Thursday, June 28, 2012

Standing On The Promises

Do you ever find yourself struggling?  Are there days when you feel isolated from God?  Are there times when you wonder if His promises will ever come to pass?  I think we all have found ourselves in this kind of situation at one time or another.  I was there yesterday.  Symptoms were high, energy was low and hope had slightly fractured.  I began to doubt God's promises to me.

"I will bring back your health, and heal your wounds, says the Lord."
Jeremiah 30:17
This verse was given to me by God several weeks ago just when I needed it the most and at that time I printed it off and taped it above my nightstand, on a kitchen cupboard and on the bathroom mirror.  Yesterday, I began to doubt that it was really from God.  Just for a moment, my belief began to falter and I took my eyes off the Lord.

This morning I woke at 5am from pain, and discouragement set it.  I found myself heavy with sadness and doubt.  There was that doubt again!  Instead of doubting my doubts I was doubting God's promises.  I came downstairs determined to "walk it out" ~this journey of healing, even though my heart was not totally into it.  And then..........

I turned on the computer to check emails and there was a devotional from Joel Osteen entitleed, "Don't give up!"  Joel wrote , "Are you believing God for something that is taking longer than you thought or expected? If you are praying according to His promises, no matter how long you may have been standing, don’t give up!  Okay Lord, you have my attention!  The verse used was in Galatians.

"So let's not get tired of doing what is good. 
At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing
 if we don't give up."
Galatians 6:9 (NLT)

Then I went to the email prayer group, The Knee Team, that I lead for Linny over at A Place Called Simplicity.  A dear sweet Knee Team friend, K.,  had sent me a note of encouragement that brought tears to my eyes.  She shared a verse that had spoken to her and I as I read it I felt God's love embrace me.

"Yet I am confident that I will see the Lord’s goodness
while I am here in the land of the living. 
 Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous.
 Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”
Psalm 27:13-14

I watched Andrew Wommack on TV and heard him say, God's kind of love never gives up, never loses faith.......Once again I was comforted and encouraged to stand on God's Word and with perseverence, keep moving foward with my eyes on the Lord.

Friends, God loves us so much.  Our Lord is faithful and He wants us to know we can rely on His promises.  We can stand on the promises of God!!!

The title of this post was written five days ago before I began to write, as I had been humming the old hymn "Standing on the Promises of God" and decided to look up the hymn.  I discovered that the composer, Russell Carter, was 30 years old when he was struck down with an illness affecting his heart.  The doctors could do nothing more for him, so he turned to God for his healing making a committment to follow Christ whether he was healed or not.  As time went by he would stand on God's promises for healing every day and eventually became well, going on to live another 49 years!  He wrote this hymn as a result of that time in his life.  The chorus speaks his testimony.

Standing, standing,
Standing on the promises of God my Savior
Standing, standing
I'm standing on the promses of God!


We, too, can stand on the promises of God.  Whatever comes your way, you can turn to His Word and find a promise to stand on.  God, in His faithfulness, will be there for us.  We are never alone and He gives us the strength to sing this chorus too......Standing, standing, standing on the promises of God!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<>
<>
I am linking up with Spiritual Sundays  and
The Beauty In His Grip today.

19 comments:

sharon said...

Isn't it funny how when you are at your lowest and start to doubt, that God is so gracious and brings us encouragement such as you had. That in itself is witness to the fact he is loving and caring for us! Blessings to you and yours, Sharon

Renee said...

Hi Sharon......God is so gracious, you are so right! Blessings to you too...

Pamela said...

Oh, Renee. I'm so sorry you have such pain. We CAN stand on God's promises. Love this verse. This was so encouraging to me--how God uses so many people and media to encourage our heart.

Nikki (Sarah) said...

love your post...b/c it's so honest and real and full of truth. He already knows the endings of our lives...and they're great ones...Stay strong. One thing I know for sure.....He'll never ever let us down.

HeARTworks said...

Hi Renee,
Oh yes, I stand on the promises of God!Everyday I confess His healing verses and listen to it because it says in Proverbs 4:20-21 that His Word is medicine to our body! I used to have several canker sores in my mouth and I couldn't eat, couldn't talk, couldn't sing praise songs! I would fall asleep crying out to God. I found out I had Pemphigus Vulgaris and a lot of other stuff besides. But because I stand on His word, I am peaceful and joyful, and when I wake up in the morning I say thank you to God with a smile on my face. Because of that, I know God is the God of the impossible. Hold on to Him, He is our hope! Our only hope! Patsy from
HeARTworks

Gayle said...

We need this scripture as well Renee, I think I am going to put it beside my bed. My daughter had emergency back surgery on a rupture disc with spinal cord compression. She has struggled for weeks with pain and difficulties. I just came down with a bladder infection that won't respond to treatment. The good news, is our little baby grandson jaundice that was life threatening severe has finally healed, along with his fracture that he had at birth. He is finally starting to respond as a normal baby and for all of this, I am so thankful! Love your story as always.
Blessings,
Gayle

Gayle said...

I just wanted to drop you a note and ask you to stop by Behind the Gate as I shared my own prayers for healing for my daughter.
Blessing and prayers,
Gayle

Ruth said...

You persevered and God blessed. I love hearing what is behind the old hymns. This is a great story of a man who trusted God and then shared such precious words that continue to encourage God's people. Thanks for sharing, Renee.

Renee said...

Thank you Pamela...so glad you found it encouraging. God bless.

Renee said...

Hi Sarah(Nikki) Yes, He DOES know the ending of our life here on earth and we know the ending in eternity! God bless...

Renee said...

Hi Patsy
Prov. 4 are some of my favorite verses of God's promises for healing. Glad you stopped by and enjoyed my post. God bless.

Renee said...

Gayle...sending you cyber hugs and lots of prayers for your daughters healing to be complete. So difficult to see our children hurting so much. God bless...

Renee said...

Hi Ruth
It is great to hear the story behind the old hymns, isn't it...Thanks for coming by. God bless

Charlotte said...

Wow, what a powerful post. I love how God gives us assurance when we need it most. It increases our faith. Thank you for sharing.
Blessings,
Charlotte

Kim said...

Renee, Oh my goodness this post was incredible and filled with so much of the word of God. I wasn't familiar with that verse in Jeremiah or that Psalm (I have sooo much studying left to do in my life). What powerful words. This waiting and this faith has been something God has chosen to speak to me about so much in my life. I am really moved by this.

I came to the blog today because I'd just responded to your comment on my blog and wanted to say hello. Never did I imagine God would meet me with such a moving post right as I opened the page (and of course your blog is always so encouraging in faith). Thank you for sharing!

Let's keep in touch with how grain free is going. I am doing 29 days before adding it back, and last time it really helped me rebalance.

Happy 4th of July!

Gloria said...

Renee, I found your blog thru Linny and I've stopped by off and on. This post was amazing. It truly TRULY ministered to me. Thank you for being His mouthpiece. Btw how can I be a part of the knee team. I'm an international living in the US with a heart to serve internationals that God has brought to us and orphans.

Renee said...

Glad you liked the post Charlotte...God bless!

Renee said...

Hi Kim...yes, lets keep connected on how we are doing without the grains, etc. I have decided my increase of energy is due to Praise, Prayer, and eating Paleo!
Glad you enjoyed the post...I love when God speaks to us through others...

Renee said...

Glad you were ministered by this post. I am so grateful God used my words to encourage others...As far as the Knee Team, on Linny's blog you can get her email address...email her about joining the group and telling her what you are comfortable with about you and your family if you have one.....