Our Daily Bread Devotional Today 13th March 2024 (Cries of Distress)
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Today’s Topic: Cries of Distress
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 20–22; Mark 13:21–37
Key Verse: When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord; he brought me into a spacious place. Psalm 118:5
Today’s Scripture: Esther 4:10–17
OUR DAILY BREAD INSIGHT FOR TODAY 13 MARCH 2024:
Psalm 118 is one of six psalms (Psalms 113-118) called the “Egyptian Hallel.” These were used when observing Passover, the time when Jewish people remember God delivering them from slavery in Egypt. Psalm 118, the final psalm in this grouping, was used to conclude the Passover meal.
A thanksgiving psalm, it celebrates God’s hesed—a significant Hebrew word meaning “loyal, faithful, or steadfast love” (translated “love” in the niv). The psalm begins and ends with an invitation to praise God because “his love endures forever” (vv. 1, 29).
In the New Testament, nearing the hours before His suffering and death, Jesus would refer to Himself as the fulfillment of Psalm 118:22—“the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (see Matthew 21:42). His sacrifice would be the greatest demonstration of God’s faithful love. By: Monica La Rose
OUR DAILY BREAD GUIDE FOR 13TH MARCH 2024 MESSAGE
Trapped under two floors of collapsed rubble caused by an earthquake, five-year-old Jinan, a Syrian girl, called out to rescuers as she shielded her little brother from the debris surrounding them. “Get me out of here; I’ll do anything for you,” she called heartbreakingly. “I’ll be your servant.”
Cries of distress are found throughout the Psalms: “When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord” (118:5). While we may never experience the crushing weight of earthquake-collapsed buildings, we all recognize the suffocating fears from a challenging medical diagnosis, economic hardship, uncertainty about the future, or relational loss.
In those moments we may offer bargains to God for deliverance. But God doesn’t need to be persuaded to help. He promises to answer, and while it may not be relief from our situation, He’ll be with us and on our side. Nor do we need to fear any other peril—including death. We can say with the psalmist, “The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I look in triumph on my enemies” (v. 7).
We’re not promised as dramatic a rescue as Jinan and her brother experienced, but we can trust our faithful God, who brought the psalmist “into a spacious place” (v. 5). He knows our situation and He’ll never abandon us, even in death. By: Matt Lucas
Today’s Reflect & Prayer
How has God shown Himself faithful when you’re in distress? How have you recognized His presence during difficult times?
Heavenly Father, I call to You knowing that You hear me. Thank You for being faithful and loving.
