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Our Strength & Song

Earlier in the week my son woke up very early in the morning from a bad dream. He was so scared that he clung to us. Since he was up just before the time I would have got up for my devotions, I decided to let him join me. He was still in his "let's be quiet and just cuddle" mode, so I figured I could read my Bible and hold him at the same time without incident. It turned out that Psalm 118 was a good chapter to read out loud with him. Together, we learned that God helps us when we are in trouble, God is our strength and song, and we praise God because he treats us with mercy. 

Even though he's only two, my son listened to some of the words I read. We did some active listening and I had him repeat a few verses after me. Here are a few verses I asked him to repeat:
  • v. 6: The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
  • v. 14: The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation.
The rest of the chapter has good truths to hold on to in times of distress. Verses 15 and 16 describe the victorious nature of the "right hand" of the Lord. The whole chapter encourages us to remember that we are the Lord's and in him we "shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord." (v. 17)

God has always helped me when I was distressed and heartbroken and scared. He has always been my source of strength when I had none of my own and didn't feel like having a good attitude and putting a smile on my face. He has given me reasons to sing and be joyful because even in hard times, he has provided peace.

Because of the frigid cold weather I got to spend the whole day with my son. Every once in a while he would recall something that scared him in his dream. When that happened I reminded him of Psalm 118:14 and had him say God is his strength and song. That got him to smile and he moved on to his next activity. It was such a joy to see him embracing the truth of God's word and thinking- yeah, I don't have to worry about this fear anymore. It's a truth that I am going to keep on embracing too. God bless us all with a free spirit that accepts your truth as true and trades in our fears and weaknesses for the joy and peace that God offers instead.

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