Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” ~~ James 1:17 [NIV]
When you’re facing the difficult struggle of infertility, what is there to be thankful for?
It’s so easy to get caught up in all that’s going wrong, the disappointment that comes month after month, the emotional drain of it all, the possible health scares, the financial toll and the marital problems that tend to stealthily creep in. But this Thanksgiving week, make a DECISION to look for the things in life you can be thankful for.
Start by remembering that God is with you. If you’ve asked Jesus into your heart, He has promised to never leave you and to bless you with his unfailing grace. Continue to rest in knowing that God is for you and not against you (Romans 8:31). Be thankful that He has given so many examples of women who overcame infertility along with promises in the Bible that relate to your fertility. Thank Him that you can count on Him to make good on those promises (Isaiah 55:11). Even during the moments when you doubt His ability, willingness, and timing, stand firm in being thankful that He still loves you. Believe that He loves you unconditionally, just as much as He loves Jesus (John 17:23).
Be thankful that there is nothing too hard for God, not even infertility (Genesis 18:14)!
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!
“Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” 2 Corinthians 2:14 [NKJV]
The first part of that scripture, has been one that I’ve believed in and stood on through multiple and various struggles. I frequently have to remind myself of my victory in Christ so that I don’t concentrate on the problem and sink into a pit of despair about my circumstances. I depend on that verse because it contains the word “always.” “Always” means without exception, on every occasion, continuously (dictionary.com). When I have truly and consistently put my trust/faith/belief in that victory supplied by Jesus to every believer, I have seen its manifestation.
But only today did the second half of that verse stand out to me—“through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” For the last 8 weeks, I’ve been teaching a Bible study class at my church about the unmerited, unearned favor (grace) of God. Having done so has opened my eyes to an entirely different way of looking at things! Now it’s easier to see that knowing more about Jesus’ perfect and complete work on the cross multiplies His grace in my life [2 Peter 1:2]. His grace does not depend on my efforts/works. His grace gives us continuous victory. We did not do anything to acquire because Jesus did it all. Knowing Him imparts a beautiful fragrance to our lives because increased knowledge about JESUS multiplies grace and peace.
To know Him — His love, His strength, His sacrifice, His work — is to know victory, and it smells good!
Do you smell victory?
Please encourage others by sharing below an instance of victory that you’ve experienced.
Hidden in the passage of Jeremiah 17:7, 8 are four ways to thrive like a tree. This scripture declares,
“Blessed [is] the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.”
The four ways this tree thrives are:
Similarly, the four ways we can thrive like this tree planted by the waters are:
Thriving like THIS tree is a good thing! Don’t you agree?
Faith speaks. What does it speak? It speaks the words that God has said. Speaking His Word is a demonstration of believing and being in agreement with His Word. This is made clear in 2 Corinthians 4:13 [NASB], “But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE,” we also believe, therefore we also speak.” This is a reference to what the psalmist had said in Psalm 116:10. He expressed his belief in God’s love for him as he cried out to God in his affliction.
We see this same principle of believing and speaking in Romans 10:4-10. In fact, the very blessing of salvation is based on believing and speaking (Romans 10:9,10). If the greatest gift that God has given us comes through believing and speaking, surely any other blessings are accessible in the same way. God wants us to rest in His love and receive His blessings through simply believing what He has said us. He has given us the position as a joint heir with Jesus and wants us to speak what He has said in His Word about our circumstances.
Be encouraged as you relax in knowing that Father God loves you immensely. He has already made a way out of life’s difficult circumstances by sending Jesus to meet all our needs. Find what He has promised you in the Bible, have faith in that Word as you believe and speak it, and, with confident expectation, continue to do so until you see His promise manifested.
Remember, faith speaks!
Photo courtesy of Microsoft Images
Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day.
Personalize it by putting your name in it and expect God to do what He has said!
“When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?”~~Psalm 56:3,4 [NIV]
Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. God said it and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day.
Personalize it by putting your name in it and expect God to do what He has said!
“I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” ~~Hebrews 13:5 NLT
Yesterday, while talking with a friend about my experience with infertility, I was reminded of some of the emotions that surfaced during that struggle:
I felt inadequate as a woman because I couldn’t do the one thing that women can do that men can’t— give birth. There are additional depressing feelings that were brought on by infertility but the point I want to make to you is that I OVERCAME them. Thankfully, I had understanding friends who pointed me to God. They encouraged me to learn about the women in the Bible who experienced infertility and overcame it. That was a turning point for me!
If you’re struggling through the emotions of infertility (and I do mean through–don’t get stuck there), you know where I’m coming from–infertility sucks! Please know that you are not alone. Trust in the Word of God. Trust in His love for you.
Have confidence that God’s promises of fertility are true for YOU. Find and anchor your hope in them.