Devotion 10 March 2026

In your distress you called and I rescued you. Psalm 81: 7

READING:  Psalm 81

In this Psalm, we hear the Lord saying “In your distress, you called and I rescued you”.

What could be a better thing to hear?

The word ‘distress’ covers a world of meanings, from threat of imminent death to disappointment or boredom.

But when we are distressed in any way, the one thing we want, is to be heard. In fact, we are told, one of the greatest needs in our world is that people are crying out to be heard. Really heard, understood and rescued.

What a wonderful God He is, who knows our need and comes to our aid.

We tend to look at the spiritual giants in the Bible and wish we could be strong like them! But, not so; they also felt their inadequacy. Consider Moses, for example, who was so aware of his own weakness that he prayed, ‘O Lord, please send someone else to do it” (Exodus 4:10-13), before being reassured, “I will be with you”. Jesus often slipped away to pray (Luke 5:16); in His humanity, Jesus knew that He must depend on the Father for all things. He is a model for us of always praying, and of praying for all things (Luke 18:1).

We often fail to pray because we think our case is hopeless or that we are not worthy. It’s encouraging to be reminded that God doesn’t confront us or condemn us for being weak. Rather, He sends His Spirit to us: we read in Romans 8:26, that “the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

And what help does He send?

Firstly, He lifts our burdens, whatever form they take (e.g. v6 “I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket”).

Secondly, He gives us not only what we ask for, or what we need, but the best, the finest (v16) and all that to overflowing!  He asks us to open our mouths, like baby birds in the nest, and He will fill us (v15). And what He gives will satisfy our needs (v16). Ephesians 3:20 tells us of a God who is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us”.

Prayer

O God, I praise You for Your power at work within me, giving me hope and courage in my distress, doing more for me that I could ask or imagine. Thank you, Lord. Amen