Solomon tells us that “a happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing” (Proverbs 17:22, AMP ). God undoubtedly has a sense of humor; we need only look at some of the animals He created (it’s hard not to smile at the sight of a hippo, a monkey, or a puppy). Or think of some of the married couples you know: don’t you think God was smiling at the wedding as He looked ahead to the interaction of the wildly different personalities that will be living together?Posts Tagged ‘promise’
a powerful, compassionate God
Friday, I wrote about the glorious promise of strength in Isaiah 40. As I noted then, the concluding promise of strength to walk, run, and rise up gets even better when put into the bigger context of the chapter. I backed up just a few verses to consider the contrast of the youth who faints with the strength that comes from God. But the picture Isaiah paints grows richer and fuller when we take the chapter as a whole.
It begins with the famous “Comfort my people” and continues with “speak tenderly to Jerusalem.” That sounds good. But then, as we move further, we find God’s greatness described in wonderful pictures and contrasted with the smallness, the weakness of man. We are told that “all flesh is grass” and that it dies under the breath of the Lord. And just so we don’t miss the point, Isaiah reiterates, “Surely the people are grass.”
A little later, we get a series of images that reinforce the magnitude of God and His power:… read the complete post
a promise of strength
The last few weeks have been pretty stressful for me, with money problems, the usual midterm grading frenzy, and assorted other irritants and situations that add up to a real possibility of losing my hope and my joy. This past weekend, as I realized that some of these situations weren’t going away with the end of October but would continue into November (and beyond!), I got rather discouraged. Then Wednesday night a friend gave me good — but hard — counsel, and I was reminded that I was in for the long haul. To put it another way, I wanted a leisurely walk around the block, but he told me I’m in a marathon.
I don’t like running.
Yesterday, though, I had a wonderful reminder of God’s faithfulness. In her broadcast, Joyce Meyer read from Isaiah 40, and I heard something I had never noticed before:…
got humility?
Shortly after writing yesterday’s post, I read 1 Peter 3:8: “Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” That pretty much covers it, right? If we have these five characteristics, we should not have many people problems. The last one — a humble mind — caught my attention.
Pride is the root of offense. It is only when we think something of ourselves that we can be offended. If my sense of self and my security come from and rest in God — that which is unchanging — then my sense of self and my security cannot be rocked or shaken by the behavior of others. As my pastor has said, “Dead people don’t get offended.” When I die to myself and find my life hidden in God, I’ve moved to another place where offense can’t touch me.
you get Me!
In yesterday’s post, we looked at Martha and Mary and the promise Jesus makes to those who choose to sit at His feet: “it will not be taken away” (Luke 10:42 ESV). Time with God is always time well spent.
I want to dig a little further into Jesus’ reply to Martha…
written on His hands
But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me,
the Lord has forgotten me.”
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”
Isaiah records for us an amazing promise: God will not forget us. The Amplified says that He has “tattooed a picture” on His hand, and other translations say that He has “written your name.”
My dad used to write notes to himself on his hands; this isn’t like that. Those notes, even if they were written with a Sharpie, wash off. It’s a temporary thing. I like the word engraved that the NIV uses, and also that the translators used you rather than name. God isn’t saying, “I’ve made a mental note about your need; I’ll get back to you.” No, He’s telling us that we are ever before Him and on His mind. People get tattoos on many parts of the body; if I tattooed Teddie’s name on my bicep, I could kind of see it, but not that easily — I would have to make an effort to turn my head and raise my arm. But not so with my hands: our hands are always in front of us, easy to see, inescapable.
And notice, too, that here God speaks for Himself. Sometimes the prophets tell us, “The Lord said that…” But here, God speaks directly: “I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” He wants us to hear His voice saying, “You are important to me.”
Father, thank You for this promise, this affirmation of Your enduring, unfailing love. Help me to hear Your voice and not the voice of the enemy that would say You have forgotten me. This is not so. I am engraved on the palm of Your hand, and I can rest in the assurance of Your love and care.
Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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