Goodness Sake

I have so much on my heart to share and I am not sure where to begin so I will start with this.  I find my thoughts of late being filled with the answers to this question:  What do I know to be true about my God?  So many times life in general overtakes our thoughts and we begin to despair and yet in the midst of those events if we just take time to be still and focus on the truth about who God is, we are handed a calm in the midst of the storms.  The never changing reality is this:  God is all that He says He is which means He is bigger than the biggest harm or circumstance that can affect me.

Those times when I let fears settle in and I begin to forget that I am not the one in control can definitely lead me off course.  However, in spite of my failure to remember to be still, God is ever present and carrying out His purposes and He is still willing to forgive and give strength when I once again surrender it all to Him.  Even when there are consequences as a result of drifting off course, God is still in control and is working everything out for His glory and for my good.

Yesterday I was thinking about how several years ago I begin praying that God would show me what it means to love Him with all of my heart, all of soul, all of my strength, and all of my mind (Luke 10:27).  Little did I know then what that would look like and how it would play out.  I am not the same person that I was those however many years ago.  I am learning to rejoice in the deep waters because I see those deeps waters as an opportunity to learn more about my God and I know that He is at work to make me more like Him.

God's plan is perfect.  It is that simple.  He knows how deep into the waters I need to go for me to recognize that He is able to keep me in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).  He knows how helpless I need to feel before I turn to Him and recognize that His ways are above my ways (Isaiah 55:9).  He just keeps on doing what it takes to change me for His glory and my good.

Life is so unpredictable and throws us curve balls that we didn't see coming.  It is easy to get wrapped up in the "what ifs" of life and forget that God is able to keep us from falling (Jude 1:24).  I am thankful that God continues to work on me.

All that being said, I have started to commit to memory (some of the verses I already know from memorizing them in the past) Isaiah 55:6-13 to help me remember that God is control of everything.

 6 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.