God’s Promises to You

Starting Over

Megan Breedlove January 3, 2011 0Comment

Ahhhhhh…the beginning of a new year. And with it, the chance to start afresh. The opportunity to begin doing the things you should, or stop doing the things you know you shouldn’t. That’s the idea behind New Year’s resolutions—to formalize your commitment to “get it right”.

The only problem is…well, let’s be honest. Most of us are going to fail at our New Year’s resolutions, at least in part. We’ll start out with good intentions, utmost sincerity, and maybe even some prayer. But all too soon, we’ll mess up.

Some of us give up right there. I knew I couldn’t do it. Or, This just isn’t going to work.

Others of us try again. We muster up some hope from somewhere and give it another shot. And then…another failure. Forget it, we sigh, and we resign ourselves to living the same way we used to before we made the resolution.

Take, for example, having a daily time spent with the Lord. We all know we’re supposed to do it, so we resolve that this year is the year we’re going to finally conquer our lack of consistency.

You know what happens next. Maybe you make it a week, or maybe, if you’re really diligent, you get all the way into February before you forget, or you get busy with other things and your quiet time gets pushed aside.

Or maybe you decide that you’re not going to yell at your kids any more. You’re going to be patient. For real, this time. No matter what.

And then one day, you’re fighting a cold, and the baby kept you up all night last night, and you walk into the living room to find fifteen different colors of Play-Doh mashed into the carpet in a thousand places, and…you yell.

Have you been there, at the place where suddenly you’ve bombed out, when you really wanted to succeed? I know I have. I’ve found that my sincerity wasn’t enough to carry me through the testing of my intentions. Whether due to a mistake or because of my sin, I often cause my own failure. Sometimes, I get discouraged at the idea of having to start over yet again on something I’ve attempted many times before.

God gives us a lot more grace than we sometimes give ourselves. He understands that we’re human, and we will sometimes make mistakes. He doesn’t condemn us for not possessing abilities or skills He never gave to us. Other times, we’ll sin, but He doesn’t condemn us then, either. You see, Jesus’ blood paid for these start-overs. And Jesus bought as many as we’ll need.

Think about that, precious mom. The freedom, when it comes to non-moral mistakes, to be imperfect. To not know it all, and not be able to do it all. And when it comes to sin, if we have a repentant heart, we also have an unlimited supply of fresh starts, with no expiration date.

What an incredible gift. We can start over any time we need to, whether or not it’s January 1.

So happy new year, mom. Happy new day. Happy new moment.

Revelation 21:5—And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Elliephants Never Forget

Megan Breedlove October 27, 2008 0Comment

This morning, my husband and I were discussing who was going to take my son to his occupational therapy appointment. I offered to do it, depending on whether or not my youngest was needing to nurse at that time. My husband said he didn’t mind taking Kenny. “I told Ellie I’d take her, too, next time I went,” he said, referring to our oldest. “But maybe she’ll forget.”

“Ohhhh, no, she won’t,” I thought to myself. “Ellie won’t forget.”

I didn’t say anything, however, because there was always the chance that she would forget. Like maybe…one chance in a million.

You see, Ellie never forgets anything that affects her. Being told to clean up a mess? Yep, she forgets I ever said that. But being told that she can do something, or go somewhere, or receive something—these things, she never forgets.

Sometimes, she doesn’t remember until after it’s too late, or just after the fact—as in months after the fact. Sometimes, she will bring up something I barely remember because it was so long ago, and I think, where on earth did she dredge that up from?

This time, however, she apparently remembered on time, because my husband came into the room later and said, “Both girls want to go, so I’ll take them, too.”

We should have known she wouldn’t forget.

If Ellie hadn’t said anything to show that she remembered, neither my husband nor I would have mentioned it. My husband would have taken Kenny to therapy by himself, and I would have kept Ellie at home.

There have been other times when I have promised something and then hoped my child forgot my promise. At times, I have remained silent unless the child reminded me of my promise, hoping to get out of having to make good on it. I suspect that you may have done the same thing, too.

Aren’t you glad God doesn’t treat us, and his promises to us, this way? Aren’t you glad he doesn’t make a promise, then hope we forget so he doesn’t have to make good on it?

I think it’s natural for human beings to hope to be released from a promise. Maybe at the time we made the promise, we thought we would easily be able to fulfill it, only to find when it came time to make good that it wasn’t convenient.

Maybe we promised something we never should have promised in the first place.

Maybe we promised something that seemed like a good idea, only to find that our imperfect knowledge and foresight had failed to anticipate changing circumstances.

Aren’t you glad none of these things applies to God?

God never hopes we forget his promises. In fact, he has gone to great lengths to make sure we remember.

I don’t know how many times in the Bible God promises that he will be with us. I do know that it’s a lot.

God wants us to remember his promises and to take him up on them. In fact, he tells us to ask and then watch him pour out blessings upon us. He wants us to count him trustworthy, and to ask him to fulfill his word.

Since God is omniscient, he never makes a promise that seems like a good idea, only to find out later that it wasn’t. Since he is perfect, he never promises something he shouldn’t. Since he is omnipotent, he never promises something that he later finds it inconvenient to fulfill.

Oh, friend, do you realize how precious this is? I know you would agree with me, in your head, that it is exceedingly precious. But do you realize it in your heart? Have you taken God up on his promises? Have you asked him to fulfill his word to you? Have you lived your life in confidence that he will fulfill that which he has spoken, knowing that therefore there is no need to worry?

Friends, let us rejoice that we have such a wonderful, amazing God, who not only makes perfect promises, but who wants us to remember them and ask him for them and delights to fulfill them in our lives.

So the next time you fulfill a promise to your child—or find yourself not wanting to—take time to praise our awesome God for his love and faithfulness, and to thank him for all his promises he has fulfilled in your life.

Numbers 23:19—God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

Malachi 3:10—“Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

Missing Rainbows

Megan Breedlove August 11, 2008 0Comment

One time, I was driving my three kids home from a playdate. We had had a good time, but it was well past their bedtimes already (which meant well into my “Mommy Time”), and, being pregnant on top of that, I was tired. As we got closer to home, I was focused on the road and on doing the job of getting us home safely. Ellie, however, was focused on something else. “Look, Mommy, a rainbow!” she said excitedly.

I turned my head not all that far to the left, and there it was—a perfect, vibrantly beautiful rainbow, clearly defined throughout the entire arc, all the way down to where it disappeared behind the buildings at either end. “It’s beautiful!” I said, and we admired it for awhile.

“Do you remember what rainbows mean?” I asked.

“They mean that God’s never going to flood the earth again,” Ellie said.

“That’s right,” I said, “and we know that’s true because God always keeps His promises.”

I mentally approved my “seizing the teachable moment” and figured that I had helped Ellie extract the appropriate theological meaning from it. I didn’t realize until later that there was much more to learn from this incident, and that I was the one who was to learn it.

I had almost missed the beauty of the rainbow and its reflection of one of God’s promises because I was so focused on pursuing my own path. Had I turned my head just a slight bit, I would have seen it for myself, but I was too intent on my own priorities.

I wonder…how many of God’s other promises do I miss contemplating the beauty of because I’m just not looking?

Sure, I know God’s promises are there, just like I know there are rainbows in the world. But how often do I take time to meditate on His precious promises, gazing upon their beauty and soaking it in? How often do I pursue my own goals without even considering which of God’s applicable promises He might be displaying in radiant beauty right next to me, trying to get my attention?

In February, when my newest daughter was born, I became the mother of four small children, ages four and under. Having four such young children involves a lot of work. But do I spend all my time thinking about how to handle the logistics of it all, or do I make it a point to consider which of God’s promises he might be offering me as a special gift to encourage my spirit? It’s true that there are a lot of details to consider, and it is good and right that I should do so. But it is not good and right to focus on those concerns to the extent that I neglect meditating on God’s word, which includes His promises.

What about you? Do you spend time focusing on your health, or your finances, or your relationships, yet fail to focus on God’s promises for you in those areas? I don’t know what challenges you face, but I do know that they may be very difficult. I also know that God wants to speak to you in the midst of your challenges and strengthen you, physically, spiritually, or emotionally.

You see, that is why He caused the biblical writers to include more than twelve hundred precious promises in their text. He wants us to know for sure that no matter what else is going on in life, we can count on Him for these things.

Twelve hundred promises. In fact, twelve hundred sixty. Twelve hundred sixty things God wants us to know but that we spend little time contemplating. I wonder how much it would change our lives if we spent more time considering these words of our Lord. How much would we be strengthened? How much would we be encouraged? How much would we be enlightened and reassured? How much more wise would we become? How much more secure? And even more importantly than that, how much more in love would we be with our precious God who gave us twelve hundred sixty promises about what He will do for us because He loves us?

Tonight, get out your Bible—or if you have a promise book (where God’s promises are gathered, usually by categories), use that. Spend some time meditating on them. Be in awe at how much your holy, omnipotent, God of all creation is promising you because He loves you. Ask Him if there is one particular promise (or more) that He wants to make especially relevant to you right now. Don’t forget to thank Him for His great and precious promises. And don’t forget to look for these rainbows all the time.

Genesis 9:15—I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.

2 Samuel 22:31—As for God, his way is perfect. All the LORD’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.

A Mother’s Hand

Megan Breedlove June 9, 2008 0Comment

It was a perfect day in the summer of 2007. My husband, my three children, and I were on vacation. That morning, we were at the beach. My kids and I sat in the shallows of the lake, playing, the sun warming our skin and the water swirling around us.

As I looked down through the sparkling, clear water to the rocks at the bottom, I saw a leaf come floating into view on the water’s surface. It was a pretty little leaf, perfectly formed and with interesting colors. I captured it with my hand and closed my fingers over it. “Ellie,” I said to my four-year-old, “I have something for you.”

“What is it?” she asked.

“It’s a surprise,” I said, “but you’ll like it.” I expected her to close her eyes and hold out her hands, so I stretched out my closed hand. The only problem was, she didn’t close her eyes or hold out her hands.

Instead, she reached for my hand. “What is it?” she repeated.

“You’ll like it; I promise,” I said.

Instead of preparing to receive my surprise, she began to pry at my closed fingers.

“I promise,” I said.

My assurances didn’t help. She continued to pry at my fingers, so I gave up and opened my hand.

“It’s a leaf,” she said happily.

Sure enough, she thought it was pretty, and sure enough, she enjoyed her surprise. So why hadn’t she been willing to take my word for it about how much she enjoyed it, and to close her eyes and stretch out her hands?

The answer was that she didn’t trust me. She thought I was joking—that I might be trying to convince her to believe me so that I could have the fun of making her look foolish for having believed me. She wanted to be sure that she really was getting something of value before she committed her emotions to trusting me.

Dear friends, do we respond to God the same way? He has promised in His Word to give us so many good things, to pour out blessings on us in abundance. Do we sometimes doubt His goodness? Do we want to pry open His hand to see what He is giving before we commit our emotions to trusting Him?

It’s true that sometimes I tease Ellie, but I never try to make her look foolish. I would never draw her into believing me, only to deliberately disappoint her and laugh at her innocent trust. And if we, being human, would never do such unkind things to our children, why do we suppose that God, being perfectly loving, would ever do such a thing to us?

Granted, God’s blessings are not always what we want or understand. Sometimes, we can be bitterly disappointed when we fail to receive what we wanted (and maybe even prayed desperately for), or when we do receive what we didn’t want. Does that mean we are justified in our wariness of God and His blessings? Can we legitimately say, “Sometimes God isn’t good or doesn’t do good?”

Let me remind you of something that is clearly taught throughout the Bible, over and over. God is always good. He is never evil. And He never has less than a completely loving thought toward us. Yes, God sometimes fails to give us what we want. Yes, God sometimes gives us what we don’t want. But oh, dear sister, don’t let that make you doubt His goodness. Either God is good all the time—and therefore worthy of our lives and our worship—or He isn’t.

And He is. Oh, He is.

I’ve had many griefs and disappointments in my life. Some of them have been close to crushing, where but for God’s goodness, I would have been destroyed. And yet I testify through faith and through my experience in knowing God that He is always good and always loving.

It’s okay not to like what God does, or fails to do. God understands that. But don’t let your displeasure with His actions make you question His character.

God is good…all the time.

God loves you…all the time.

There is a song that encourages Christians by saying, “When you don’t understand, when you don’t see His plan, when you can’t trace His hand, trust His heart.”

Even now, God is stretching out His hand toward you, offering you the riches of His abundant goodness. Will you trust Him to believe that what He has for you is good, even before you know what it is? Or at least that He will use it to your good, even if it involves tragedy?

Will you trust His heart toward you, even when you don’t know what’s in His hand?

James 1:17—Every good and perfect gift is from above.

John 3:16—For God so loved [you] that he gave his only son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.