Jesus welcomed the people, taught them about the Kingdom of God and healed those in need. Luke 9:11

Seeds of the Kingdom

God Watches Over You

by Jilly Lyon-Taylor

15 February 2018

« Previous Day | Next Day »

The eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.
2 Chronicles 16:9, NIV

One of our younger grandsons has his second birthday this month. It’s an age of rapid development, and he’s been learning new things, increasing his vocabulary almost daily, and learning to string words together, which is very endearing. However, he’s too young to understand what might be dangerous for him, so his parents (or his Granny if she’s around!) need to keep careful watch over him. They’re watching to protect him, to correct him if need be, to encourage him, to comfort him and to teach him. It’s also fun to be together, so it is a time of joy (mostly!) for all concerned.

Thinking about this reminded me of today’s verse, which describes how God is constantly watching over us. He’s not doing this in order to be critical, or to catch us out. He’s a loving Father who wants to keep His children from harm, and to protect us. He knows what’s best for us, and wants to teach us His ways. He also wants to provide for us, giving us everything we need, including strength, peace and comfort in every situation.

He also delights in us (Zephaniah 3:17), as parents delight in their children. I used to love watching our sons when they were younger, taking part in sport, acting in plays, and doing many other things. I would notice the other children who were taking part, but my eyes tended to be fixed on my own sons. I was watching them because I delighted in them, and also because I wanted to provide some support and encouragement to them. That seems to be what today’s verse is saying – that God’s particularly watching over His own children, to be there for them as a source of strength and encouragement.

In 2 Chronicles 16, we read that, even though the Lord was there for King Asa, King Asa hadn’t been relying on Him. He’d taken matters into his own hands and had made a treaty with his enemies. It was in response to this that Hanani, the seer, spoke the words in today’s verse. He reminded Asa that, when he’d looked to the Lord, his enemies had been defeated, but, because he hadn’t done so in this situation, he would continue to be at war.

God is watching over you and me today, to strengthen us and to provide what we need in each situation. However, we need to look to Him and trust in Him, not trying to fix things for ourselves.

Prayer: Lord, thank You that You’re watching over me to provide the strength and comfort I need in each situation. I’m sorry for the times I’ve tried to do things in my own strength. I look to You today and put my trust in You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Jilly Lyon-Taylor is part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Pierrepont. She worked in publishing and then with children in Hong Kong before concentrating on being a full-time mother and serving in the local church. Her desire to see people healed led her to the Luke Nine Eleven Training Scheme(NETS) at Pierrepont, and now she teaches and ministers there.

 

Sign Up Now

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship. Provided full acknowledgement is made to Seeds of the Kingdom as the source, you are also welcome to use it in a non-commercial way and reproduce it in magazines or other Christian websites. The copyright for any commercial use of the material remains with Ellel Ministries International.