Thought for the Day

Verse 1 - This is one of my favorite faith-building verses because it tells me that God has the power to change the hearts of men, even kings. This is easy for God, who can change the course of great rivers. It is important to know this, because if the devil stirs up evil in someone's heart against me, I know that the Lord can change that person's heart. I am thankful that I learned this truth early in my walk with God! I have watched God turn nasty situations around many times in my life. Frequently, the very people the enemy used to come against me later apologized for their behavior.

One of the greatest lessons that the Lord taught me is to immediately turn to Him in prayer whenever a problem comes up in my relationships with people and ask why it is happening. First, I examine my own heart. I ask God if any of my actions or attitudes caused the problem, and if I need to ask forgiveness or change anything. I have learned to humble myself first before God and then before the angry party. If I am not at fault in a situation, I am careful to maintain an attitude of love and respect toward them, and trust God to defend me. I've seen hearts softened toward me when I practice overcoming evil with good (Romans 12:19-21) and took the position of trusting Him to defend me, even as Jesus did (1 Peter 2:21-23). Contention comes from pride (Proverbs 13:10). If we humble ourselves and refuse to be contentious, God will defend us. He will take bad situations and turn them into something good for us, which brings glory to Him!

Verse 2 - People do what is right in their own eyes, but God looks into our hearts to see what motivates us. Good deeds may be done out of the desire for man's approval or attention rather than out of love and the true desire to serve. Sometimes our deeds may not appear worthwhile to others, but if we are obediently serving God, He is pleased–and that is all that really matters. A mother who stays home to raise her children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord may be derided by other women set on pursuing their careers. However, God looks at the commitment of the stay-at-home mom as she ministers to her children and is well pleased, seeing the heart of a mother who puts her children before herself. It is not wrong for women to work outside the home; some women have no choice, being the sole providers for their families. However, the point is that God sees our hearts and judges us by what He finds there. We can rely on God absolutely, for He is omniscient (knows all things), omnipresent (everywhere present at the same time), and sovereign over all things.