- For without cause they hid their net for me; without cause they dug a pit for my life. Psalm 35:7 – I learned today that this sort of psalm is called an “Imprecatory” psalm, which means it’s a psalm where the writer is pleading for God to defeat the enemies of His people. David clearly is pleading for this to take place in this psalm, enemies are fighting against him and tearing at him like he was a piece of meat at a feast. Twice in our verse above we also learn that this evil was coming against him “without cause.” We see that idea again in verse 19 when it says, “who hate me without cause.” This violence towards David wasn’t because of David’s sinfulness or evil towards the attackers, it was fueled by some other reason that David had no hand in creating. When uninvited evil like this comes our way without cause, we to can find ourselves confused like David. Why did they say that about us, or why did they take that from us, or why did they treat us like that…all when we did nothing to invite such evil. Sadly, such may be our story as we follow Jesus in this broken world. Take peace though remembering you aren’t alone in being treated unfairly like this. David himself navigated this, and even Jesus, in John 15:25, refers back to this very psalm saying He too was finding Himself hated without cause. Like David and like Jesus, when hatred is coming our way without cause, find shelter and support in the Father. Cast your cares upon Him for the Lord cares for you. While the evil is uninvited, we can always invite the Lord to be with us in our difficult seasons. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2990
- But I, when they were sick— I wore sackcloth; I afflicted myself with fasting; I prayed with head bowed on my chest. I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother; as one who laments his mother, I bowed down in mourning. But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered; they gathered together against me; wretches whom I did not know tore at me without ceasing Psalms 35:13-15 – We don’t need to respond back to their lack of compassion with the same they gave us. When people come at you with hate-filled, malicious, or even just careless words and deeds, we need to be a type of people that are willing to show compassion and grace to those who do the opposite for us. This is what will stand out and this is what will give us a platform to share Jesus’ name and love with those around us. Be different in how you respond. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 794
- Draw the spear and javelin against my pursuers! Say to my soul, “I am your salvation!” Psalm 35:3 – The image that ran through my thoughts when I first read this was of someone surrounded by enemies cowering under a rock for protection. Then Jesus walks in between them and their enemy. He kneels down, places a hand on their shoulder, looks them in the eye and says, “I am your salvation.” I’m not sure how heavy the enemy is currently working you over. I don’t know how pain and hardship are plaguing your story right now. Maybe things are good, maybe not. What scripture is promising to us is that God is our salvation in the presence of our enemy. He is the bringer of provision, the bringer of rest, and the life we so deeply need. Know you are going to be more than just okay when Jesus is your salvation. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1752
Daily DEVO 