A Piece of Hope to Hold to during these Troubled Times | Sunday...Sept. 06, 2020

“It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23) They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23
 
Hello everyone…and a very happy and blessed Sunday to you all!  I am so happy to have you with me today and my prayer for all of us; is that we will be able to focus more deeply on God’s faithfulness, rather than the problems that attempt to take us down.
Usually, I am not here on Sunday…as I take this time to spend some special moments with God and rest; but I was once more reminded, as to how difficult life must be for most people, while living through this pandemic, along with other difficult times…so right now…my prayer is that this writing will help you to see these times in a different light…one that will bring hope back into your heart…Amen!!
You know…so many times, it seems that we find ourselves focusing so deeply on every detail of a problem; that we completely bypass God’s faithfulness. It seems like we have to find everything completely back to normal before we can acknowledge that God has been a faithful friend to us.
One night, after experiencing some difficult moments of pain, I caught myself saying, “Thank you God, for giving me a good night.” That probably doesn’t make much sense to you; but what I was really focusing on at the time…was not the painful moments and the lack of sleep that I experienced; but rather, I was focusing on how God got me through those very difficult moments…and when I see a problem in this way; then I also see that I am really focusing on God’s faithfulness, rather than the problem itself…which truly keeps me closely connected to Him.
When life seems to be at its very worst, this is not the time to focus on every symptom of the problem…because these thoughts will only keep us connected to the one who is responsible for these difficult times…the one who can keep hopelessness alive, just by the way we think and react to these moments of affliction.
Today, we need to experience something that will give us hope through despair and that is to focus on the moments when God was there for us during the difficult times. For instance…we may have had a rough day; but God brought us through the day…no matter how difficult it seemed at the time… and when we are willing to let go of what took place in that day…to experience God’s faithfulness; that is when we will begin to see a glimpse of hope, which will always be a reminder to us that we are not alone…but that God is still there for us.
Right now, I would like you to look back on your life and focus on every difficult moment that brought you to where you are today. Even though those moments may have been very hard for you to walk through…you did make it…and to me…that is a reminder that the God that pulled you through those difficult times, will once more pull you through the difficult times that stand before you right now.
I think that if we could just quit focusing on what had attempted to take us down and look for the One who has always made a path through the rubble…to walk us out of these moments of despair; then our problems wouldn’t overwhelm us so much and we wouldn’t feel so hopeless.
Let me ask you a question as we close… “Since Jesus, God’s Son was faithful at the cross…and since He continued that faithfulness, in the past years of your life; then why wouldn’t He continue to be faithful, for the difficult moments that you may be facing right now?  Hebrews 13:8 says… “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Just take hold of this hope that I’m offering you today; that Jesus will always be faithful in your life…whether it would be in the midst of the storm or after the storm. His love for you is the same, as when He once brought you through other trying times in your life; so hold tightly to this hope and look for the moments of God’s faithfulness…the moments that will truly become a glimpse of hope, even while facing the darkest storm.
Blessings so much on your day!
It’s Always & Only Because of Him…
Diane