Daily Meditation: "Bring It"

Saturday, October 3, 2020

SCRIPTURE

"Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I will call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I." - Psalm 61

REFLECT

When was the last time you prayed to be challenged?

Often, very often, we pray for things to get easier. We all carry the burdens and struggles of our lives and a lot of the time we pray for those loads to get lighter, easier to carry, or go away completely. We want life to be easier, not harder.

Yet, that’s not at all what the psalmist does here in Psalm 61. In a very challenging time, the prayer is for a greater challenge: “a rock that is higher than I.” That seems counter-intuitive, doesn’t it?

Well, think about it: when was the last time you grew into something more, something better and wiser than what you were before when things got easier? When you look back over your life don’t the majority of your moments of growth stem from surviving adversity and challenge? Isn’t it when we are pushed out of our comfort zones and confronted with something we’ve never dealt with before that we find we become a new creation?

Next time our hearts grow faint, instead of praying “Make this go away” maybe the prayer should be “Bring it.”

We might be surprised at what happens next.

PRAYER

God of Strength, when we grow weary please lead us to rocks higher than ourselves so we might be reminded of the strength within us and grow into stronger, wiser people.

Amen.

Peace,

Shawn