April 3 Daily Devotional

The Lord’s Providential Care

Peter G. Feenstra

You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; The river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, For so You have prepared it. Ps. 65:9

Bible Reading

Psalm 65

Devotional

The whole world is governed by the providence of the Lord. The Heidelberg Catechism defines God’s providence as “His almighty ever present power, whereby, as with His hand, He still upholds heaven and earth and all creatures, and so governs them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, food and drink, health and sickness, riches and poverty, indeed all things, come to us not by chance but by His fatherly hand.” This confession demonstrates that God’s providence is not an abstract concept but describes His activity throughout the ages and in our present situation. The Lord, who created this world, does not let it spin off on its own but maintains what He has made.

What people ascribe to natural laws is in fact the providence of God. This is why there is not a year that goes by without the four seasons. God’s hand causes the sun to come up every morning and to set in the evening. When it rains we will say, “It’s raining outside.” How often do we remember this, too, is part of God's providence? Listen again to how David speaks about the weather in Psalm 65:9, “You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, for so You have prepared it.” The world is not run by laws which exist independent of God. In a sermon on the providence of God, Charles Spurgeon once said, “I believe that every particle of dust that dances in a sunbeam does not move an atom more or less than God wishes.” That’s a remarkable affirmation of the providence of God.

That raises a question, “If the Lord rules this world by His hand, how can He allow so much evil to exist in the world?” The Lord is not the author of evil even though He permits evil to exist. He uses the evil intents of human beings for the salvation of His people. When Joseph is sold into Egypt through the evil actions of his brothers he recognizes the providence of God behind it. As he says in Genesis 50:20, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

Believing in the Lord’s providence comforts us immensely. Children of God can be assured God will never let them drop out of His hand.

For further information about this resource, click here.