THE UPPER ROOM DAILY DEVOTIONAL 16 MAY 2024, THURSDAY MESSAGE
TOPIC: God’s Healing Power
TODAY’S READING
2 Kings 20:1-5
1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3 “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: 5 “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord.
KEY VERSE: Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, “This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord.” – 2 Kings 20:5 (NIV)
TODAY’S MESSAGE
My elder brother’s death was the first big loss we experienced as a family, and his death hit us hard. It was difficult to imagine not being able to see or talk to my brother — even for him to annoy me, as he did most of the time.
In the weeks following my brother’s death, I held on to these words in Isaiah 43:2 — “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” The river of death certainly didn’t sweep over us; instead through my brother’s death my family remembered how much we loved him, and we started healing together as a family.
My brother’s passing brought to light what was important, and we tried to rebuild and reconnect as a family. We have been praying for healing. Following my brother’s death, God’s healing power has drawn my family together in love.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, thank you for your healing presence in our times of bereavement and for the assurance that you will always be with us. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
God hears my prayers and offers me healing.
PRAYER FOCUS
Families seeking healing
The Upper Room Daily Devotional 16 May 2024 Message. The Upper Room is a daily devotional magazine published in more than 30 languages and 100 countries around the world. The daily meditations are written by readers of the magazine and others interested in sharing their faith experiences through writing—both laity and clergy, published authors and new writers. The meditations are stories of real people working to live faithfully with the Bible as their touchstone. Every day, readers of The Upper Room around the world read the same story in many different languages and pray the same prayer together. Read More