What Is Holding You Up? Your Nightly Prayer for May 2, 2025 by Meg Bucher
TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE
“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10 NLT
SOMETHING TO PONDER
The end of each day can bring exhaustion or comfort. The choice is up to us. Regardless of how the day unfolds, we have control of the thoughts in our minds and the way we determine to react to the dealings of each day. It’s a difficult truth to digest, one that challenges the maturity of our faith. Scripture is riddled with commands like “don’t be afraid,” “do not fear,” and “trust me.” It isn’t our ability to execute these commands that the detriment of our days hinges upon. It’s the character of the One who is commanding our obedience.
God is able to quench our fears. He is able to encourage us when we are discouraged. He is able to calm us when we are afraid and strengthen us when we are weak. None of this looks as we think it will, like the perfectly wrapped storybook ending of a movie. A win in our lives can look – and feel like- defeat. Today’s verse reminds us of our core need for Christ Jesus because it is through Him we come to the Father for what it proclaims.
Fear is part of our reality. Discouragement litters our days. Weakness is the human capacity. Victory often eludes us- which is why it’s so sweet to behold!!! However, in Christ, we are “more than conquerors.” In Christ, the Holy Spirit of the Living God lives in us, calming our fears, strengthening us through weakness, and helping us find our way through each day. We are created for a deep and connective relationship with God in an exact and purposeful way, made available to us by Jesus’ very palpable sacrifice on the cross. It is His victory that allows us to be held up victoriously.
We are the victory. His victory. So we do not need to fear, but to come as we are, and walk with him through each purposed and carefully counted day of our lives.
YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER
Father, You are amazing. Thank you for reminding us who you are and that we are unequivocally yours. Help us to hand our fears, weaknesses, and days over to you. Replace any lies with truth, God. Comfort us at the end of every day with what has been accomplished in Your name. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON TODAY
1. Read today’s verse again three more times.
2. Reflect on what went wrong today and what went right.
3. Ask God to help you believe He is with you, helping you, now more than ever.
The Bible is a great source of spiritual power, encouragement and wisdom. Scripture says, “Open my eyes, so that I may see the wonderful truths in Your law” (Psalm 119:18). If you are looking to learn, correct, train or encourage others toward maturity in Christ, the Bible is the book you should turn to. As you begin reading Scripture more and more, certain questions will begin to show up, some of them related to God. In fact, during the Christian spiritual journey, followers of Christ are forced to eventually face some basic faith-related questions. These questions will not be easy to answer. Some of these will challenge our belief systems, what we think about God and what we think about ourselves. However, these questions are critical and every believer needs to know how to answer them. The answers to these questions can also help you to feel confident as you share your faith with others. Here are six questions all Christians will eventually ask.
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What is the Trinity?
Many people struggle with understanding the Trinity. The Holy Trinity is the belief that one God exists in Three Persons – God the Son, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. This generally presents the difficult question: Is it three gods or one?
What makes the Trinity particularly difficult to understand is our understanding of who a person is. While a person can look, act or even sounds like someone else, a person can’t actually be another person. So how can God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit be one person? While it isn’t easy to comprehend, God doesn’t live with our earthly limitation given His complexity. Jesus, the Son of God can be different from our Heavenly Father, and yet the same. No, you’re not crazy to struggle to comprehend how three can be one. It goes against our logic.
While no specific passage states that God exists in three persons, we do see evidence for the Trinity in the Bible. Matthew 28:19 is an example: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” We also see this taught in 2 Corinthians 13:14: “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” Scripture teaches that God has certain characteristics and applies them to three Persons – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and these three persons are all one God.
While it is impossible to completely understand God as three persons, and also as one Being, the Trinity reminds us of God’s complexity and His greatness.
What does it mean to be “born again” or “saved”?
Salvation commonly referred to as “being saved” means deliverance or redemption from sin and its consequences. We are told in Romans 5:8 that God demonstrated His love for us through the death of His son, because of our sins. Ephesians 2:5 tells us, “even though we were dead because of our sins, [God] gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved.” In order to receive salvation, we have to be born again. We commonly hear the terms, "born again" again and "saved" in Christian circles. They are two of the most popular phrases used by-present day Christians, but many can’t pinpoint the definition when they are asked to. When you are saved, or born again, you experience a spiritual transformation, a total change of heart. To be born again is to be saved.
Why does God allow bad things to happen?
One common question that even Christians ask is why bad things happen? If God exists, why is there evil in the world? This is a difficult stumbling block and question for many people. The simplest way to look at this question is to examine God’s nature and His desire for mankind. Look at the logic. God loves us and wants us to love Him back. And how could we love Him back unless we have the freedom not to love. Evil is choosing not to love. So when God gave us the freedom to choose, He gave us not only our greatest blessing, but He also gave us our greatest curse because we can choose to do right or choose to do wrong. The reason there’s evil in the world is not because of God, but because He gave us the freedom to choose.
How does free will affect my faith?
Most believers eventually encounter the age-old question that continues to be debated today: Do I choose God or does God choose me? This basically asks two things: Is God in control of everything? In other words is God ‘sovereign’ and are we humans responsible for actions – in particular, for the way we respond to God? At first glance, it looks as though these two things don’t go together. But the Bible repeatedly holds them side-by-side without implying that affirming one means denying the other. The biggest place where we see God’s sovereignty and human responsibility together is at the cross. Jesus was crucified because of the evil intent of wicked man. This is a bad thing! But even in their wickedness, these men can’t escape God’s Will.
Does God hear the prayers of unbelievers?
John 9:31 declares, “We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does His will.” It has also been said that, “the only prayer that God hears from a sinner is the prayer for salvation.” As a result, some believe that God does not hear and/or will never answer the prayers of an unbeliever. In context, though, John 9:31 is saying that God does not perform miracles through an unbeliever. First John 5:14-15 tells us that God answers prayers based on whether they are asked according to His Will, nothing prevents God from answering such a prayer – according to His Will. Yes, there are instances in which God does not answer the prayers of an unbeliever. At the same time, in His grace and mercy, God can intervene in the lives of unbelievers in the response to their prayers.
As believers of God, we will be faced with questions that will challenge our faith. This isn’t a bad thing. It’s good for us to ask questions about our faith because it secures us in what we believe. Remember, Jesus’ ministry revolved around asking questions. When we thoughtfully examine our faith, we can then have a deeper relationship with God. Whether or not you know it, God has a special calling for your life and wants you to understand His very nature, which is love.
Is any one among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects. Eli'jah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit.
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