Today’s Reading: Psalm 119:65-80
Psalm 119:71 — It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes.
God promises to help us learn. God uses suffering to discipline and correct us and to teach us the value of walking in the light of His word.
The psalmist wrote that God is good and does only good things, yet we sometimes wander from God’s way. When we stray from the living way, we may get hurt by the enemy who takes advantage of our bad decisions to harm our souls.
The Good Shepherd will rescue us with His rod and staff when we cry out for help. His Word and His Spirit will overcome the enemy and restore our soul, so that we confess, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.”
At other times we experience undeserved suffering in our lives, like Jesus and the apostle Paul. Jesus lived a perfect life, never straying from His Father’s plan. Paul obeyed his calling to preach and teach the gospel throughout the Roman Empire. Both men experienced much affliction and were eventually killed. The book of Hebrews says that Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered (Hebrews 5:8). Paul learned how to be content in any situation (Philippians 4:11-13).
Whether our affliction is deserved or not, it teaches us to rely on God and His words of life. In our darkest hours and deepest pain, God’s word gives us the light and comfort of God’s presence. We need the Bible every step along the way.
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