Manna for Your Morning

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. — Psalm 90:1-2 (NKJV) When we make the Lord our dwelling place, we stay and settle in Him. We reside in His loving Presence and know that He is always with us. If you make the LORD your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone (Psalm 91:9-12, NLT).

“...drive out all the inhabitants of the land before you. Destroy all their carved images and their cast idols, and demolish all their high places. Take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess.” — Numbers 33:52-53 (NIV) The children of Israel were to completely drive out the inhabitants of the land and destroy everything that belonged to them. Anyone they let remain would be irritants in their eyes and thorns in their sides, and they would harass them in the land (Numbers 33:55 NKJV). God has given us a promise land to possess. If there are some harassing things going on, some thorns in our sides, then there remains some things that need to be destroyed, in order for us to occupy the land and settle in it. Is it pride? Offense? Self-pity? Rebellion? Whatever it is, drive it out and take possession of your promised land!

May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. 1 Peter 5:10 (NKJ) Isaiah 53:3 tells us that even Jesus was a Man of suffering and familiar with pain. Endure hardship, the suffering won't last forever. When you are experiencing grief in all kinds of trials, it seems like its going to last forever, but it is temporary. Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning. And after you have suffered a little while, God will perfect, establish, strengthen and settle you. Your present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Romans 8:18).