The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help.
He rescues them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
The righteous person faces many troubles,
but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.
For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous;
not one of them is broken!
Psalm 34:17-20
Have you ever been told something and it didn’t quite resonate until you heard it said a different way? Or been in a room with other people, all hearing the same thing but leaving with completely different thoughts and takeaways? I’d venture to guess that this has happened to all of us at some point, probably at work, maybe in a relationship or even in a weekly dinner party. Sometimes it takes repetition or rephrasing to understand a situation and I often find the same to be true with God’s Word.
I love that in verses 17-20 David shares how the Lord takes care of us, said in four different ways. The first time I read these verses I honestly cruised through, and by the time I got to verse 20 I thought “Wow OK, I get it, I get it, God is close to us. He cares for us. He doesn’t leave us or forsake us.” When I read it a second time, what resonated with me was how many times David tells us these things. God designed each and every one of us uniquely and knows that we don’t all process the same way. He has one clear message to communicate in these verses but wants to make sure that all of his people hear it, not just the ones who resonate with their spirt being crushed or those in need of rescuing, but all of his people.
Grace Gibbar
Thank you, Lord that your Word is living and breathing. Thank you for being our caretaker, the one who rescues us from everything we’re facing and even radiates joy upon our faces while doing so. Help us to look to you when we’re brokenhearted, to trust that because you created each of individually, you also know us so specifically and care for us in the midst of our struggles. Help us to return to these words when we’re troubled and rest in your love and care. Amen.
