There are times when mice roar...

A PRAYER FOR HELP

Psalm 44

C

God, we have heard about you.

Our ancestors told us

what you did in their days, in days long ago.

With your power you forced the nations out of the land

and placed our ancestors here.

You destroyed those other nations,

but you made our ancestors grow strong.

It wasn't their swords that took the land.

It wasn't their power that gave them victory.

But it was your great power and strength.

You were with them because you loved them.

C

My God, you are my King.

Your commands led Jacob's people to victory.

With your help we pushed back our enemies.

In your name we trampled those who came against us.

I don't trust my bow to help me,

and my sword can't save me.

You saved us from our foes,

and you made our enemies ashamed.

We will praise God every day;

we will praise your name forever. Selah

C

But you have rejected us and shamed us.

You don't march with our armies anymore.

You let our enemies push us back,

and those who hate us have taken our wealth.

You gave us away like sheep to be eaten

and have scattered us among the nations.

You sold your people for nothing

and made no profit on the sale.

C

You made us a joke to our neighbors;

those around us laugh and make fun of us.

You made us a joke to the other nations;

people shake their heads.

I am always in disgrace,

and I am covered with shame.

My enemy is getting even with insults and curses.

All these things have happened to us,

but we have not forgotten you

or failed to keep our agreement with you.

Our hearts haven't turned away from you,

and we haven't stopped following you.

But you crushed us in this place where wild dogs live,

and you covered us with deep darkness.

C

If we had forgotten our God

or lifted our hands in prayer to foreign gods,

God would have known,

because he knows what is in our hearts.

But for you we are in danger of death all the time.

People think we are worth no more than sheep to be killed.

Wake up, Lord! Why are you sleeping?

Get up! Don't reject us forever.

Why do you hide from us?

Have you forgotten our pain and troubles?

We have been pushed down into the dirt;

we are flat on the ground.

Get up and help us.

Because of your love, save us.

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SITUATION The sons of Korah wrote this psalm after Israel lost a war. The Israelites did not understand what caused them to lose.

OBSERVATION Although disappointed and confused, Israel kept trusting in God. They praised him and knew that he continue to be strong.

INSPIRATION Two-year-old Sara sits on my lap. We are watching a comedy on television about a guy who has a mouse in his room. He is asleep. He opens one eye and finds himself peering into the face of the rodent . . . .

I laugh, but Sara panics. She turns away from the screen and buries her face in my shoulder. Her arms encircle my neck and clamp like a vise. Her little body grows rigid. She thinks the mouse is going to get her.

"It's, ok, Sara," I assure her . . . .

She is afraid.

But with time, I convince her . . . . Sara has gone from white-face fear to peaceful chuckles in a few moments. Why? Because her father spoke and she believed.

Would that we would do the same. Got any giant mice on your screen? Got any fears that won't go away? . . . .

I wish the fears were just television images. They aren't. They lurk in hospital rooms and funeral homes. They stare at us from divorce papers and eviction notices. They glare through the eyes of cruel parents or an abusive mate . . . .

There are times when mice roar. There are times when we need a strong pair of arms. You need to know that the arms of God are there. (From Tell Me the Story by Max Lucado)


APPLICATION What problem or fear do you need to trust God with today? Remember that God already knows your problem and wants you trust him for strength to solve it. Tell God about your need.

EXPLORATION Trust God -- Provers 3:5; Isaiah 26:3-4; 50:10; Jeremiah 17:7-8; Habakkuk 3:17-19; Romans 15:13; Hebrews 6:18-19.

The Devotional Bible - Experiencing the Heart of Jesus; Max Lucado General Editor, Thomas Nelson Publishers, New Century Version