Morning Devotionals

by Don Emmitte

 

February 24th, 2008

 

“Cold Winter Night”

I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. (Psalm 77:11-14 NIV)

When I read the verses from our reading today I was brought back to some of the times I spent deer hunting in past years. There were some of those cold winter nights when I would awaken and just walk outside for a little while to look up into the cloudless sky. It’s strange how vast the stars are in an unencumbered sky like that! There are no city lights or buildings to block the view and it seems as if you are the only one in the universe.

As I looked up and saw the starlight and moonlight, with the only noise being the breeze blowing through the mesquite trees, I felt very small in comparison. I knew the meaning of the verse, What god is so great as our God? It would be easy and perhaps expected, to say that I heard the Lord speak to me then. If He did, I didn’t immediately get the message. Instead, I merely walked back into the trailer and lay back down to await the dawn.

As I look back on the incident, the Lord did indeed speak to me with a two-fold message: First, we are never completely alone in this universe; He is always present with us. Isn’t that the real heart of the matter? When we know the presence of God in our life, everything else is small in comparison. All the trials and difficulties, the challenges and burdens shrink before His presence.

Secondly, the messages of comfort the Lord gives us are not always written in neon lights, but often take a simpler form, whether it’s a sense of wonder or the comfort of a friend. It is up to us to discern them. I have always found that God’s “still small voice” brings the perfect answer to all of my questions. It’s a little harder to hear than the din of the world, but it always has the right answer.

I wonder if you might need to walk outside and gaze into the stars tonight. If not that, perhaps you do need to withdraw into the quietness of your heart and renew your acquaintance with the God above all the heavens and earth!