God’s Promises
29 Apr 2009 1 Comment
in Devotionals2 Tags: challenge, chronic illness, deni weber, encourage, God, hopekeepers, pain, promise, rest ministries
“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. “ (2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV)
Do you have a scripture verse that you lean on? One that you consider perhaps a “life verses”? I know at different times, I have depended on different verses to get me through. Currently this verse keeps popping up in different places:
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)
At other times in my life, other verses have upheld me as I clung to them, reciting them over and over to myself. I think having a chronic illness lends itself to dependency on God and His word.
The above verse says that “all” the promises are “yes” promises. I have only fairly recently in my Christian walk discovered just how many promises there are to choose from. Then, I realized I don’t have to “choose” from any – they are all mine for the claiming. I’d encourage you to sit down with your Bible and start to search out all these promises. I think You’d be hard pressed to find a chapter without at least one promise in it somewhere!
Just a sampling of His promises:
Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. (Psalm 34:19 KJV)
I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth (Psalm 121:1-2, NKJV)
Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. ( John 14:1 NIV)
I started seeing my “challenges” in this life through different eyes when I began to seek out God’s promises for me. My encouragement for you today is that you go to His word and begin to seek out His promises for you, today. How can we claim them, if we do not know they are there for us to claim? Be blessed!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
deni weber believes that the only true way to deal with chronic pain and chronic illness is to bring them to the feet of her Lord and Savior. Her multiple illnesses (Celiac Sprue, Atrial Fibrillation, Ankylosing Spondylitis, to name a few) have taught her many things about herself and her Christian walk. It is her fondest prayer that some of her lessons might be helpful to others as they walk the path of chronic illness. deni can be reached at deni@pathwaysforchange.com
Apr 30, 2009 @ 03:52:27
Deni, thank you so much for this devotion. Isaiah 41:10 has been a life verse for me for almost 40 years. I hung onto it when I experienced undiagnosed headaches 24/7 for 16 years.
God’s promises sustain me day to day: John 14:27 (Jesus is my peace); 2 Corinthians 1:3 (God is my comfort); Psalm 56:8 (God knows each tear I have shed–bucketsful!); Isaiah 46:4 (Even in my old age He will sustain me); Psalm 46:1 (He is my refuge and my strength); Psalm 103:1-4 (He is my healer, my salvation and He crowns me with lovingkindness and tender mercies); Psalm 27:5-6 (When my pain is overwhelming He is my hiding place and the lifter of my head).
These and so many more have sustained me through 39 years of chronic illness. He is faithful and He will see me through to the end. While I would rather have lived without pain and limitations over these years, I wouldn’t trade them for the awesome walk I have experienced with my precious Lord.
My prayer is that all people would find a basketful of special promises in His Word–cling to them and pass them out to everyone!
Deni, I am adding 2 Corinthians 1:20 to my basket of promises. Thanks again and God bless you!