Call Upon God in the Day of Trouble
“Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”
(Psalm 50:15)
It’s funny how you can read something, understand it, but never fully get the true meaning of it until you have to do it. We’ve all been in situations where we have had the chance to call on the Lord in our day of trouble. Over the last couple of years, more people have had a chance to experience it through the pandemic, illness, loss of loved ones, loss of jobs, financial difficulties, and through emotional tribulation such as fear, anger, depression, anxiety, etc. The question is…how many actually called out to the Lord? How many turned to Him and gave Him the chance to help?
Having covid can bring uncertainty and a range of emotions. Fear tends to rise up and want to battle with you whether you are recovering at home or in the hospital. Depression can creep in as you stay inside day after day during recovery as it leaves you with plenty of time to think. Being faced with an illness where some come through and some don’t, it definitely makes you take a closer look at your life.
There were moments at night as I laid in my bed where fear tried to touch me. At some point, I pulled out my Bible and came to Psalm 50:15 – “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” This Psalm brought me so much peace. Another Psalm I found comforting was Psalm 56:3:
3″Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.
So whenever fear tried to touch me, I would repeat these scriptures out loud. I would tell God that He was bigger than my fear and this illness. Part of healing is having a positive mind frame. Many doctors will tell you that if have a positive outlook prior to surgery, it can make a difference in your recovery. No one ever knows how things will turn out, but I had to remember the mile markers in my life. The times in the past when different situations caused me fear or anxiety and what I did to overcome it. I first recited scripture that promised to help in times of trouble. I then began to sing. I would put on worship music and sing. Psalm 5:11 states:
But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.
One song that ministered to me was “Even If” by Mercy Me. It brought me great comfort because it’s how I felt:
I know You’re able and I know You can
Save through the fire with Your mighty hand
But even if You don’t
My hope is You alone
I knew that Jesus was able to save me through the fire with His mighty hand, but even if He didn’t, my hope was still in Him alone.
In times of difficulty, distress, worry and fear, the enemy will use these times to challenge your faith. He will use these times to magnify the problem or situation to break your spirit. But when we keep our focus on Christ, He strengthens our spirit. He provides the hope and faith we need to continue on. With everything currently going on around us, it’s easy to get lost in what we see and hear going on in the world. Yet, in the middle of the storm, we must remember that Jesus is in our boat. We just have to call upon Him and He will see us through the storm. And even if things do not turn out as we planned, it’s ok because we are in His hands and He will do what is best for us.
The final thing I did each night was listen to sermons. This gave me time to listen and learn, to fill myself with teaching of the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 states the following:
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
This is so true. The Word of God is powerful. It can bring life, healing, joy, comfort, peace, hope, faith, etc. Romans 10:17 states:
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
So for me, listening to the Word help to increase my faith.
We are in troubling times, but we are not without hope. We have a powerful and loving God who is waiting for us to call out to Him, to seek His face and have a relationship with Him. He will increase our faith, bring peace and comfort and will heal us not just physically but also spiritually, which is what we are in need of most. He will also glorify Himself in our situation and which can lead others to Him.
Though we are still in recovery, God has been gracious to us. When we cried out, He heard. When we softly prayed, He heard. We can’t allow fear, depression, anxiety, illness, and losses of any kind to be bigger in our eyes. We must turn to the One who is bigger than all of those things. We must turn to Jesus, call upon Him and then trust that He will answer and do what is right for us.
Whatever you are going through, don’t let another day go by without seeking God. He will hear you and He will bring the peace in the midst of your storm.
12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:12-13).