I've Got the Blues: Devotions From Time of Grace MinistryBeispiel

INTRODUCTION

The blues is a musical gift to Americans and the world. The songs come from the African-American experience, birthed from the pain of slavery, hopeless toil, and separation. The blues' ancestors were work songs, call-and-response verses to make the day go faster. Blues songs in church are called spirituals.

"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen;
Nobody knows my sorrow."

Slavery is gone from the American scene, but the blues are not. Everybody hurts. Everybody sins, and everybody is the victim of someone
else's selfishness and cruelty.

"There is a balm in Gilead to make the wounded whole; There is a balm in Gilead to soothe the sin-sick soul."

What are you struggling with right now? Money blues? More debts than assets? Left by someone you loved? Career going nowhere?

"I looked over Jordan and what did I see?
A band of angels comin' after me,
Comin' for to carry me home."

Here is a word from God for each day of your month. May God comfort your heart to know that He listens to everything on your mind, has a tender heart for you, and is already planning how He will ease your troubled mind.

--Pastor Mark Jeske