THE UPPER ROOM DAILY DEVOTIONAL 19 AUGUST 2024, MONDAY MESSAGE
TOPIC: The Wrong Direction
Today’s Reading
Matthew 18:10, 12-14
Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. – Luke 15:4-6 (NIV)
TODAY’S MESSAGE
After attending a football game on a beautiful fall afternoon, my wife, Cecilia, and I became frustrated with the wait time for shuttle buses back to the parking lot; so we decided to hike to our car. It was a nice day, and we wanted some exercise. We tried a shortcut through a wooded area but ended up in an unfamiliar parking lot. We were weary, and we were lost. Suddenly, a golf cart pulled up, driven by a stadium attendant, who asked if he could take us back to the shuttle buses at the stadium. Much relieved, we accepted his offer and returned to find a shuttle that took us to our car in minutes.
This experience reminded me of how our impatience can lead us to want to do things our way, without seeking or waiting on God’s direction. Yet God is faithful. God finds us in the midst of our struggles and invites us to come back to the path. The choice to do so is ours to make, however, and may not be what we had envisioned. But in the end, we will find the love and care of God’s divine providence.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear Father, as we meet the trials of life, strengthen our faith, and help us to feel your abiding love and peace. Amen.
Thought for the Day
I will never get lost following God’s way.
Prayer Focus
Someone who has helped me find my way
The Upper Room Daily Devotional 19 August 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