Category: God’s Promises

Feeling desperate? “Come to me,”-God

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Do you ever feel that nobody cares what is happening to you or will take time to listens to your emotional distress? Do you feel there is no one to help you in your time of need? All of us feel that way from time to time in varying degrees, but what do you do about it??? The Bible gives us hope as God promises to be that someone for each of us. David wrote in Psalm 34 about just those feelings and knew where to turn for help, comfort and understanding.

Psalm 34:17-18 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears
    and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit.

Promise: God promises to hear our cries for help, deliver us from troubles, comfort us when we are brokenhearted and revive us when our spirits are crushed.

I take great comfort in this promise as it is rooted in God’s love. His love can find us and bring restoration. God desires to help those who love Him and He is committed to us. He wants to deliver us, as many times we are caught in the consequences of our own sins. I have experienced God’s deliverance in these times by a lessening of the severity of the consequences. I recognized His hand in my life and the circumstances and thanked Him for His help. It did not take away the consequence, but showed me how much worse it could have been without His help. When I have needed comfort, I have been overwhelmed by the way God uses others to come alongside me and put an arm around me or provide me exactly what I need. We may think we are alone, but God uses others in our lives to do His work. I need to keep that in mind when I feel nudged to help a brother or sister, call or write a note. The Holy Spirit is within us and can minister to others through us. When my spirits have been crushed, God has lifted and pointed me in a new direction. It was not instantaneous but little by little He revived and renewed me. I claim His promise from Joel 2:25a “I will restore to you the years  that the swarming locust has eaten,” I have definitely felt His restorative powers in my life. It is not the same as it was before I was crushed but new and different- restored! Praise God! Experiencing God’s love in these tangible ways deepens and confirms our faith. I confirms how much He loves and cares for us.

What we can know from these verses: God is accessible- He hears and listens, God is merciful and tenderhearted, God cares about me and my troubles, God can and does uplift and restore.

Lenten Reflection: Where have I felt God’s comfort, help or restoration in my life that I need to thank Him for His expressions of love towards me? Who is God nudging me to minister to in His name?

Related verses: 1 John 5:14-15, Psalm 103:8, Nahum 1:7, Joel 2:25, Isaiah 40:30-31, Psalm 90:1-2.

May you take strength from this promise in Psalm knowing God truly cares for you and will uphold and restore you if you will turn to Him. The key here is we have to humble ourselves and turn to Him for help. Because Christ died on the cross and rose again, we can come to Him in confidence knowing He will be there for us!
Linda

Walking in Trust

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Today’s promise comes from my favorite chapter of Romans, Romans 8:28. This is a verse to be claimed at all times, especially when you don’t understand what is happening. It can give you courage and backbone that comes directly from God.

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Promise: God promises He can and does use (work) all things for the good of the believer.

This is a much quoted verse that give comfort to believers. When we face difficult circumstances such as: major problems, dire consequences, financial reversals, the death of a loved one, natural disasters or tragedies, it is only human nature to question God and say, Why me? Why did this have to happen? Why did you allow it God? The believer in Jesus can cling to this verse knowing that God keeps His promises and will bring good out of the circumstances for us and for His kingdom. Many times the good is evident right away and sometimes it is a long time coming or not evident at all in our lifetime. As believers we have to cling to this verse and claim its truth! We know God’s intent is always for our good and His glory. We have to trust Him knowing He is sovereign and His will absolutely will come to pass in His way. We need to hold on and have faith in our Heavenly Father.

What we can know from this verse: no circumstance is beyond God’s control, His intentions are good towards me, God has a special purpose for me as a believer and God’s ways are not our human ways and we have to trust Him with the past, present and future.

Lenten reflections – Am I harboring anger towards God about a situation that I need to seek His forgiveness? What am I facing today that I need to trust Him, knowing He has my best interest at heart?

Related verses: 2 Chronicles 20:6, Psalm 34:8, Lamentations 3:25, Nahum 1:7, John 10:29, Acts 17:26, Ephesians 1:11-14, Philippians 2:12-13 and 2 Timothy 1:9-10.

I pray that this verse or one of these related verses will encourage your trust in God and that you may catch a glimpse of his plans for you. Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, so that you can be assured of His love, care and plans for you and your future.

Linda

Lent 2025, Let the Promise Journey Begin

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Our world is filled with chaos and turmoil. Keeping our eyes on Jesus will give us wisdom and discernment for navigating the waters of life that seem to swirl constantly around us. Habakkuk 3:17-19 provides a window into the hope we have in God.

Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
    and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
    and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
    and the cattle barns are empty, Does your world resemble this picture?
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
    I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! Is your resolve set in the Lord?
19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
    He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
    able to tread upon the heights. Are you willing to trust in Him?

Promise: God promises He will be my strength and joy and enable me to endure life’s trials.

If you had a chance to profess your faith and trust in God, would your words be similar to the prophet Habakkuk’s? He had learned that God alone would be His joy and strength in hard times. He knew he could count upon God to be there and give him the surefootedness of a deer when things got hard or steep. This confession of faith came after struggling with God, questioning Him and seeking to understand his world, faith and God’s actions or inactions. Doesn’t that describe each one of us? We say, why God did you allow such and such to take place? Why is this happening to me? Our answer, like Habakkuk’s comes down to trust and faith in Almighty God. Isaiah 55:8 “for my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither ar e you ways my ways,” declares the LORD. Just like Habakkuk, we have to acknowledge and trust in the sovereignty of God and depend upon His strength. May your resolve be empowered today as you step out and trust God in every trial you are facing.

From this promise we see: trusting God brings joy, God is our Savior, God is Sovereign, and God provides what we need to be able to endure or rise above the trials of life.

Questions for myself in this Lenten time of reflection. How is my trust in God growing? What joy from God am I experiencing in the trials of life I am currently facing?

God’s Word is deep and provides many other places where we can find similar assurances to this promise in Habakkuk. We are ‘slow’ learners and God knows we need things repeated to have them stick to our character. Here are some verses with related truths: 1 Chronicles 29:12, Psalm 18:46, Isaiah 43:11, John 10:29, Romans 5:1-5 and James 1:2-4.

Let us journey together the next 6 weeks and emerge steeped in His promises!

Linda

Lent 2025, Promises

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As I was praying about what to write on during our 6 week Lenten journey, God impressed upon me that He keeps His promises and not knowing His promises means you are are lacking something vital that God intends you to have! I decided to blog each day on a different promise that God has for us in His Word. The promises will come from both the Old and New Testament as He has been in the promise giving and keeping business since the beginning of creation.

In my book, Promises for Dynamic Living, I wrote the following in the forward. It seemed a very appropriate reminder of why we need to know and claim His promises. “In studying God’s promises I have seen a completeness to God’s Word and how He has woven it together to confirm, assure, and build us up to be the men and women He desires. His Word in us glorifies Him, and He longs for us to study and know Him. When I work with young people, I try to teach them that God’s Word, on the pages of our Bible, holds the same power as the spoken word of God, which brought the world into existence. There is power in His Word and He desires that we know His Word and claim it in our lives.

I am so encouraged because the depth of God’s promises span throughout the entire Bible. God’s promises are not just limited to those things given to us by Christ. God has been in the promise-making business from the very beginning of His relationship with man. He knows us and knows that we need assurance of who He is and what He will do in, and through our lives. I pray that you will find promises in both the Old and New Testaments to enrich your walk with the Lord and that it brings you assurance of His loving character. May His promises remove, any and all doubts you are experiencing. Claiming His promises in your life will dispel doubts and fear. It will lead you on the pathway towards assurance and HOPE in Christ.”

Are you feeling doubts about the future from the circumstances that surround you? Are you anxious about your finances or health issues? Studying God’s promises is guaranteed to reassure and uplift. If this is what you need. Join me for the next six weeks and be ready for joy and hope to invade your life!

Walking with His promises this Lenten Season!

Linda