It’s Our Choice: Pray or Be Prey

By: Karen Umaña

Scripture: Matthew 26:41, 1 Corinthians 16:13, Psalm 119:98, Isaiah 40:29-31

Just as a lion stalks his prey, we are sought after by our enemy, through our weaknesses. Just as the great David had his weaknesses, we also all have our very own. And because David knew his weakness, he relied on God’s strength, forgiveness, and guidance through worship and prayer.

As a child, I used to get bad grades in school, and my brother got good grades. When our report cards came, I used to beg him not to show our parents. But he wasn’t too easily manipulated until I would start crying. I knew his weakness. With my mom, if I wanted something, I knew I had to volunteer to do a chore here and there to get what I wanted. With my Dad, I just had to call him “Daddy,” instead of the normal “Dad.”

Our weaknesses change us, and sometimes our weaknesses make us who we are. If we have a weakness for a person, or food, or drugs, alcohol, gambling, etc., these things can rule our lives and distort our perspective, until that weakness becomes our reason for living. The more we give in to the weakness, the farther away from God we become. God tells us to bring it all to Him; He will deal with it and it will be His problem and not ours. But we must bring it to Him.

David committed a sin with Bathsheba, and he was blinded by his weakness. Even when Nathan was describing it to him, David was still blind to what he had done until the prophet directly told him, and David realized what he had done. There was no way to undo his actions. What was done was done. All he could do was repent.

Reflection: God wants us to realize where we are headed when falling prey to our weaknesses, before what is done is done.

Prayer: Lord, let me recognize where I may fail the most, and bring to you the weakness in me that I cannot change on my own.

Pray for Seventh Day Baptists in New Zealand, Nicaragua, and Nigeria.