Thursday, December 11, 2008

God's Promises

For the past few months I've been doing the Beth Moore study "Believing God." (I know, it's only supposed to take weeks, but I'm A.D.D. with Bible study and have to constantly rotate what I'm studying so it's taken me longer.) This week we're talking about "Believing I can do all things through Christ" and today she emphasized the promises God gave to Joseph. Many of the promises were fulfilled in his lifetime, but others, like the deliverance of the Israelites into the promised land, were not fulfilled until hundreds of years after his death.

Many times I want to put timelines on God's blessings, and if I don't feel like I see results, I stop believing God will come through. Joseph is an example of a man who believed God's promises without extra stipulations.

I think God is trying to draw my attention to something because of a conversation I had a few days ago. Donna Brooks has been mentoring me, and Monday she asked me a pointed question about Greg leaving. "What promises have God reviled to you through scripture about this?"

In preparing for Greg to leave, I believe God has given me two promises to hold onto:

"He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."
Colossians
1:17


and

"We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him; who have been called according to his purposes."
Romans 8:28


I have already begun a constant inner dialogue of these promises.

When my sister-in-the-family, Leah, got married last January, she and her husband wrote their own vows. One thing Brad said stuck with me, "Every minute waiting for you has been worth it, all 15 million of them!"

I probably don't have the exact wording, but the idea is there. They got to see God fulfill promises that they had each believed long before. And though the waiting was almost unbearable sometimes, in the end it was worth it!

I have to believe God has something great for Greg and I. He is walking before us and will hold us together... even a continent apart.

1 comment:

Leah said...

Oh, Friend. The waiting is so hard. I am so proud of you for your faith and can't wait to see how God continues to work in ALL THINGS. Have fun with our shared sister and brother! :-) Merry Christmas!