A God Who Provides
This is an audio recording of A God Who Provides the Day 13 entry in Today for Seafarers (Vol. 1) devotional by Jason Zuidema.
Listen to the audio by Sheila Margerrison or read the text below:
“At just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died
for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to
die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we
were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much
more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For
if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him
through the death of his Son, how much more, having been
reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this
so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and
death through sin, and in this way death came to all people,
because all sinned . . . how much more did God’s grace and
the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ,
overflow to the many!”
One of the more difficult attitudes to have in life is that of trust. It can be very hard for us to trust others in difficult situations. In order to trust someone, we need to have proof that they are trustworthy. They need to have some sort of professional title, or we need to have known them for a long time. We trust our parents because they took care of us as children. We trust the boatswain on our ship because of his long experience. We trust the chief cook because everyone else says his food is good. Trust is something that is very precious—we could not live without it.
Yet there can be many reasons not to trust people. We might lose trust in an officer who has made a bad decision. We might lose trust in a company that is not treating us properly. We might lose trust in a family member who has not told us the truth.
A key idea in the Bible is that God, and his Son Jesus Christ, can be trusted. God has shown us throughout the history of the world that he provides for his people. He is the one who provides for us in all situations. He demonstrated his love for us even when we had set up barriers and had shown we were not trustworthy. The good news of the Bible is that God has decided to provide for us even though we are not to be trusted. We are the ones who broke promises, but God still sent his Son to save us. He still loves us!
For Further Thought
How do we gain the trust of someone else? Why is trust so important?
Have you ever trusted someone who turned out to be untrustworthy? What was your reaction to his untrustworthiness?
How has God fulfilled his promises in your life?
Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for remembering me even though I have so often forgotten you. You are the God who provides for his people. Please provide your blessing for me and my family. Keep me strong even though I am far away from my family. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
