Holston Daily Devotional February 10,2021

Focus Scripture

Psalms 102:12-28

12 But you, O Lord, sit enthroned forever;

your renown endures through all generations.

13 You will arise and have compassion on Zion,

for it is time to show favor to her;

the appointed time has come. …

16 For the Lord will rebuild Zion

and appear in his glory.

17 He will respond to the prayer of the destitute;

he will not despise their plea.

18 Let this be written for a future generation,

that a people not yet created may praise the Lord:

19 “The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high,

from heaven he viewed the earth,

20 to hear the groans of the prisoners

and release those condemned to death.”

21 So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion

and his praise in Jerusalem

22 when the peoples and the kingdoms

assemble to worship the Lord. …

27 But you remain the same,

and your years will never end.

28 The children of your servants will live in your presence;

their descendants will be established before you.” (Psalm 102, Selected, NIV)

Devotion

In the gospel lesson, Jesus finds himself inundated with people who are in need – sick, burdened, in chains of demonic bondage. Even in the midst of those struggles is the affirmation of who he is: The Son of God (Mark 3:11). In Job 6:10 we read that Job made a great outcry because of the afflictions he experienced, yet he refused to doubt the word of the Lord. In Psalm 102, the writer bemoans the struggles being experienced by the people, and the apparent downfall of the nation.

Personal hurts, personal struggles, national distress. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

Then the psalmist looks up. Toward heaven. Toward the One who sits enthroned forever.

Our generations will pass. Our struggles will come to an end. But the Lord will be true to his promises, to the fulfillment of his word to his people. And those who are wrestling—some with flesh and blood, some with rulers and principalities— will experience His goodness.

Even when our circumstances do not look favorable, we need to continue to declare God’s glory, to lift up the Name of the Lord for the generations yet to come.

My grandmother contracted scarlet fever when she was ten years old. When the doctor came to see her, he told her parents that she would not make it through the night. Yet they prayed. And persevered. And she survived. In later years she made it a point to tell all her grandchildren about the miracle of her very existence. It didn’t take much thought for me to realize that if she had died, I would not be here. I am also convinced that it was primarily her prayers for me that kept me off the path to destruction when I was in high school.

Prayer

"Let this be written for a future generation.” “You, O Lord, sit enthroned forever.” Amen.