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“For He (God) remembered His holy promises given to His servant Abraham.  He brought out His people with rejoicing.  His chosen ones with shouts of joy.”  Psalm 105:42 (NIV)

Ever find yourself searching for the one thing you need right now but can’t seem to remember where you put it? If you’re like me, you always put it in a certain place so you can find it only to become totally frustrated when you forget where that place is. We search diligently convinced we know exactly where we put this one thing we need. We become aggravated when our attempts to find send us on an endless scavenger hunt. And when we come up empty handed, we simply give up.

With all the techno advances we have it’s easy to see why my brain eases into forgetfulness. Need to call mom – my cell phone has all my contact numbers. Got a doctor’s appointment, my goggle calendar is synced to my phone and remembers my schedule. Quick trip to the grocery store and my list app reveals what I need. Easy to understand why my mind has a short memory stick when I’m not the one remembering.

Love these sweet words from the Psalmist totally confident of His God’s ability to remember. God doesn’t need Goggle or an app to trigger His memory bank. Etched in His mind are the Holy promises He makes to His people. He never forgets a single word, He never reneges on His promises and He is our forever covenant keeper.

Can’t say I know anyone else who does exactly what He says always. Don’t remember a time when someone fulfilled every promise. But I can see God’s echos of remembrance and faithfulness throughout scripture. Every rainbow shouts, “I remember you and I will not destroy all living creatures again.” Each story unfolding whispers, “I am the keeper of my covenant with my people forever.” Every miracle resonates with God’s goodness and loving kindness proclaiming, “You are my chosen ones; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Beautiful truths we can cling to. Honest words reverberating in our hearts. Trustworthy promises always kept. This is who our God is – our forever covenant keeper – we can believe in Him completely without reservation. A promise keeper who never forgets or backs out making good on His every word from generation to generation.

“Father, we can rest confidently trusting in You to always remember us. We will never be forgotten or forsaken. You are our faithful, true and Holy God whose love endures forever.”

For His Glory

Janet Martin
TRBC Women’s Life

“When I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me” Psalm 56:3-4

These verses from David, as he was on the run from King Saul’s murderous pursuit, may seem contradictory at first glance. He basically says, “When I’m afraid, I won’t be afraid.” Huh?

Let’s start with the comforting thought that even David—a man after God’s own heart—uses the word “when” here. He acknowledges that he has been, is, and will be afraid. This from a man who killed bears and lions as a young shepherd boy, took down a giant with a stone and slingshot, and victoriously battled enemy after enemy throughout his life. David didn’t seem to be afraid of very much.

In the context of this Psalm, though, the current king, Saul, wants David dead because he knows David will take his throne. As Saul and his armies are chasing him, David feels the heat. He knows he’s just one step ahead of Saul, and he hears the word on the street—the lies about him, the traps being set for him, the oppression, the eagerness for his demise.

And he is afraid.

But, because he has trusted the Lord throughout his life, because he knows and loves God’s word, David has a solid foundation on which he can stand. He has experienced the fact that God is for him (v 9). The Lord has protected him and delivered him in the past (v13), so David knows that God’s promises to him are true. Moreover, in verse 8, David describes how God has walked with him through his wanderings and trials, collecting his tears through sorrow and pain.

And he’s still afraid—and that’s OK! In fact, the seemingly contradictory part in verse 4—“I shall not be afraid”—is not saying that David won’t experience fear. David’s saying that when he is afraid, he’ll use it as a prompt to recall, “I trust You, Lord, and trust Your word!” He is saying, “In my fear, I don’t have to be afraid.” (I picture him hiding out, perhaps in one of his many on-the-run cave dwellings, shaking in his sandals and repeating to himself in prayer, “I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid.”)

What a great reminder for us all. In this life, we all have battles and trials (John 16:33). We may, like David, even have people twisting our words and setting traps for us—eager for our downfall. And although we may not have someone pursuing our very life, every believer has a real enemy of our soul who wants us to live in discouragement, distress, and fear.

But God. God is praiseworthy, faithful, true. His word is trustworthy. We need to look back on His blessings and recall how He’s carried us through previous storms. Let’s recognize that we have not shed a single tear that God has not caught and collected. And, by putting our faith in Jesus, we can also look ahead to His promise of eternal hope. Regardless of how daunting our circumstances are today, our ultimate future as believers is fear-free.

“Lord, when I am afraid, I will trust in You…and I will stand firm on the foundation of Your truth—Your Word—to recall that You have a hold on me. What can mere man—or Satan—do to me?”

For His Glory

Julianne Winkler Smith
TRBC Women’s Life

“Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” Psalm 27:14 (NLT)

Smart phones, fax machines and email make for living in a high-speed society. Handheld gadgets and gizmos allow for no waiting; and with this technology we’ve conformed to little or no patience.

Admittedly, patience was never my virtue. Going anywhere had to be pronto. Tasks were done presto. For years my Christmas shopping was complete and wrapped by July 31st. Wait was not in my vocabulary. However, about seven years ago, I became a reformed “fastaholic” transforming from a jackrabbit to a sloth. Seriously, I can linger for hours never in a hurry. Tasks can lie in wait. Christmas shopping usually takes place around December 23rd. My arch nemesis patience has become “well with my soul.”

So what changed? Why the drastic reformation? Literally, God taught me patience! I would pray and then wait for God to answer. We have “right now” prayers when we need God’s intervention immediately. He is well aware of the severity and time sensitiveness to our prayers, which He answers accordingly. Then there’s the prayers God may answer in a day, week, month or year(s). Those are the prayers God used to teach me patience. God has a special way of making sure there is no way of escape by human efforts. Our rescue will come by His answer and in His timing…period. It’s during these waiting periods, I realized God’s lessons were strengthening my trust, belief and stretching my faith by building “faith muscle.”

We glean encouragement and inspiration from the Bible stories of Joseph, David, Anna, Hannah and Sarah etc. They experienced having no other choice but to wait on the Lord. Also, the events of friends and family; their testimonies of God’s faithfulness. Funny, as we wait on the Lord to answer, when the response comes it’s usually quick and ironically unexpected. It catches us off guard. What took years intentionally to answer comes sudden and instant. Changing the course of our lives in ways we could only dream of.

“Father, with patient hearts, we pray to be brave and courageous as we wait for replies to prayers that seem to linger knowing there is purpose in the expectancy. You’ve heard our cries and haven’t forgotten! Your responses may not be one minute early, but You’ll never be one minute late. Thank you, Your answers are perfect and always on time.”

For His Glory

Kim Lacey Schock (www.KimLaceySchock.com)
TRBC Women’s Life