Monday’s Marinade is provided to you as a means of “soaking yourself” in the hope-filled Word of God at the beginning of your week.
Start your week by meditating on this Word about why you can have courage. Repeatedly think about it and quietly say it to yourself. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!
I recently received an email from a reader of my book, A Seed of Hope: God’s Promises of Fertility. She gave me a bit of exciting news.
I’ve been sharing my thoughts through this blog for 3 years and I’m still surprised when I get a note like hers.
But why am I surprised? Shouldn’t I EXPECT to receive news like that on a regular basis? If I’m praying that someone receive the gift of a child from God, shouldn’t I expect that it will happen? Should I anticipate and look for it to happen?
According to 2 Corinthians 5:21, I should.
2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV
God’s answers to His promises are a resounding “YES” in Christ because Jesus has done absolutely everything for us to be able to receive the promise. He has made us righteous so we can stand before the Father with no shame and no self-condemnation, having only an expectation of good. He took every punishment that was meant to come our way so that we could take every blessing that was meant to come His way. He did it all because He valued us above His own life.
Jesus did everything it takes for us to experience and enjoy every promise the Father made. That’s why we can confidently expect good gifts and perfect gifts to come our way as we put our faith in His promises.
What are you praying for today? If it’s based on the promises of God, are you EXPECTING it to happen?
Image courtesy of vectorgirl-fotolia.com
How’s your confidence in God today? Is it higher than it’s ever been?
Are you finding it to be easy to trust that His promises are true for your life?
Or are you needing something to boost your confidence in His love for you as you struggle through infertility?
The best thing I’ve found that builds my confidence in God is — wait for it — God’s Word. Does that surprise you? The Bible tells us that everything we need in life can be found in God’s Word, we just have to search the Scriptures for the promise that applies to our specific situation.
“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him.” 2 Peter 1:3 NLT
We come to “know Him,” as that verse points out, by reading the Bible, relying on the Holy Spirit to help us understand the Word and how to apply it to our lives.
Here are a few scriptures that should build your confidence in God. I pray that as you read them and say them to yourself out loud (because faith comes by hearing – Rom 10:17), you’ll be empowered to rely on Him even more than you do now.
“You love them as much as You love Me.” John 17:23
For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV
The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:14 NIV
So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you!” Hebrews 10:35 NLT
Infertility can play tricks on your mind.
It can make you entertain thoughts and feelings that reduce your confidence in God and your self-esteem to nearly nothing. Here’s a tip to help you avoid or get out of that pit of despair:
Practice—on purpose—replacing those negative thoughts with positive thoughts.
(See Philippians 4:8 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5)
Here’s a wonderful reminder that in Christ you are deeply loved, fully accepted, highly valued, and not forgotten.
It may seem like a contradiction to say that you believe that your womb is fertile even in the face of experiencing long-term infertility. But when you say the things that God has said, like “none shall be barren” (Deuteronomy 7:14), you are putting yourself in agreement with the Creator of the universe. Remember, with Him, nothing is impossible!
So keep saying and believing the Truth (what God has said in the Bible), rather than the facts of your reality. You’ll see the Truth is powerful enough to overwhelm the facts and make the Truth your new reality!
Hope is not just thinking or wishing that something will happen or thinking, “Maybe it will happen, maybe it won’t ; I sure do hope it will.” The Bible definition of hope is different from that “wishy-washy” point of view.
HOPE = THE CONFIDENT EXPECTATION OF SOMETHING GOOD
This confident point of view of God’s willingness to come through in any situation is what gives us the assurance to believe in His love for us and have faith in His Word.
If you’re struggling with infertility, I encourage you to find resources and activities that will promote and strengthen your hope in God. The spiritual aspect of infertility should not be ignored. Having a confident expectation based on the promises of God is what you’ll find in my ebook, A Seed of Hope: God’s Promises of Fertility. After many requests to have it in print format, I’m pleased to announce that it will soon be available to purchase as a paperback!
This devotional will inspire you to strengthen your hope for a child and to not give up! Each devotional reading in A Seed of Hope will encourage you because it is a product of my struggle and God-given victory over infertility.
To reserve your paperback copy and to receive an additional bonus with it, please fill in the information below.
Supernatural Truth. Is there such a thing? The Bible says there is:
“Your word is truth.” John 17:17 [NKJV]
“Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.” John 6:63 [NLT]
God’s Word in the Bible is Supernatural Truth. It is eternal and unchanging. God gave us His Truth so we can use it. We are free to use it to bring life and light to our circumstances that seem to be filled with nothing but endless darkness. We use His Word by believing and speaking it.
We are enabled by His Truth when we wield it as a sword, using it as an offensive weapon in our struggles [Ephesians 6:17]. God promised that when we believe and speak His Word it would produce prosperous results [Isaiah 55:11]. By believing and speaking His Word, we are speaking words that are empowering, life-giving and situation-changing. Believing and repeatedly speaking His Word brings the essence of HOPE and LIFE to our lives.
Does the struggle with infertility weigh heavily in your life? It did in mine. Believing and speaking the Word help me to become an overcomer in that struggle. I want to encourage you:
Trust in the power of God’s love for you which is embedded in His promises in the Bible.
Believe in the unfailing power of His Word [” Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave…” ~ 1 Kings 8:56 {NLT}].
Bring life to your situation of barrenness by using God’s Word to tap into His good plan for your life.
Confidently trust the power of Supernatural Truth!
Focus on the following promise throughout the day. God said it and it’s what He desires. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day and expect God to do what He has said!
“And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.” ~~Isaiah 10:27
A friend died last week. He was not someone my family spent time with regularly, but he held a special place in our heart. He had impacted our lives intermittently but powerfully. I hope when I come to the end of my journey here on earth that a lot of people will say that about me— that I may not have impacted their lives on a daily basis, but when I did, I did so powerfully.
When I first heard the news about this friend’s death, I was shaken. I found myself wanting to pray for his wife and family but not knowing exactly what to pray. Sure, I asked God to comfort the family, to strengthen them in their time of sorrow, to help them rest in His peace in the days ahead; but that did not seem to be enough. After a few quiet moments, I realized that I had to ask the Holy Spirit to pray through me because I did not know what else to say when praying in my own understanding.
“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” ~~Romans 8:26 NLT
“For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” ~~1 Corinthians 14:2 NKJV
“Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand.” ~~ 1 Corinthians 14:15 NLT
How does praying in the Spirit help you to be confident that you’re praying what needs to be prayed?
Pity parties only happen in the pit of despair. I hate it when I stumble into that pit.
The only way I know to shut down the pity party is to focus on the goodness of God, praise Him for all He has done for me and remind myself that He constantly and intently loves me.
Psalm 40:1-3 NLT
I waited patiently for the LORD to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.
He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the LORD.