Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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Healing through Christ
Psalms. 116

For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death; my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.
Psalm 116 Vs 8

         This psalm in its entirety is a testimony by the writer professing his faith, praise and gratitude to God for saving him from a bleak phase that he was faced with. Sickness is a term commonly used to define a physical ailment but, it has presented itself in emotional, mental and spiritual genres. Looking at verse 8, we see three components  to the deliverance that the psalmist receives.

Soul from death :  Our souls are the very core of our spiritual existence and when we go through phases in life where we face grief, loneliness, betrayal and sadness, we tend become depressed and lose our hope in God. These situations that shake our faith and make us lose hope create a spiritual sickness within us. From this psalm we learn that God will not leave us hanging over a spiritual death trap and because our souls are what he died on the cross for, he will deliver us.

Eyes from tears :  Tears depict an emotional turmoil or a state of mental sickness knowing that we are helpless . Though we live in a world that would not hesitate to end the lives of innocent children for no apparent reason pushing their families into a chasm of sorrow and distress like how the psalmist mentions (vs 6) and though our human minds are too small to comprehend God’s plans for us and our loved ones, we need to remember that our gracious and righteous Lord, who is full of compassion will save us if we call on his name.

Feet from stumbling : When something as small as a paper cut on our hands can be annoyingly distracting and can keep us from working efficiently, a physical ailment of a higher degree can hold us back and cause us a lot of distress and because our creator who made us in his image knows this, even though we may have to walk on rocks, he will keep us from stumbling over them and falling.
                    The author knew that his spiritual ,mental and physical battles belonged to the Lord, and that he couldn’t fight on his own. He knew that it was in the power of the Lord and must call up on the name of the Lord. The only hope that we have in this life is Jesus. Our God is merciful, our God is righteous, and our God is still saves and heals people. When you trust him to fight your battle,  you find true hope, peace and healing in our Jesus Christ alone. Healing comes to us in various ways. Some experience "a miracle",  while some are given the power of courage and strength to endure their situation. Others are released from their personality traits that keep them from truly experiencing the healing power of Jesus. And what compares to the realization of knowing that the Lord Almighty, the maker of the universe hears your feeble cries when you call out to him and no matter how sick, untreatable, incurable or however deep your pain and sorrow run, the Lord who protects the simple-hearted will save you (Vs.6).

Prayer : Abba Father, we thank your mercy and unfailing love towards us, help us to feel your healing power in us and transform our weak souls, minds and bodies with your grace.

Mathews Athiyal, Atlanta Mar Thoma Church






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