Friday, August 24, 2012

The Weary Mom - Dinner #64



     As a mother with an ever-active 14-month-old, and a baby on the way, I know what it is like to sometimes be TIRED . . . physically tired, mentally tired, emotionally tired . . . Days when I’d really rather not fold the next load of laundry, let alone hear that we might be about to pack everything up and move!  But do you know what? Isaiah 40:11 tells me, “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” What a comfort it is for this expectant mother to know that God will lead me GENTLY!! When God designates the next step for us in life, He won’t drag me along! My kind Heavenly Father GENTLY leads “those that are with young”, and that is such a blessing! He will also “gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom . . .” He won’t let my little one feel unsettled and tossed about, if we pick up and move – He will care for her, as well!
     God knows us better than we even know ourselves. He created us! Psalm 103:14 “For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” This same loving, Creator God, is He Who will care for us! Isaiah 44:2-3 “Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not . . . For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.”  Who gives us this caring promise? The One True God! Our Trustworthy Savior! Isaiah 44:6 “ . . . I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.”
     There is another blessed comfort in Isaiah for the sometimes-weary mom: God NEVER faints nor grows weary, and it is HE Who gives us strength! HIS strength! Isaiah 40:28 “Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.” Isaiah 40:29 “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.” We will ALL grow weary, at certain times in our lives! Weary of illness, weary of the same daily routine, perhaps, even weary of life . . . Isaiah 40:30-31 reminds us that, “Even the youths shall faint and be weary . . . But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”  What a blessed promise! You may feel as though you cannot even WALK, but the Lord can keep you from fainting! He can grant you the strength to make it through any day and any situation.
     One of my favorite verses in all the Bible, declares, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10) When we are weary and worn, we do not have to “make it” on our own! Whenever our day grows too long or too hard – He is there!  Isaiah 41:13 reiterates, “For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.”  
     Are you a weary mommy, this week? Let the Lord God be your strength!  He IS ALWAYS THERE!

Friday, August 17, 2012

That Promise Will Not Fail . . . - Dinner #63


     What a month of ups and downs! What a month of struggling doubts and blessings!  How we rejoice as we watch a precious little life on an ultrasound, and then how we stumble as we wonder how we will ever take care of two instead of just one . . . How we praise the Lord as He provides unexpected groceries at just the right time, and then how we falter as we realize just how many hundred of dollars a long-distance move would cost us . . . In the midst of this daily faith and frenzy, the Lord showed me a beautiful verse in His Word:  Joshua 23:14 “ . . . not one good thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.” Not one! When you read the promises of God’s Word, it is as though you can say, “THAT promise will not fail!” and “THAT promise will not fail!”, after each and every one! What a joy that is, to think about! If God has said it, it will NOT fail! And how VERY MANY wonderful promises God has made to His children!

Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

Isaiah 40:29 “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.”

Isaiah 43:2 “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.”

Proverbs 1:33 “But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.”

Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Psalm 37:4 “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”

Deuteronomy 4:29 “But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.”

Isaiah 65:24 “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.”

Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

Philippians 4:19 “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

     When all else crashes about you, God’s Word will never fail! His promises are ever true! Others will fail you miserably, but His “faithfulness is unto all generations” (Psalm 119:90). How can we ever doubt such a wonderful Savior? Why do we ever take matters into our own hands and worries into our own hearts? Joshua 23:14 declares, “ . . . not one good thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you . . .” He is a TRUSTWORTHY God!  When the trials come, may we say to the Lord, just as David once said, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.” (Psalm 56:3)