Good morning people who continue to go to the Lord for all that you need.

Psalms 28:6-7 NIV Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.

So many of the Psalms of David start with praise and finish with praise. What a great way to live.

And yet, in between, there are many cries for help and declarations of truth. These two things are not in opposition to each other. Honesty before God is not the same as a lack of faith. In fact, it can often be a great starting point that leads us into a deeper encounter with God and His wonderful heart towards us.

We need the mercy of God when we miss the mark. As Paul writes in Romans 3:23, ‘all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’ Not one person is without the need for God’s mercy. But it is equally true that not one person is outside of the reach of God’s mercy! What wonderful news! If you ask, you will receive!

We all need God’s strength on a daily basis. Sure, sometimes we ‘feel’ like we need it more than other days, but the truth is, we always, completely need to rely upon and live in and from the strength of God. Paul again made this clear in Ephesians 6:10 when he rightfully instructs us to ‘be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.’ Our strength is and always will be insufficient, but God’s strength is always more than enough!

God is our shield; our protection from the schemes, plans and attacks of the enemy. I don’t think any of us need convincing that we are in a spiritual battle. And this battle is not against other people – although we often confuse this issue. Our battle is against the powers of darkness who are always focused on stealing, killing and destroying. Therefore, we need to be vigilant, and we also need to be confident in the Lord as our shield.

Let’s lean in more tomorrow on these wonderful verses of truth.