Trusting God... Always

My friend is living by faith today. Money has always been tight for her and her family. She has two teenagers and one pre-teen. Her husband was laid off from his job and has had difficulty finding one in this struggling economy. That has all been a challenge, but now he has been diagnosed with a condition that makes it even more difficult t find a job, and could greatly affect their future. Right now, the future for them looks dark and scary. There are so many unknowns. 


But here is the last post my friend made on facebook last night: “Every blessing you pour out, I turn back to praise. When the darkness closes in, still I will say "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord. Blessed be Your Name.” 


And her first post this morning: ‎"My foes are many, they rise against me but I will hold my ground. I will not fear the war. I will not fear the storm. My help is on the way. Oh my God...He will not delay. My refuge and strength Always. I will not fear, His promise is true, my God will come through....Always." 


That is walking by faith. That is courage. Trusting in God even in the face of fear and an uncertain future... Day and night, even while she slept. This is how lives, attitudes and hearts are changed. This is how we get to know God. It’s not always easy, but God will come through. Maybe not in a way that we would expect, but He will come through for them, and they will come through knowing Him and trusting Him on a deeper level. A level they have never known before. 


That is Unswerving Hope!

The Year of the Lord's Favor

Isaiah 61

Four years ago at this time, I was determined that 2008 was going to be the Year of the Lord's favor for my family--a year of new beginnings. I claimed Isaiah 61 and hung on with all my might. I even sent out New Year's cards with that scripture as the focal point. At the end of 2008, nothing had changed. Actually, some things had changed, in fact, life was getting worse instead of better. I felt completely abandoned by God. I had celebrated with friends and their new beginnings--marriages and new babies. It seemed like everyone I knew was finding favor with God but me, and I felt cheated.

As I wrestled with God through the first few months of 2008, I realized that what I was really looking for was happy endings. In fact, I was so busy looking for happy endings, I couldn't see the new beginnings that were right in front of me. They were not the new beginnings that I wanted or expected. But now, looking back over those four years, I can focus and see that there were new beginnings that year. It's like when my 4-year-old (yes, that's one of our new beginnings--just not the way I expected it) wants me to see something and she holds it about an inch from my eyes. I can't see things that close. I need her to move it farther away from my eyes so that I can focus on it. (And that distance gets farther and farther as I get older!)

My life, and the lives of my family members are still not perfect, and they won't be as long as we live on planet earth, but I'm a little better at seeing the potential of the uncertainties in life as new beginnings. I'm determined to quit looking for the happy endings--those may not come until heaven--and, instead, look at the chaos of my life with hope.

May 2012 be a blessed year of new beginnings, and may we all look at them through the eyes of Unswerving Hope!

Surely the Lord is in the Place!

I read my “Jesus Calling” Devotional this morning, and it talked about Jacob when he was in the desert, fleeing for his life. (Genesis 28) When he lay down to sleep that night, all he had for a pillow was a rock. But he had a dream about the presence of God. When he woke up, he exclaimed, “Surely the Lord is in this place and I did not know it!”

The devotional continued to instruct me to proclaim those same words at times when the Lord seems so distant. Then ask Him to reveal Himself to me in that very situation. So that’s what I will do…

… when uncertainty clouds my view of the future, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in the place!”

… when fear consumes my present, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

… when I’ve blown it and fallen into sin yet again, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

… when life feels completely out of control and there’s nothing I can do to change things, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

… when darkness encroaches and attempts to consume me, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

… when self-pity launches me into a downward spiral, I will say, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

Then I will plead with Jesus to reveal Himself to me in those desolate places, and I will praise Him and declare that He is my Unswerving Hope.