Accept, Believe, Receive

Some things are lost and cannot be retrieved. 

Accept it. 

Some things can be renewed. 

Believe it. 

Someday My purposes will become clear, and you will not only agree with My decisions, but will be vastly relieved that I loved you enough to see it through. 

Receive it. 

No weapon forged against you can prevail. 

No plan of human beings, no sin of theirs either by commission or omission, can rob you of blessings I have ordained for you. 

When Fears Assail...

Live your life.  Trust that I am on the path ahead of you and have made provision for you.  Trust that things can get better. 

You are not trapped in a whirlpool, helpless.  You are on the point on your timeline, the exact point, where I have known you would be at this moment.  There are not a number of different, branching paths for you, there is only one, and the choice of which path lies ahead is not up to you. 

Sometimes people change at least the appearance of their paths, but it is most often the accoutrements (the decorations) that change, and not the direction of the path itself.  (An exception is the turning of repentance.  But you made the choice to walk with Me long ago, and daily repentance is a fact of your life.)

All is well, Child, all is well. 

Joy in the Midst of Sorrow

When all your injuries seem fresh, remember: 

The miracles of salvation and redemption are that the blind can see, the deaf can hear, the lame can walk.  You can see although you are blind. You can laugh although you are hurt (because I provide conquering joy). Joy in the midst of sorrow, peace in the midst of pain, faith in the truth of God’s promise, there will be sunshine after the rain.  You will have days of joy once more both here and then through eternity.  Don’t repine although you have regrets, don’t grieve although you have grief.  Don’t weep but when you do, know that your tears are captured by My hand, and held safe in My keeping. 

Safe Thus Far

You want God's promise that nothing bad will happen to you and yours, but Child, you no longer count as severe the truly intense sorrows you have already faced.  And because you now undervalue both their intensity and God's strength that afforded you passage through them, you have not given Him the credit that would afford you a measure of peace now.  The grace that has brought you safe thus far has been underestimated and underappreciated by you.  You laugh, you eat, you sleep, and you are not haunted by the horrors you have faced. 

Trust in the Lord, my dear one.  You are entering a spacious place.  Do not be afraid.  

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.

--Deuteronomy 33:27 

This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
--Isaiah 43:16, 18-19

 

Another Word Regarding Humility

Humility and humiliation are two very different things; do not confuse the two or believe that the Lord intends you the harm of humiliation.  Humility is a virtue adopted by choice; it is a determination to put the needs of others ahead of one's own. By contrast, humiliation is like a weapon in the hand of a bully.  When other people seem to assume that everything about them is of greater importance and value than anything about you, the Lord isn't in this.  He will never tell you that you are less important to Him than someone else. 

Considering others better than yourself does not mean you are unaware of their sins, but that you trust the Lord for your needs and thus do not need to fight for your own rights. It becomes safe for you to consider others ahead of yourself, because you trust the Lord to be your defender. Humility, for a Christian, is not a choice to be inferior, but rather is an outward expression of the confidence you have in Christ to take care of you. God does not want you to see yourself and your needs as being of less worth than those of others.  He want you to rest in the confidence that you are of great value to Him, and that He will not forsake you or forget you.  You have food they do not know of.  Do you see it? 

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,  and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

--Ephesians 8:17-19a

On Humility

You are a treasure to the Lord. But do not mistake His love for you as evidence of your superiority.  

False humility is a type of pride. You have developed the habit of groveling because you have become used to the assumption that others may feel jealous or inferior, but this actually communicates  “I know I’m superior to you and I’m trying to put you at your ease.”   

Do not attempt to change your personality, which is a unique and multifaceted jewel, created by God.  You are indeed precious in His sight.  But please do be willing to release your persona, which is something very different.  Your personality is who you were created to be, while your persona is who you want other human beings to think you are. 

Consider an exchange of your persona for that of Christ Jesus. In His human form, Christ was inoffensive (until He stood up to preach) because of His humility. Be inoffensive in your humility. Defer to the desires of others, and let others take the lead.  

When combined with a desire to prove yourself superior, fear of rejection makes you a danger to those you ought to be shepherding with Christ's love.  Let interactions with your fellow human beings be governed by Christ's love and humility.  

Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ....
--Romans 13:14

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.  It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” 

--1 Corinthians 1:27-29

But this beautiful treasure is contained in us—cracked pots made of earth and clay—so that the transcendent character of this power will be clearly seen as coming from God and not from us.

--2 Corinthians 4:7 The Voice Translation

Before You Were Born, He Knew You

You are moving forward. You cannot examine yourself as you are in the process of change and renewal, but God sees your heart. He knows you and is with you. Trust Him when He says you are on right on His schedule, the one He planned especially for you long before you were born. Do not be afraid.

 …he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus
--Philippians 1:6