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and courageous.
Wait for the Lord.

One of the things that I love about the Psalms of David is that in almost every single one where is he depressed or lamenting, he gives himself a little pep talk at the end.  He always reminds himself of what the Lord has done which points him in the direction of forward motion.

If we keep our eyes fixed on the problem, we will stall and never move forward or grow.  There are times when we need to remind ourselves of the promises the Lord has promised and what God has done for us in the past.

I remember going through a difficult time and whining and wailing as I was driving my car.  I was stopped at a red light when all of the sudden I got disgusted with myself.  As I sat at the light, I started talking aloud.

"Knock it off!”  “God loves me.”  “He knows what I’m going through.”  “He will work it out.”

As I continued to verbalize out loud the promises I knew, I looked over to see the gentleman in the next car giving me a very strange look!  I think he thought I had gone off my rocker, but it was necessary for me to remind myself of what I knew to be true.

At the end of Psalm 27, David reminds himself that he will see God’s goodness while he is yet alive.  Then he reminds himself to wait on the Lord.  He exhorts himself to be strong and courageous and then, one more time for good measure, wait on the Lord.

God is with you in the midst of those storms you go through.  Never forget what He has done for you in the past and remind yourself of who He is and what He can do!

As you go through your storms, face them with courage.  Take shelter in God's mighty fortress.  Pray your way through the storms, and remind yourself of God's wonderful promises.