If the Lord Had Not Been...

Psalm 124:1-3 (NIV)"If the Lord had not been on our side—let Israel say—if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us."

Having the Lord on your side makes all the difference. Even when you face struggles and afflictions, God's presence delivers you from unimaginable evils. The psalmist thought about what would have happened had God not been present during their times of greatest distress and concluded that it would have meant their destruction and that of the whole nation. The same could happen to us…

Consider the people of Israel: the Lord is the one who has made all the difference between liberation and tragedy in their midst. This people has managed to escape by the skin of their teeth many times throughout history. We only need to remember the wars, sieges, dominations, exiles, massacres, mass exterminations, bombings, and terrorist attacks. From a natural perspective, this people should have disappeared a long time ago. But they continue to exist for one very strong reason: the Lord has been on their side.

The Lord is always on your side.

• Think for a moment: where would you be today if it weren't for the Lord?

• Pray and be aware of God's presence in your life every day.

• Thank God for the deliverances and blessings He gives you (many of which we don’t even realize).

• Remember those who live without God in their lives. Pray and evangelize so that they too may recognize God's grace and be saved.

Prayer:

Lord God, I acknowledge that many times I have attributed my victories to my own efforts. I have also thought that You were far away in difficult moments. Still, I recognize that my life is a miracle because of You. If it weren’t for You, where would I be? Where would any of us be? Help me to be aware of this and to remember that Jesus is always with me, supporting and protecting me. I praise You and thank You for that. In Christ’s name, amen.