My Dear Sisters, just as I was writing this post to you, a family urgency arose and I’m not going to be able to finish it. I’ve erased it and, in its place, put the segment of Scripture that I shared today in staff time before I got news of a serious family need. By faith, I choose to believe that this was what our gracious God wanted you to have today. It is a beautiful segment from Isaiah 41 that spoke very richly to us in staff and I pray will minister to you. (Vv.8-16) In it God is addressing Israel but, as you will see, many of the truths He speaks over them in this chapter concerning His heart toward them and His promise to help are echoed in the New Testament to believers under Christ’s new covenant.Ā If you have a more formal translation like the ESV, consider reading it first then below you’ll find the portion in Eugene Peterson’s translation, The Message. Its vivid language jumped out at me and really tended to my soul. My staff and I printed it out and circled parts of it that the Holy Spirit brought to life in our own hearts and minds and amid our own circumstances. We also wrote notes in the margins and reminders of other coinciding verses and then, in our closing prayer, we let the passages guide our intercessions. You might consider doing the same thing. The two simple words “don’t panic” leapt off the page at me. So did this: “I, God, want to reassure you.” Thank You, thank You, Lord.
Here it is and you’ll find my SSMT entry at the end of the post.
Isaiah 41:8-16 The Message
8ā10Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā āBut you, Israel, are my servant.
Youāre Jacob, my first choice,
descendants of my good friend Abraham.
I pulled you in from all over the world,
called you in from every dark corner of the earth,
Telling you, āYouāre my servant, serving on my side.
Iāve picked you. I havenāt dropped you.ā
Donāt panic. Iām with you.
Thereās no need to fear for Iām your God.
Iāll give you strength. Iāll help you.
Iāll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.
11ā13Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā āCount on it: Everyone who had it in for you
will end up out in the coldā
real losers.
Those who worked against you
will end up empty-handedā
nothing to show for their lives.
When you go out looking for your old adversaries
you wonāt find themā
Not a trace of your old enemies,
not even a memory.
Thatās right. Because I, your GOD,
have a firm grip on you and Iām not letting go.
Iām telling you, āDonāt panic.
Iām right here to help you.ā
14ā16Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā āDo you feel like a lowly worm, Jacob?
Donāt be afraid.
Feel like a fragile insect, Israel?
Iāll help you.
I, GOD, want to reassure you.
The God who buys you back, The Holy of Israel.
Iām transforming you from worm to harrow,
from insect to iron.
As a sharp-toothed harrow youāll smooth out the mountains,
turn those tough old hills into loamy soil.
Youāll open the rough ground to the weather,
to the blasts of sun and wind and rain.
But youāll be confident and exuberant,
expansive in The Holy of Israel!
Peterson, E. H. (2005). The Message: the Bible in contemporary language (Is 41:8ā16). Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.
For my SSMT selection, this is the portion I have next in my memory work out of the Book of Colossians:
Beth, Houston. For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ. Colossians 2:1-2
I love you guys so much. Let’s press on with eyes of faith, Sisters. He who calls us is faithful!
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Karen~ Greer, SC
Zephaniah 3:17 (NLT)
“For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6 NIV
Bette, Danville
John 14:6 NIV
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jeannine Hale
Eagan, MN
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1 (NIV)
Maureen, Pascoag, RI
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;
They neither toil nor spin.
Matthew 6:28 NRSV
Jane Williams , Van Buren, AR
Hebrews 12:11
“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (ESV)
lynn , Louisville, KY.
because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel
Colossians 1:5 (NASB)
They will be mine said The Lord God Almighty….in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them with the compassion a father has for his son that serves him.
Malachi 3:17 NIV
Moyock, NC
Elizabeth, Gainesville, GA
“Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace.”
Psalm 144:12
Kristin, Archbold, OH
Isaiah 41:10 NIV
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your god. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
1 Peter 2:23 NIV
When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
DeAnna – Greenville SC
Muriel in Ontario Psalm 106:1 NIV
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
Kim from Dimmitt, Texas
Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” NIV
Ephesians 2:4-5
King James Version (KJV)
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Amy Krummen, Mpls., MN
“We speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.” Thessalonians 2:4 NIV
Phyllis Amarillo, TX
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Romans 10:9-10 NIV
Elaine, Jefferson, Ga
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. (Ezekiel 36:26, 27 KJV)
Christina
Louisville, KY
Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming rains in early spring.
Hosea 6:3 NLT
Fran, Eden Prairie, MN
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is Godās will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV)
Cindy, Nashville In my distress I prayed to the Lord, and the Lord answered me and set me free. (Psalms 118:5 NLT)
Tilley Hawkins from Franklin, TN
“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”
Psalm 105:4 (NIV)
Dawn, Dubuque, IA
Psalm3:3 (NIV)
“But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.”
(Sorry to be late! Rough week!)
“But blessed is the man who
trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in Him.”
Jeremiah 17:7 NIV
Marilyn, Mission Viejo, CA 1John 5:12 ESV
The one who has the Son has life. The one who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
I will place my residence among you and I will not reject you.I will walk among you and be your God and you will be my people. Leviticus 26:11, 12
Wendy, Mechanicsiville VA
Sandy – Dodge City, KS
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:5 NIV
Louisville, KY
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1: 19-20 NIV
Elaine
McVeytown, PA
Psalm 5:1 NLT
O Lord, hear me as I pray;
pay attention to my groaning.
Lisa from Arlington, Texas
Nehemiah 6:9 NASB “….O God, strengthen my hands.”
Jessica from Sioux Falls, SD
John 14:27 ESV
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
“Remind me each morning of your constant love,for I put my trust in you.My prayers go up to you;show me the way I should go”.–Psalms 143:8 (GNT)
Sarah, Dallas
Kim, Nashville, TN
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.
Psalm 16:7 (ESV)
D’Anna Nowack
Kilgore, Texas
Psalm 51: 1-2 (NIV)
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
Aimee, Houston, TX
“When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” Proverbs 10:19 NIV
Peggy Magers, Wakarusa IN
2 Timothy 1:7 “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self discipline.”
“So in everything, do to others as you would have them do to you..” Matthew 7:12 (NIV)
Mindy Seekford Shreveport, La
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely
For my anger is turned away from him.
Hosea 14:4
Sheri Milwaukee, WI
“But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.”
James 3:14
1.Peter 3:15b NIV
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.
Vicki, Lubbock, TX
Therefore He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him because He always lives to intercede for them.
Heb.7:25
NIV
2 Timothy 4:1-5 (NRSV)
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage with the utmost patience in teaching. For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths. As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.
Hannah from Mt. Holly, NC
Isaiah 41:13 (MSG) “Thatās right. Because I, your GOD,
have a firm grip on you and Iām not letting go.
Iām telling you, āDonāt panic.
Iām right here to help you.ā”
Brittni in Nashville TN
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Psalm 19:14 NLT
Paula, Brownwood, Tx
The instruction of the LORD is perfect, renewing one’s life;
The testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise.
Psalm 19:7. HCSB
Katie Swaney (McDonough, GA)
For this reason I remind you to fan into the flame the gift of God, which is in you.
— II Timothy 1:6
Psalm 73:25-26 (NKJV)
Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Michelle, Frisco, TX – Proverbs 27:9 NLT – The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense.
Grace Siestas – My Bible study book was left at work and I had to have the verse that spoke to me – please forgive my tardy response – Again. : )
Martha, Clearwater, FL
You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.
James 2:22 NIV
Noreen
Calgary, AB
“The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”
Zephaniah 3:17
Romona, Rosewood Heights
nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:39 NKJV