Topic: Health of Your Countenance [Monday, 10th July 2017]
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God. Psalms 42:11
Time and again, we run into circumstances and situations that wear us down. And though we pray and confess that we trust in God to make all things work in our favour, we don’t seem to be able to shake off the thoughts of heaviness, and this wearies us. We are not alone. The book of Psalms is a book of prophecy and spiritual hymns. Now, prophesy not only means revelation that tells us what tomorrow holds, it is also instructions on how to live today to ensure tomorrow comes. The Psalmist, in Psalms 42, did not enjoy the presence of God until he decided to trust God and praise Him: “…hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him…” (Psalms 42:5).
He needed to praise God so that the burden upon His heart will be lifted. In verse 5 he says, “for I will yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” This simply means I’ll praise Him for when I do, His countenance will help lift up the burden on my soul. By verse 11 His confession changed, and he called God the “the health of my countenance.” This is just amazing.
Why did the Psalmist need his countenance to change? Because he knew that only with joy can we draw out of the well of salvation. You’ll notice that whenever you’re feeling down, nothing seems to work. Your relationship with God feels like it’s on hold, everything around just doesn’t seem right. This is because sadness puts a veil around us that makes us unable to access the pleasures of salvation. This is why you need to snap out of it and say, like the Psalmist, “why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God” (Psalms 42:11). After praising Him you’ll experience a lift in your spirit, and you’ll begin to see things in a different light. And if your thoughts want to bring back the burden, praise Him again.
Keep winning daily.
Prayer:
Dear Father, thank You for all the good things You have in store for me. Thank You that You always wants me to be joyful. Whenever I’m down, help me remember that only You are the health of my countenance, and I’ll praise You, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
By Esun Tekeme
