Your Refreshing Daily Devotional

One of the profound statements I have heard from the mouth of Dr. Tunde Bakare is that the best of men are men at their very best. Even the ones we revere as men of God are mere men who are prone to mistakes. The proof of this is our text. We have playing out here what might be called circumstantial evidence. The demeanour of Hannah resembled that of a drunken fellow. So Eli was quick in asking her to come out of the hangover. Hannah was not drunk, she was grieved. Her condition which was worsened by her adversary was the cause of her grief. What appeared as drunken stupour was her means of crying out to God in desperation.

Meanness to people can make them worse off. If you cannot help in any way, make sure you don’t add to their burden. Exercising great restraint in condemning people based on external circumstances is a proof of both wisdom and maturity.

We are often too eager to judge people without knowing the details of their lives. Meanness to people can make them worse off. So we need to be kind more often than not. Ian Maclaren said, “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle”. If you cannot help in any way, make sure you don’t add to their burden. Exercising great restraint in condemning people based on external circumstances is a proof of both wisdom and maturity. Let us learn something from Hannah’s response to the presumption of the priest. Rather than get offended by Eli’s ill-informed judgment, she put things in perspective for the old man. On several occasions, we will need to adopt Jesus’ approach; not to press charges against them on the ground that they don’t know what they say or do.

The past three meditations focused on how the ways of God are often at variance with those of man. There is yet another area where this applies; that is, God’s timing. God’s timing often goes against the grain of human wisdom. Imagine the time that God asked Israel to cross river Jordan into the Promised Land. We understand it was at the time of harvest, that period of the year when Jordan normally overflowed. For a people without boat or any other floatation device, that was hardly the best time to cross the river. If that decision was left to a committee to decide, I am sure they would have voted against it.

When God indicates a time for something, we may not understand it because we don’t know the whole scope of His work…When you align with His time, you enjoy grace for speed and accomplishment.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 has a beautiful line about divine timing – “Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (NLT). When God indicates a time for something, we may not understand it because we don’t know the whole scope of His work. However, if we tag along we will discover that He has truly made all things beautiful. When you align with His time, you enjoy grace for speed and accomplishment.

Research has shown that depression is not restricted to any particular socio-economic class. It is an all-pervasive problem cutting across different strata of society. It is reported that 15 million American adults experience a major depressive disorder each year. The median age when depression strikes is 32, with more women likely to be affected than men. It takes about $40 billion to treat people suffering from depression each year. Our text of Scripture shows how the Apostle Paul, with double emphasis, admonished the brethren to rejoice always. He had earlier given the same admonition in Philippians chapter 3 – “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe.” (Philippians 3:1 NKJV). How is it safe to rejoice? Joy is a spiritual anti-depressant.

Joy is a spiritual anti-depressant. Rejoicing provides a bulwark against the demon of depression…Rejoicing in anticipation of what we hope for is an act of faith, and that is enough to bring a turnaround.

Rejoicing provides a bulwark against the demon of depression. In addition, it is necessary to shift the focus from the problems to the promises. Depression does not just strike without basis. Research has shown that it is a by-product of some underlying problems. Fixing attention on the problems aggravates depression, but turning to the promises of God brings relief. We are back to main thrust of our meditation for the past three days. What is the basis for rejoicing when things are not yet the way they ought to be? It is part of the ways of God which does not make sense to man. Rejoicing in anticipation of what we hope for is an act of faith, and that is enough to bring a turnaround.

No sooner did President Trump announce a deal between America and Iran in June than the Iranians discarded the agreement, citing a violation of the terms by the Israelis. That took them back to the drawing board. That is a pointer to the fragile nature of peace deals between nations. The text of Scripture before us is Jesus’ promise to His followers before His ordeal on the cross. He offered them His kind of peace which is different from any that the world system could afford. The pursuit of peace is the primary objective of several world bodies. However, their best efforts have not yielded the desired fruit, judging by the number of national, regional, and international conflicts. The world’s type of peace is weak and futile.

…the ways of God are connected to the peace of God. Those who want His peace must abide by His ways…Following His ways is a proof that we trust Him to always work everything together for our good.

In our previous meditation, we learned about the ways of God which, though may be contrary to man’s way, always deliver superior results. It bears adding here that the ways of God are connected to the peace of God. Those who want His peace must abide by His ways. Jesus spoke of peace before He went to the cross, and it is significant to note that peace was the first thing which He offered after His resurrection. We can therefore affirm that for children of God, peace is guaranteed if we activate it by following His ways. Following His ways is a proof that we trust Him to always work everything together for our good.

A man born blind is reported in John 9. The disciples of Jesus wanted to know if the causal factor was the man’s sins or those of his parents. As far the disciples were concerned, such predicament could only be traceable to sin. Jesus corrected their theology by saying neither the man nor the parents had sinned, but the situation was to allow for the manifestation of the glory of God in his life. After fixing their theology, Jesus was set to heal the man. He mixed clay with spittle, plastered the man’s eyes with it, and ordered him to go to Siloam and wash. There are many problems here. To an average mind, mixing clay with spittle is far from decent. Putting clay on already blind eyes is ridiculous. Asking him to go to Siloam can almost be considered as inconsiderate. How would a blind man make it to the river?

God’s operations are beyond the limits of human conventions…Those who will enjoy walking with God must learn to defer to Him even when it seems unreasonable to do so.

The foregoing all stipulate that God’s operations are beyond the limits of human conventions. One reason why many people miss the operations of God is that they expect Him to reason and act like human beings. The Bible is plain in stating that God’s ways are different from our ways. When viewed from human standpoint, most of the preferred ways of the Lord will appear foolish. What we must never forget is that even those things that appear foolish are wiser than the best wisdom man can put together. “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” I Corinthians 1:25 NKJV. Those who will enjoy walking with God must learn to defer to Him even when it seems unreasonable to do so.

When we went to Malawi two years ago on our annual mission, I sat by the pool of the hotel where we lodged one evening. The DJ at the bar close by was playing a Yoruba song. I am sure that he did not understand a word of what he was playing, he was simply going along with the music. Whether the lyrics meant curse or blessing, he could not tell. Such is the power of music. Music has no geographical boundaries. It is not curtailed by accent either. A survey showed that many people got their spirits raised from depression by listening to music. This also has a biblical support. When an evil spirit tormented Saul, recommendation was made that someone with musical ability be brought. David was the candidate that fitted the slot. Whenever he played, the evil spirit would bow and Saul was refreshed. In essence, anointed music drives out evil spirits.

In essence, anointed music drives out evil spirits…spirits trend with music. Some music can cast out devils while some can attract them. Some music can draw in the Spirit of God while some others can repel Him. We must apply discretion in choosing the kind of music we listen to.

In our text of Scripture for meditation, Elisha needed contact with the Spirit of the Lord, and he called for a minstrel. This time around we have no information of who was brought. However, the result was undeniable. The Spirit of the Lord descended on the prophet and he spoke the word of the Lord to the kings. The lesson here is that spirits trend with music. Some music can cast out devils while some can attract them. Some music can draw in the Spirit of God while some others can repel Him. We must apply discretion in choosing the kind of music we listen to.