Psalm 31: 23- 24 (NIV)
Love the Lord, all his saints! The Lord preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.
The New American Standard Version says, “Be strong and let your heart take courage.” We all have reason to be of strong courage and full of hope because the Lord fills the heart of the faithful. He preserves the faithful. He is our shepherd tending us, looking after us, meeting our needs. He is the good shepherd. He preserves us through his Word and his righteousness.
Don’t allow your heart to be weary. I know the world crumbles in on you from time to time, but do not let that remain your course. Look up unto the horizon. No matter how dreary, there will be another sunny day. No matter how weary you are, there is restoration. Love the Lord and allow him to refill your tank. Give yourself to him.
He really can heal every wound you have, if you will let him. He can do nothing without your permission though. There must always be cooperation between us and the Spirit of God.
Where you see a promise of God you will often see a condition precedent, meaning there is something we must do first. God is a gentleman. He is not going to run over you even if it is to do something nice for you. He awaits your invitation; then he will heal every injury, fix every broken thing and protect and prepare your future paths. In this verse you see that the first thing is to love the Lord. When you love Him, you trust Him. When you trust Him, you begin to let Him in. The next thing you know, you are asking Him into all of the sealed off rooms of your heart so that He can mend every hurt you have ever had.
It begins with you loving the Lord. Love him with all of your heart, with all of your mind and with all of your strength. He is faithful to care for you in every way. Therefore, you can be strong of heart and full of hope because He has promised to preserve you. You don’t have to earn His graces either. You need only love Him and give Him permission to be Lord of your life. You must allow Him to shepherd you. Be strong and courageous because you have a Lord who gives you hope. Release yourself into His arms. He is a loving father, and you are safe.