Day 126: Caring for those at Rock Bottom

Acts 27:13-44; 1 Samuel 3; Psalm 51

These sailors had lost all hope.  They were at rock bottom.  They knew that they were toast.  Had Paul not been on board, they very well might have died.  Paul has this opportunity, in the midst of their darkest hour, to reveal what God had told him.  Paul also spends some of this time caring for the people's well-being by encouraging them to eat.  Essentially, their spiritual and physical needs are being met in this hopeless time.  If we think about dark times in people's lives today, how should we, as followers of Christ, respond?   Just caring for their physical needs?  Just bringing their problems to the church prayer meetings?  Just gossiping about them at our bible study?  Just telling them that we will pray for them but then forgetting?  I think if we take note of Paul's story, we learn what to do:  he encouraged them with God's faithfulness, gave thanks to The Lord, and then provided for their physical needs.  He focused on their spiritual needs, spoke to God on their behalf, and then fed them.  When our friends and family are going through really challenging times, what do we normally do?  Do we treat them the way Paul does the sailors or do we do something different?

Samuel didn't know what The Lord sounded like.  This is a really cool part of Samuel's story that shows that our relationship with God is one that grows with time.  Samuel didn't automatically understand or recognize all that he could about The Lord.  He had to learn to hear God's voice and how to respond.  The same is true for us.  If we are new on our spiritual journey, then we may find ourselves confused or unsure about the Holy Spirit and discerning God's voice from other things.  The longer we follow The Lord, and the closer our relationship is, we can discern his voice and be obedient to it.

God punishes or corrects us for sins not because he is mean or enjoys torturing us.  In this psalm David cries out for The Lord to make the bones that God crushed, now celebrate.  He begs God to make him white as snow, and help him to obey.  God repremands us because he wants us to return to him, to sacrifice with deep sorrow in our hearts, and to turn from our sin.