JANUARY 21, 2015
Pointing
To God
Read: Deuteronomy
8:11-18
Remember now your Creator . . . before the difficult days come. —Ecclesiastes 12:1
“God bless our
homeland, Ghana” is the first line of Ghana’s national anthem. Other African
anthems include: “O Uganda, may God uphold thee,” “Lord, bless our nation”
(South Africa), and “O God of creation, direct our noble cause” (Nigeria).
Using the anthems as prayers, founding fathers called on God to bless their
land and its people. Many national anthems in Africa and others from around the
world point to God as Creator and Provider. Other lines of anthems call for
reconciliation, transformation, and hope for a people often divided along
ethnic, political, and social lines.
Yet today, many
national leaders and citizens tend to forget God and do not live by these
statements—especially when life is going well. But why wait until war, disease,
storms, terrorist attacks, or election violence occurs before we remember to
seek God? Moses warned the ancient Israelites not to forget God and not to stop
following His ways when life was good (Deut. 8:11). Ecclesiastes 12:1 urges us
to “remember now your Creator . . . before the difficult days come.”
Getting close to God
while we are strong and healthy prepares us to lean on Him for support and hope
when those “difficult days” in life come.
Father, I always need You. Forgive me for
thinking I am sufficient in myself. Help me to
follow You and Your ways whether life is easy
or difficult. Thank You for caring for me.
Remembering
our Creator can be our personal anthem.
Insight
Deuteronomy records a
significant moment in Old Testament history. At the end of Israel’s wilderness
wanderings, Moses reaffirmed the laws of God. A generation had died in the
wilderness and the new generation needed these lessons to prepare them for entry
into the land of promise. The challenges that awaited them in Canaan made it
important to remind the people of both God’s provisions and God’s instructions.
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012