Morning Thought: Many times on this journey, I’ve felt struck down, stuck in the dust. What God has called me to do has caused gut-wrenching pain. On top of that, my physical battles with Crohn’s Disease have hit me more times than I can remember. I wish it weren’t so. I wish I could tell you that I always felt strong. But I’ve learned something from the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Dalet ד, which means door (delet דלת) and represents the poor (dal דל).
How do the two concepts––the door and the poor––converge? Being poor and needy is a doorway into God’s power and riches (Matt. 5:3). Through affliction, God brings us back into the dust (aphar עפר), the place he originally formed us (Gen. 2:7). And when you cry out to God in the dust, you are revived and reformed by his breath and hand.
Listen to the beginning of Psalm 119 Dalet ד, which begins with the Hebrew word davqah דבקה, cling. “Down in the dust [aphar עפר], I deem the journey too much; Revive me by your word” (Psalm 119:25, my poetic translation).
Invasion of Light 