PROMISE and BELIEVE
I thank God for this brand new day and dealing bountifully with me in His grace.
The words that are etched on my heart today are PROMISE and BELEIVE.
On Christmas eve 2009, Laurie gave me a passage to read during the service ,it was about the story of Mary visiting Elizabeth and in the end Elizabeth says to Mary these words: Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" Luke 1:45.
These particular words, as I read them in the church struck my heart so much that I pondered on it and decided to beleive what God says to me in His word. Elizabeth might have said that to Mary but it applies to everyone who beleives and take God at His word.
Few days later I received a letter from Joyce Meyer with a magnet in it which said,
"For as many as are the promises of God they all find their answer in Him" 2Cor 1:20. and the caption "I Promise you----God" That was when I decided to put more efforts on beleiving God's promises and made it as one of my goals this year.
This morning as I was having my devotions,God opened my eyes,further, to the story of Abraham in Gen 15 -17.Following are the lessons I learnt:
"And Abram BELIEVED the Lord and the Lord declared him RIGHTEOUS because of his faith" Gen 15:6.
1.When we beleive, we are blessed, we are declared righteous.
As the story of Abram unfolds further,God tells Abram of his future, of his descendents and 400 yrs of slavery.At the end of slavery,God says,"in the end they will come away with great wealth" and also tells Abram of the land that God was going to give his descendents.
God goes on to speak of the EVERLASTING COVENANT which is " And I will always be your God and the God of your descendents after you" Gen 17:7
3.God's promise/covenant is that He is going to be with us ALWAYS. He will never leave us nor forsake us in good times and bad times,in every situation He will be with us and for us. God continues to say in Gen 17:7 "And your part of the agreement is to OBEY the terms of the covenant.You and your descendents will have this continual responsibility".
One last thing that stood out to me and reassured me:
4.God blessed both Sarah and Hagar, women in Abram's life one who had grown skeptic and the other a total unbeleiver in Abram's faith.No matter who we are saddled with in life, if we keep up a good attitude of faith through all life situations patiently and expectantly like Abram, God will bless what belongs to us. Keep up the good fight of faith.
An angel of the Lord rescues Hagar and blesses Ishmael that he will become " a great nation and twelve princes will be among his descendents. "
Sarah is given the blessing of being "the mother of many nations and Kings will be among her descendents".In Sarah's case, even before she conceived,(God knew that Sarah would "laugh" at bearing child when her womb is practically dead) God tells her the name of her son--Isaac.(17:19) and Isaac means laughter.
5.There are only three people I know in the Bible whose names God foretold before they were born---->Isaac,John and Jesus.
6.Regarding PROMISES, every single thing that God told to Abraham came to PASS. God's promises are ABSOLUTE.
"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Phil 4:19.
The words that are etched on my heart today are PROMISE and BELEIVE.
On Christmas eve 2009, Laurie gave me a passage to read during the service ,it was about the story of Mary visiting Elizabeth and in the end Elizabeth says to Mary these words: Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" Luke 1:45.
These particular words, as I read them in the church struck my heart so much that I pondered on it and decided to beleive what God says to me in His word. Elizabeth might have said that to Mary but it applies to everyone who beleives and take God at His word.
Few days later I received a letter from Joyce Meyer with a magnet in it which said,
"For as many as are the promises of God they all find their answer in Him" 2Cor 1:20. and the caption "I Promise you----God" That was when I decided to put more efforts on beleiving God's promises and made it as one of my goals this year.
This morning as I was having my devotions,God opened my eyes,further, to the story of Abraham in Gen 15 -17.Following are the lessons I learnt:
"And Abram BELIEVED the Lord and the Lord declared him RIGHTEOUS because of his faith" Gen 15:6.
1.When we beleive, we are blessed, we are declared righteous.
As the story of Abram unfolds further,God tells Abram of his future, of his descendents and 400 yrs of slavery.At the end of slavery,God says,"in the end they will come away with great wealth" and also tells Abram of the land that God was going to give his descendents.
God goes on to speak of the EVERLASTING COVENANT which is " And I will always be your God and the God of your descendents after you" Gen 17:7
3.God's promise/covenant is that He is going to be with us ALWAYS. He will never leave us nor forsake us in good times and bad times,in every situation He will be with us and for us. God continues to say in Gen 17:7 "And your part of the agreement is to OBEY the terms of the covenant.You and your descendents will have this continual responsibility".
One last thing that stood out to me and reassured me:
4.God blessed both Sarah and Hagar, women in Abram's life one who had grown skeptic and the other a total unbeleiver in Abram's faith.No matter who we are saddled with in life, if we keep up a good attitude of faith through all life situations patiently and expectantly like Abram, God will bless what belongs to us. Keep up the good fight of faith.
An angel of the Lord rescues Hagar and blesses Ishmael that he will become " a great nation and twelve princes will be among his descendents. "
Sarah is given the blessing of being "the mother of many nations and Kings will be among her descendents".In Sarah's case, even before she conceived,(God knew that Sarah would "laugh" at bearing child when her womb is practically dead) God tells her the name of her son--Isaac.(17:19) and Isaac means laughter.
5.There are only three people I know in the Bible whose names God foretold before they were born---->Isaac,John and Jesus.
6.Regarding PROMISES, every single thing that God told to Abraham came to PASS. God's promises are ABSOLUTE.
"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Phil 4:19.
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