Daily Devotion 08/14/18
Psalm 73:1-3
1 Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.
3 For I envied the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
I highly recommend taking the time today to read all of Psalm 73. I promise you, you’ll be able to relate to it. Just look at these opening words. Asaph, the psalm writer, almost lost his faith. Why? Because of the prosperity of the wicked. He looked around and said, “What a minute. I’ve been following God and I’m not prospering. In fact, I have big time afflictions. What’s the point in following God?” Maybe that’s you today. You read the Bible, you’re doing your devotions, you pray, you try to lead a good life, and yet God seems to abandon you. He seems to kick you while you’re down. All you want is the earthly prosperity that the wicked seems to get without following God. Jesus once said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul?” You may not get everything you want here on earth, but he gives you more than you could ever ask for in heaven. Those are blessings that will last forever.
Father in heaven, I’m sorry for the times I covet what other people have and for not being thankful for the eternal blessings you have given me. Forgive me for my envy. I know you have because that’s one of the spiritual blessings you have promised to me: that because Jesus lived, died, and rose again, I am forgiven. Thank you, Lord. Amen.