#JESUS2018 - Daily DevotionalsSample

## PRAISE IN THE MIDDLE OF PROBLEMS Even in the midst of great distress Jesus finds a reason to worship God. The hymn that traditionally closes the Passover Seder refers to Psalm 118:1 “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.” Jesus prepared himself and his disciples for what lay ahead. He knew that it would be hard and challenging. With this song, he proclaimed who the Lord of his life was, and who was in control. Later the disciples followed his example. In Acts 16 we read that Paul and Silas had been tortured by authorities and then put into prison and they were singing hymns to God. When our firstborn son was 2 years old, he became very sick. He couldn’t breathe, he was dying and doctors couldn’t help us. First we tried to fight it, but in the end (5 months later) we simply said to God: “No matter what happens to our lovely son, You are The Lord of our son and our lives, everything is under your control”. After this prayer and our decision, it took 3 weeks before our son was healed without any medicine. That does not mean that we have to deny our pain. But we can be sure that neither fear, nor pain, nor death have the last word in our life. ## ACTION STEP: Maybe you are going through a hard or challenging time in your life. Sing a song of worship to God when your fear/doubts/pain is becoming bigger. Focus on who Jesus is and what He has done for you. ##### Natasha and Sergey Mazhuga, ICF Tel Aviv