His Word My Hope Secures

Week One - BELIEF AND PRAISE

My prayer this week was "May the words of my mouth reflect belief in you and your promises rather than unbelief." The song Amazing Grace kept coming to me especially the part "The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures."

We just finished our first week of the Living Like Jesus Study (Living Like Jesus (GMG Study - GoodMorningGirls.Org) - Leaving our Comforts and Walking in Faith)

I like using Saturdays to review the Scriptures,  observations, applications and prayers from the previous week's reading. This week I noticed a huge connection between believing what God says in our hearts and the outpouring of our belief/faith through praise. Belief leads to praise and praise leads to a fulfillment of promises told to her from the Lord. It is as if we realized the fulfillment in the spiritual realm when we believe and praise.

Luke started out with  stating that he wanted to set in order an orderly account of what occurred when Jesus came. He followed up on all things carefully and diligently to provide an orderly account. The purpose was to let Theophilus and others know the certainty of things. I see faith written all over these accounts. Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). I think faith sees the certainty of things that God says.  As we read about John the Baptist, we see his purpose was to make the people ready/prepared for the Lord. In order to believe and praise, John the Baptist was to turn hearts toward God.

Also in Chapter 1, we read Mary's response to the Angel Gabriel's message to her about the birth of Jesus. She said "Behold the maid-servant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word." This response carried a cross with it - a cross of Jesus, a cross in her own life to have to tell her soon to be husband that she is already pregnant, the sneers and comments from other people who think she was unfaithful, the suspicions, her reputation. She would one day watch her son be crucified. However, Mary said she was God's servant to to let it be according to His Word.  We then read how Mary magnifies God. She makes God bigger (like using a magnifying glass) and herself smaller. He increases, she decreases as she praises Him.

Next in Chapter 1 of Luke, we see a Priest, Zechariah who did not believe the Angel Gabriel who tells him that his wife, Elizabeth is going to have a son, John the Baptist.  His response was not like Mary's and thus he is made mute. He can't speak until after the birth of his son.  Gabriel tells Zechariah "you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in our time." After birth of John the Baptist and Zechariah speaks the words His name shall be John. We read that Zechariah's mouth opened, tongue loosed and he spoke praising God. After speaking words of belief, Zechariah'praised God.  Again, we see belief and praise connected.  The praise continues from Zechariah at the end of Chapter 1.  God is magnified in our belief of what He speaks.  Zechariah talks about God's salvation through Jesus, to show mercy, to serve God without fear.

When I look with my physical eyes and recall the many years that have gone by without a certain promise  being realized, I can start to try to make it happen on my own rather than wait on God so he can renew my strength. I am learning to wait on God and be able to say let it be as you spoken. Elizabeth said to Mary "blessed is she who believed for there will be a fulfillment of these things which were told her fromt he word." Although this message was spoken for Mary, I believed God was saying this in areas of my life, especially
my marriage. With Zechariah, Gabriel says the words he spoke will be fulfilled despite Zechariah's unbelief. This word fulfilld also spoken to Mary by Elizabeth who says that blessed is Mary who believed because there will be a fulfillment of these things spoken. Belief in what God says does bring a blessing of peace and words of praise to magnify God and encourage others.

Our hope can be secured by God's Word in what He says will happen. If you have an area in your life where you have unbelief and hopelessness, let God be yoru anchor and hope. Step by step, I am learning to do that in my marriage. My husband and I have worked on "issues" for 11 years of marriage and 6 years of dating. There is improvement then a period of time where the same issues come up over and over. There are times I say "not again". There are times where I feel hopeless or want to give up. There are many times where I just don't feel like be loving or intimate. However, in the last month, I am learning to take the promises in God's word about how nothing is impossible for God and that what God joins let no man separate. I am warring against Satan, the real enemy who tries to destroy our marriages. I have taken a stand and put on the armor God provides (Ephesians 6). We are in a spiritual war. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 2 Corinthians 10:4 - For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, ⁶ and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

God is helping me and giving me strength to overcome feelings of hurt, betrayal, lack of trust, pain and pour out love, forgiveness, grace, humility and intimacy to my husband. The only reason for this is God's word above about the spiritual war going on. I am aligning myself with God and saying I want my marriage and that my husband is not my enemy. Satan uses lust, attractive ads, other women in the workplace to feel emotional needs, pornography, busyness, tv, computers or any other weapon he can to come against us. I too am learning my own pride in my own heart. I don't want to live a life of thinking I am more righteous or better than anyone. I am not. It is only through Jesus robe of righteousness and His power that sin is defeated.

In believing God's word about the spiritual war this last week, I have had much praise despite feelings of lack of trust and fatigue. God is our overcomer. This belief and praise has helped me to see with my spiritual eyes the fulfillment of God's promises. The more I respected my husband because God said so and pointed him to Jesus, I have seen my heart feel much closer to my husband.

"BLESSED IS SHE WHO BELIEVED FOR THERE WILL BE A FULFILLMENT OF THESE THINGS WHICH WERE TOLD HER FROM THE LORD."