Fresh Hope

 

A friend of mine has chronic illness just like we do. She has Addison's Disease and severe Lupus. She is currently in an episode- struggling to make it through each day. She shared what she wrote here:   

They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. ~ Isaiah 61:4

I'm revisiting a few of my favorite verses. The thing is....God knows exactly when our own walls fell and were devastated and why. 

But the amazing promise is....HE is going to rebuild them. Maybe not in the way we feel or demand them to be. But better. Perfect for whatever is going to give us unexpected joy, strength, hope....change. 

The walls for some of us needed to come down. 

They were probably hurtful...destructive and crippling...a comfort zone of chaos.
HE only desires the BEST for HIS Children. 

And sometimes we just need to start from scratch. A complete redo. A fresh new beginning. 

Well, we all started a new year on the same day...a 365 day blank canvas. Not tainted. Fresh and new.

So there is my resolution. Making better what was broken. But allowing God to build it. So it won't be as difficult to accomplish. And to truly trust HIM, believe HIM.
HE promised it...HE'LL do it. 

The passage in Jeremiah below is one of my favorites, one I pray to be.

But blessed are those who trust in the Lord
and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.
They are like trees planted along a riverbank,
with roots that reach deep into the water.
Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought.
Their leaves stay green,
and they never stop producing fruit. 

~Jeremiah 17:7-8 

What do you hear when you read this? I hear surrender, trust, renewed faith and hope. Everything may run out and we may feel like we have come to the end, I have before, more than once. So when the walls in your life have come down, remember it's when you're at the end that 
you find a new beginning. It's when we die to self that we are born again. If you aren't familiar with God's promises, or you need a reminder, I am including a printable copy at the bottom of this post. He has never broken a promise to me, has He ever broken one to You? 

My Bible Study group God-Living Girls begins our new study "Discovering Hope" tomorrow. Maybe 2017 is your year to discover fresh new hope.