"Commit Your Cause to the Lord"
Sep. 18, 2018
But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me they devised schemes ... But, O LORD of hosts, who judges righteously ... to You have I committed my cause.
~ Jeremiah 11:19-20 (ESV)
The prophet Jeremiah had good reason for his nickname "the weeping prophet." He had a difficult life with enemies all around him. They tried to stop his ministry, imprisoned him, kidnapped him, and sought to kill him. Really, Jeremiah is right up there with Job when it comes to suffering greatly without deserving it!
His situation was extreme, but you've probably tasted a little of that life yourself. It hurts a lot to be the innocent victim of other people's scheming. At such times, we look at the faces around us and wonder what hides behind those smiles. We wonder why people stop talking the moment we enter a room. Sometimes we even wonder if we're just imagining the whole thing -- if we are the crazy ones, and really nobody is doing anything behind our backs at all. But then we catch a chance phrase, or suffer new pain, and we're sure again.
If this is your situation right now, may God help you. It's a terrible place to be in. The temptation is to start doing exactly what your enemies are doing -- to start spying and prying -- to tell lies and make up rumors in return -- to hit first, before they can hurt you again. But of course, that's exactly what God doesn't want us to do. Instead, He calls us to do what Jeremiah did when he said, "O LORD of hosts, who judges righteously ... to You have I committed my cause" (Jeremiah 11:20).
What exactly does it mean, to commit your cause to God? It means to pray and to tell God all the hurt and confusion you are experiencing. It means to admit the truth of your situation to Him -- to cry out to Him about the harm you have suffered, and to honestly admit when you're not sure if a given relationship is healthy or not. It means allowing God to show you all the ways in which you are or are not contributing to the problem, so you have an honest handle on the situation, and neither blame yourself nor praise yourself when you shouldn't.
And then it means to ask God to take the whole mess into His hands and out of yours. It is not your job to pay back those who do evil to you. Your job is to trust yourself to the Lord. God can and will deal with evildoers. God hears the cry of those who have been injured -- even you. God can intervene, and God can rescue you. Maybe not in exactly the way you have been picturing, but then, that's up to Him, isn't it? And He can do it even when we see no way for it to come right again.
Even if we feel like we're surrounded by liars and betrayers, we know one Person who is altogether true and trustworthy -- and that is Jesus Himself. He lay down His life for you and then rose again according to His promise. If He would do that, how could He possibly abandon you now?
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, I entrust myself to You. Keep me in Your hands. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo. Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
The prophet Jeremiah had good reason for his nickname ...
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