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 about how only ONE thing is needful (Luke 10:39, 42). Repeatedly think about this and quietly say it to yourself. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!
[Source: Webster’s Dictionary]
What is your expectation of a promise? So many people in our lives, both private and public, have broken their promises until the definition of that word has been greatly diluted. Has Webster’s definition of promise, as being definitive and actionable, lost its strength?
I’ve recently gotten some feedback from a precious few who think that it’s OK to not expect that God would keep His promises. If your husband/ wife/parent/boss/etc. made a promise to you, you’d expect them to follow through and make it happen. If the promise wasn’t kept, would you be OK with that? I don’t think so! If someone doesn’t keep their promise it makes them a liar– as far as the promise itself is concerned. The Bible clearly tells us that God is NOT a liar which means that He keeps all of His promises (Numbers 23:19). Shouldn’t we expect God to keep His promises?
When I was 10 or 11, I joined a Girl Scout troop. Mrs. Skaggs was our troop leader. Every time we’d have a troop meeting in the large basement of her home, she would lead us in reciting the Girl Scout Promise. Here’s my tattered handbook that shows the promise we made at each meeting.
No matter how hard I tried, I did not fully keep that promise from week to week. I was not always dutiful, helpful, or obedient. Most of the time, I wasn’t even trying to be those things.
“Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave.” 1 Kings 8:56
This hangs in my laundry room as reminder.
Here’s what He says about the matter:
This means that His answer to your prayer of faith in His promise, is “Yes” because of the finished work of Jesus on the cross.
His promises are sure. Confess them out loud repeatedly to renew your mind, to build your faith (faith comes by hearing), and to increase your expectation of good — your HOPE. Also, speak the Amen (“so be it”) for His promises to be manifested in your life.
Is your confidence in His promises waning? Don’t cast out His promises or your confidence in them (Hebrews 10:35,36). You can count on Him to come through, even when it seems that He’s taking too long to fulfill His promises according to your timeline.
Be encouraged as you step into the new year of 2015 believing that God keeps all His promises!
What will you do in 2015 to ensure that you take advantage of what the Father has already lovingly provided to you in His promises through Jesus?
Find your hope in the comforting, steadfast, and powerful promises of God (Romans 15:4).
Image courtesy of Infertility Inspirations
Holidays can be difficult to navigate when you’ve been declared infertile. I remember how easy it was to get caught up in all that was going wrong (infertility). It would have been easy to paint myself into a corner and neglect enjoying what’s meant to be a festive and fun time. With the disappointment that comes month after month, it can become difficult to maneuver through the emotional drain of infertility, the possible health scares, the financial toll, and the marital problems that tend to stealthily creep in.
But during this week leading up to America’s celebration of Thanksgiving and the beginning of the holiday season, I encourage you to make a DECISION to look for the things in life you can be thankful for during the holidays and beyond. A thankful heart looks beyond its present negative circumstances to the positive possibilities that lie ahead.
You may be asking yourself, “What do I have to be thankful for when all I want is to get pregnant and it isn’t happening?”
Be thankful that God is with you.
If you’ve asked Jesus into your heart, He has promised to never leave you and to always bless you with his unfailing grace. Be thankful that you can rest in knowing that God is for you and not against you (Romans 8:31).
Be thankful that there is nothing too hard for God, not even infertility!
Some people believe that we’re to thank God for putting us in tough situations because that’s how He teaches us something. I believe God is a better teacher than that. He can get his point across to us without putting us in tough situations. I believe that tough situations are brought to our lives by the devil but God can and will bring us out of them. Trust in God’s ability and willingness to make good come out of bad.
Be thankful for role models.
Be thankful that He has given so many examples of women who overcame infertility and that He has made promises in the Bible that relate to your fertility. Thank Him that you can count on Him to make good on those promises.
Be thankful that God hears you as you pray His promises.
“So is my Word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me [through your confession of it] without producing results. As you believe and speak it, My Word will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” ~Isaiah 55:11 [paraphrased]
When you’re in the throes of difficult circumstances, life can become overwhelmingly sad and anxiety-laden. But remember, the One who has the power to change your circumstances is always right there with you in the midst of them, ready to display His power as you trust His love and His promises. God the Father wants to bring you out of the grip of tough times into His gentle caress of peace and rest. That’s what He planned for your destiny.
Giving thanks to God is the means of focusing on the solution rather than the problems we have. When we give thanks in the midst of our problems, we keep victory’s door open. Thanking God when we’re dealing with infertility or any other trying circumstance is the best way to express that we expect Him to show Himself strong on our behalf and to make good things happen.
Be thankful that He loves you unconditionally.
God the Father loves you just as much as He loves Jesus (John 17:23)! To have someone who always loves you no matter how much you doubt His ability, willingness, and timing…that’s something to be thankful for!
What will you choose to thank God for today?
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 how to prosper. Repeatedly think about this scripture and quietly say it to yourself. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!
God’s Word is Truth. Believe it is true for you. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day.
As October is coming to an end, being in the FLOW has brought challenges, victories and a few surprises.
The FLOW is what I consider as being in synch with the Holy Spirit.
Since I started this F-Word challenge in July 2014, I understand better how hearing from Him is a result of “Fellowship” with Him (1 Corinthians 1:9). Fellowshipping was sometimes (surprisingly) a challenge. There were other things that I wanted to do at the moment that my phone alarm beeped to remind to take a P.I.T. stop and focus on Jesus for (a mere) 60 seconds.
I see the resultant rest that comes from my “Focus” being on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2). When I look to Him instead of the negative circumstances surrounding me, life is so much better! I’m less stressed. I see His acceptance of me; I’m more confident of it. My words about my situation change because I trust Him more. I’m also more grateful.
My productivity has gotten better because of the “Follow Through” that I commit to His instructions (John 15:5). I released some things that I thought for sure I needed to do, but through Fellowship and Focus I was convinced otherwise. I found that I was enjoying doing the Follow Through because I knew that I was headed toward the target that He had set for me (rather than my own). I also found that I experienced more of God’s strength and power in all the “next steps” I needed to take.
My point is that I’m seeing how each of these steps in my F-Word process is tied to one another. And when I’m Fellowshipping with Jesus, Focused on His love for me, and Following Through on His plan for me, I get to FLOW with ease!
I think all of this is building up to make November FUN for me! 🙂
Here is a consolidation of a couple of posts that I previously shared. I hope you find this encouraging and a source of light in what can be a dark and lonely experience.
If you are struggling with infertility, you know what a hopeless situation it can become, if you let it. When I dealt with it, I found the best source of hope was the Bible. It contains numerous scriptures that pertain directly to infertility. It also gives many accounts of women who were once barren/infertile/childless but became a mother, all because they trusted God to be true to His promises of fertility.
Infertility Sucks! But I know from personal experience that it can be overcome. Here are some verses that I meditated on and repeatedly used as verbal affirmations, putting my name in each scripture. You’ll find them to be
great sources of HOPE.
Deuteronomy 7:14 [NKJV] ~ “You shall be blessed above all people; there shall not be male or female barren among you.”
Isaiah 50:7 [NKJV] ~ “For the Lord God will help me; Therefore I will not be disgraced; Therefore I have set My face like a flint, And I know that I will not be ashamed.”
Leviticus 26:9 [Amplified Bible] ~ “For I will be leaning toward you with favor and regard for you, rendering you fruitful, multiplying you and establishing and ratifying my covenant with you.”
Hebrews 11:11 [NLT] ~ “It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise.”
Luke 1:37 ~ “For with God NOTHING shall be impossible.”
John 17:23 (NLT)- “…you love them as much as you love me [Jesus]”
Lamentations 3:26 (NKJV)- “It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.”
Hebrews 13: 5 (NLT)- “For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
1 John 5:4 (NLT)- “For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.”
1 John 5:14, 15 (NIV)- “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
Most people find it easy to say “Hell No”. It slips off the tongue without even thinking about it. But there’s a time when saying “Hell No” is not cursing/cussing. It’s the time when you need to get the minions of Hell off your back and repudiate their authority within your circumstances.
I’ve learned the importance of feeling comfortable/bold to tell someone, “No.” If I don’t say “No” to the things I don’t want or to the things that could unnecessarily consume a lot of my time and energy, I get frustrated, stressed, and regretful that I ever allowed the “thing” into my life. I’ve learned it’s okay to say, “No.” That one little word is a complete sentence— it does not require an explanation to follow it.
Learning to tell Hell “No” is crucially important. The best way to do so is by using the Word of God to frame your responses to the things Hell sends your way. Anything that Hell sends is of the Curse. Those things are not what God wants for us to experience. Jesus died to redeem us from the Curse so that we could have a life filled with God’s good and perfect gifts. This means that He freed believers from the punishments and dominion of the Mosaic Law (curse) at the price of his vicarious death. He suffered in our place. He satisfied the requirement of our eternal death so that we wouldn’t have to. Because of Him, we are free to live in the abundance of God’s grace. Grace is God’s favor; it’s His goodwill, blessing, and preferential treatment toward us.
Which category do you think infertility, sickness, disease, poverty, dysfunctional relationships, etc., would fall in— Grace or Curse?
How would you frame your response of “No” to those thoughts and circumstances that Hell sends your way? Jesus gave us the best examples of how to do it. His reply to Satan’s tactics always incorporated what God had spoken through His written words (Matthew 4:4-10). Jesus also gave instruction to not remain silent in the midst of trying times. He said that we are to speak to the mountain (Mark 11:23). The “mountain” is that thing that has raised its ugly head from the pit of Hell and is attempting to sabotage or block God’s good plan for our lives.
Speak up and tell Hell, “No!” Speak up using the Word of God and your praises to Him to silence the enemy and make him impotent in your life (Psalm 8:2).
After all, if you don’t do it, who will?
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 refusing anxiety. God desires for you to trust Him and experience the HABIT of resting in Him. Repeatedly think about this scripture and quietly say it to yourself. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!
