Wednesday May 27, 2009 If you have a few minutes...would you please tell me what time of day/evening you prefer getting the devotional? It would help me considerably. In His Hope, Sharon
CONFIDENT IN HIM! He said to them, "Tell Hezekiah, 'This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What makes you so confident? You give useless advice about getting ready for war. Whom, then, do you trust for support in your rebellion against me? Look! When you trust Egypt, you're trusting a broken stick for a staff. If you lean on it, it stabs your hand and goes through it. This is what Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) is like for everyone who trusts him. Suppose you tell me, "We're trusting the LORD our God." He's the god whose places of worship and altars Hezekiah got rid of. Hezekiah told Judah and Jerusalem, "Worship at this altar."' Isaiah 36:4-7 I can't help but smile when I read this passage. I can just see that old Assyrian king with all his false pride thinking he has the power to defeat God's people. Granted, the Assyrian army was a foe many people feared, at times even King Hezekiah feared him, but God had a message! God wants us to be a confident people. In Psalm 27:3, David said, "Even though an army sets up camp against me, my heart will not be afraid. Even though a war breaks out against me, I will still have confidence in the LORD." For sure, there will be attacks and the closer we get to God's purpose for our life, those attacks will get stronger, believe me, I know this - all too well! At the end of that Psalm, (verses 13-14) David also says, "I believe that I will see the goodness of the LORD in this world of the living. Wait with hope for the LORD. Be strong, and let your heart be courageous. Yes, wait with hope for the LORD." Our strength - the secret ingredient -comes as we " wait with hope for the LORD" and let Him battle for us. In Romans 5:3-5 NLT, Paul tells us, "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us - they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love." We are to rejoice when bad things start happening in our lives. We can know that God is building us up for something higher. He wants to take us to a new level of trusting Him! I don't know about you, but I'll be glad when I reach the last level. For several years God has been teaching me about being a mighty oak. As the winds of adversity blow through our lives our roots go deeper and deeper into the soil of God's love and we are then prepared for the blessings and the storms that will come again. This gives us confidence, not in ourselves, but in the God who created us. We will be able to accomplish all that He has planned for us. So, whether it is preparing a meal for family, friends, or strangers - know this - you are not alone. God is working closely beside you and when the enemy attacks - be strong - that Assyrian king is defeated! Lord, as a little girl, when bullies would come against me I would cower down and run. I praise You for showing me that I am no longer that little girl. I am a mighty warrior in Your army. Help us as we reach out and share this Good News with others who believe the lies of the past more than they believe the truth of Your presence with us in the present! ******************************************* O. Addison Gethers e-mail address : [email protected] or [email protected] window live messenger: [email protected] aim: durangoadd64 skype: cowboys62 yahoo messenger: OADDISONGETHERS --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Deaf-Blind Inspirational Life Group" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/DBILG?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
