If you want to pin or bookmark this devotion, please use the permanent link: Did You Know God Collects Your Tears?
Imagine someone so concerned and involved in your life that they were there whenever you cried, and they wiped every tear from your eyes.
Now go one step further…imagine that person actually caught each tear in a bottle and recorded your sorrow in a ledger.
The psalmist identifies God as that kind of friend:
“You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” Psalm 56:8
In the next verse, the psalmist says, “This I know: God is on my side.”
Sometimes when I shed tears, I feel alone. I even blame God for my sorrows at times, or I wallow in self-pity, bitterness or hopelessness.
And during those times when I am working against God’s purposes in my life, God is always there, calling me back to repentance, forgiveness, and hope.
Today I’m thanking God that even when I’m not on my side…He is!
-------------------
Note: The Psalms often use figurative language, so we shouldn't assume there is an actual jar of our tears in heaven, but this passage effectively transmits how deeply and intimately God cares for us.
Don't miss the final Grandparenting article in this series about Creating Fun Traditions for children and grandchildren.
Dear Subscribers: On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the title link for the devotion quits working shortly after it is sent out. You can read the full devotion here in this email, but to access this particular devotion on site, to pin or bookmark it, you must use this link: Did You Know God Collects Your Tears?
Bible Love Notes
I repeatedly hear Christians claim that God’s blessings and rewards have nothing to do with our efforts.
It’s true that God saves us apart from any effort we make. But Scripture makes it clear that believers will be rewarded according to our efforts:
1. Our priorities, choices, and efforts determine our heavenly treasure (Matthew 6:19-20; 1 Corinthians 3:11-15; Revelation 14:13; 1 Timothy 5:24-25).
2. If we’re faithful with small responsibilities, God promises to bless us with greater ones (Matthew 25:23).
3. Tabitha was noted as a woman of good deeds (Acts 9:36-41), and widows could not receive help from the church unless they were known for good deeds and integrity (1 Timothy 5:9-10).
4. Church leadership is a reward for godly living (1 Timothy 3:1-13).
5. Those persecuted or martyred for the gospel receive great rewards (Matthew 5:11-12; Hebrews 11:37-40).
6. There are special earthly and heavenly rewards for those who sacrifice for the gospel (Mark 10:29-30) and those who help others spread the gospel (Matthew 10:41).
Bible Love Notes
A growing number of professing Christians claim the Bible is not divinely inspired.
That means they think they are God.
How so?
If we believe parts of Scripture are outdated, corrupted, or written by men, we must define truth and error for ourselves. Only God can do that.(1)
Believing the Bible is inaccurate is not only idolatrous. It’s also intellectually foolish:
1. The Bible is extremely trustworthy, more trustworthy than any other ancient manuscript. God allowed us to discover some of the most ancient manuscripts in 1947 (The Dead Sea Scrolls), and those manuscripts confirm that only tiny, insignificant scribal errors have been made in the thousands of years since the original manuscripts were written.(2)
2. All portions of Scripture are written by men. If you don’t believe those men were divinely inspired to write God’s Word, you can’t trust anything in Scripture. Even the words of Jesus were recorded by men.(3)
We can either trust Scripture, or we can become our own god.
I’m trusting Scripture. How about you?
------------------
(1) People who don't trust Scripture very often allow their false teachers to become their god, allowing him/her to tell them what is true in the Bible and what is not.
Please note that nothing in Scripture is "outdated," but not every promise or command in the Old Testament is applicable to New Testament Christians. To read more: Laws, Commands, and Errors.
(2) God is able to safeguard His Word, and He has done that. He would not let human error leave His children without reliable truth. For more on the reliability of God's Word, see: Responding to Atheistic Arguments and Guilty Until Proven Innocent.
(3) See: 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 4:12, 2 Peter 1:20-21, and Why not simply believe the words of Christ?
Bible Love Notes
