Daily Devotionals

This Is The Day

Posted in Fear/Anxiety

Scripture:  “The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad.” Psalm 118:24 (NIV)

Do you ever wake up just before your alarm goes off in the morning? 

I’ve done that now for several months. Unconsciously, I’m anticipating the alarm, and I’m not fond of it. We call it exactly what it is – an alarm – loud and jolting and very disagreeable!  

When I wake up 20 minutes before my alarm goes off, I know I won’t be able to go back to sleep. So instead, I just lie there waiting to be startled. Often, as I wait, I’m thinking of all I might have already forgotten to do. Did I take the chicken out of the freezer to defrost? Whose birthday have I forgotten? What time is that Zoom meeting? Will I be able to get everything done? And on and on.

Recently, I’ve tried a new tactic as I lie awake: saying a simple prayer over my day. Only a couple of sentences, but it feels right to start my day with gratitude and dependence, rather than anxiety and frustration. Mostly, it helps me to gently get out of bed and begin in a positive, non-alarming way.

Psalm 118:24 reminds us to whom the day belongs – God. Not only has he made it, he has asked us to rejoice in it! The Common English Bible translation says: “This is the day the Lord acted; we will rejoice and celebrate in it!”

When I start my day with the longest to-do list imaginable, I don’t feel like rejoicing or celebrating. I’m fixated on the insufficiency of my plans, my work, my control.

But when I look at this verse, I’m reminded that God has made the day. He will most certainly act in it. I should rejoice that he cares enough to enter the details of my daily life.

Before my feet hit the ground, he is already there, providing all I need for the day, challenging me in the ways I need to grow. He has good plans for the people I will come in contact with, and he has good plans for me too. 

Isn’t that worth acknowledging as we start the day?

“This [day in which God has saved me] is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24, Amplified Bible).

Today is a GOOD day!

Prayer: Father, thank you for this new day. May my thoughts and words and actions be pleasing to you. I am ready and waiting for you to act in my life today, no matter how it changes my plans. This is your day. I will rejoice and celebrate in it! Amen and Amen.

Submitted by Natalie Hall, Missionary