ESOCS Devotional 3 July 2023: When We Cry

ESOCS Devotional 3 July 2023

MEMORY VERSE: “And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the Lord heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression.”  Deuteronomy 26:7 KJV

TEXT: DEUTERONOMY 26:1-11 (KJV)

And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein;

² That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there.

³ And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess this day unto the Lord thy God, that I am come unto the country which the Lord sware unto our fathers for to give us.

⁴ And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and set it down before the altar of the Lord thy God.

⁵ And thou shalt speak and say before the Lord thy God, A Syrian ready to perish was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous:

⁶ And the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage:

⁷ And when we cried unto the Lord God of our fathers, the Lord heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:

⁸ And the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:

⁹ And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.

¹⁰ And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O Lord, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship before the Lord thy God:

¹¹ And thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you.

Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here

As we go through life on daily basis, let it be settled in our heart that every new level we attain attracts a new devil. The higher you go, the more forces of gravity you have to contend with. However, it is important we state that, such challenges did not come to make us afraid or grow weak but to make us stronger. It did not come to compel us out of the journey but to encourage and energize us. This was the case with the children of Israel who entered Egypt few in number, but suddenly became a great, mighty and populous nation (Deut. 26:5). The Egyptians got threatened by this development and afflicted them heavily; they practically lived in bondage throughout their remaining days in Egypt.

One remarkable thing they did was to cry to God in the state of their pain and deliverance was secured for them. Beloved, no matter how oppressed your life is, if only you can make a cry to God today, then be sure that deliverance will come your way.

Here are the outcomes of their cry:

1. God Heard them: “…the LORD heard our voice…” Yes! God truly hears when we cry to Him in the place of prayer. We confirm to you today that God is a prayer answering God. For every time we call on Him, He is always ready to hear us. His ears are open to attend to our cry.

• God Looked on them: “…and look on our affliction…” The eyes of God are consistently positioned in our direction, as we cry to Him. He surely looks on our tears, pains, labour, affliction and oppression. God knows all that we are passing through in life. He is not blinded to them at all. When you cry to Him, God sees you.

• God intervened for them: “…And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand…” Deut. 26:8. There is always a place of divine intervention when we cry to God. No matter what we are going through in life, the moment we lift up our cry to God, He is moved in our direction and intervene to the dismay and destruction of our enemies.

As you cry to God today, may God hear you, look upon your affliction and intervene for you in the name of Jesus.

• Make your cry to God, not to any element or man. Have absolute faith in Him.
• Until God answers you, don’t stop crying – pray consistently.
• Father, thank you for the invitation to pray and privilege of answered prayers. Command divine intervention for us as we pray in Jesus Name, Amen.

FURTHER READING: Daniel 1:1-end; Luke 2:8-20; Acts 12:12-end

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ESOCS Devotional 3 July 2023