Thursday, March 15, 2012

God Takes Delight In Us

"For the Lord your God is living among you,
 He is a mighty Savior. 
He will take delight in you with gladness. 
With His love He will calm all your fears. 
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs."
Zephaniah 3:17

This verse in Zephaniah is filled with promise, hope, assurance and love.  It speaks of so many things in just one verse of scripture.  It is a powerhouse of encouragement!

This morning I awoke with some apprehension over a situation we find ourselves unwillingly in the middle of.  When we look at the facts laid out before us, we could feel unsafe in our cozy world.  Fear wanted to move in. Yet, when the issue of feeling unsafe wants to take up residence in our hearts it is important to remember who God is and what he promises. 

So today when fear wanted to creep in and take hold, I prayed for God to give me a verse to hold on to, and He is so faithful!  He gave me a verse that says it ALL!!!  I truly hope and pray it speaks to you today too in your own circumstances.

Zephaniah 3:17 tells us that God LIVES among us.  We are never alone.  He is right beside us day and night. 

We are told He is our MIGHTY Savior.  He comes to save us from our sins and from other things that come against us.  He is m.i.g.h.t.y.  Strong! 

And God DELIGHTS in us with gladness.  He actually delights in us the same way a father delights in his child.  It just tickles me to read this.  It makes me feel warm and loved all over.

Because he LOVES us He CALMS our fears.  So often in the Bible we hear...do not be afraid.  God loves us so much He does not want us to waste one minute of our lives in fear.  We can trust Him...He lovingly calms our fears.  Keeping our eyes on Him helps to remind us of His deep love for us.  We need not let fear enter in...only God and HIS promises. 

The last part of this verse makes me smile too.  He REJOICES over us...with songs.  God is singing songs of joy over us just the same way we sing songs of joy about Him.  How great is that!

God sent me a verse of scripture today to embrace and share...HIS WORD that wrapped me in a warm blanket of love.  A great big hug from God, my heavenly Father to remind me of his love, protection, and promises.  Where else would I want to be!?!

4 comments:

Gayle said...

Oh Renee, I needed to hear this today. I have been so stuck in stuff my IBS is kicking in and that hasn't bothered me for years. Sigh...
Thank you for the reminder. So funny...I woke today and thought of you and thought I would stop in and see if you were back blogging, and then later noticed you had stopped in. The spirit is indeed leading. May both of us walk in faith and confidence through these situations.

Elaine said...

I also needed this today. Thanks Renee:)

Love to be loved:)

Blessings to you as always,
Elaine

Renee said...

Glad it was of help Gayle...sorry to hear the IBS is making noise again. Not fun at all. Yes, we do need to walk in faith..so glad you came by!

Renee said...

Hi elaine...glad this was of help to you friend. Blessings to you too!!