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
“Lord you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.”
Psalm 16:5 (NIV)
Melina
OKC,OK
Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.
āPsalm 105:4 NKJV
Rebecca, Corpus Christi, tx
“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
Shawna, Longmont, CO
Not to us, LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
Psalm 115:1
Natalie Dawes, Calgary, AB, Canada
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the deep. Psalm 36:6 (NIV84)
Kim from Mansfield , TX Isaiah 45:3 NLT And I will give you treasures hidden in the darknessā secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.
Becky, Vicksburg, MS
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Psalms 33:22 NIV.
Suzy Myers
Bay Springs, MS
“But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.”
2 Chronicles 15:7 (NIV)
SSMT #20: They blaspheme you; your enemies misuse your name. Psalm 139:20 of 24
Heather from Hayden, AL: If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 1 John 1:10 KJV
Cindy, Las Cruces, New Mexico
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
I Thess. 5:18 NIV
Anne from Glen Allen VA
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
Kathy, Festus MO Obviously, Iām not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christās servant. (Galatians 1:10 NLT)
Psalm 9:1-2(NIV)
I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart,
I will tell of all your wonders.
I will be glad and rejoice in you,
I will sing praise to your name, O most High
I have a few ladies who are going to sign up for the 2014 memory team with me. I actually didn’t do it this year. But anyway. Wondering when the flip books come out? Thanks guys
Maria
Oxford, MS
He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward him for what he has done.
Proverbs 19:17 NIV
Rebecca, Las Vegas. “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV)
Kate DeWys, Zeeland, Michigan
“God is within her, she will not fail.”
Psalm 46 vs. 5 TNIV
Tera Ferguson
Gardendale, Alabama
John 14:4 KJV
And wither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. John 1:1 (ESV)
Kathy, Birmingham, AL
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. I Corinthians 4:20 NIV
Roxanne, Hummelstown, Pa
ESV Psalm 93:5
Your decrees are very trustworthy;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, forevermore.
Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you will be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8 NIV
Ashley from Bean Station, TN: I want to do what pleases You, my God. Your law dominates my thoughts. Psalms 40:8 NET
Vicki – Wilmington, NC
He reveals the deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with Him. Daniel 2:22 NKJV
k. joy from Lancaster, PA
For the LORD is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap.
Proverbs 3:26. NLT
Michele, Naperville, IL
But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. (Psalm 3:3 ESV)
Proverbs 31:26 NLT
When she speaks, her words are wise,
and she gives instructions with kindness.
II Corinthians 5:21 NIV
God made Him, who had no sin, to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
Sharron in Hartselle, Al.
Laura
Decatur IL
But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
Jude 20-21 NKJV
john 3:17 For God did not send his son into the world, to condemn the world but to save the world through HIM…
Psalm 81:1-2
Sing for Joy to God our strength; shout in triumph to the God of Jacob. Lift up a song – play the tambourine, the melodious lyre, and the harp.
Oct. 1
“Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 (NIV)
Oct.15
“Sovereign LORD, you made the earth and sky by your great power and might; nothing is too difficult for you.”
Jeremiah 32:17 (GNT)
Kathy Bryson
Albuquerque, NM
Ephesians 4:22-24 NIV
You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
If you make the Most High your dwelling – –
even the LORD, who is my refuge – –
then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent,
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
Psalm 91:9-11 NIV
JoAnn Columbus
Romans 5:8 NIV
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Southlake, TX.
“in Him we live and move and have our being”. Acts 17:28 NIV
Jenni, San Diego, praying for your family Beth! Psalm 37:32, 33 “The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him. The LORD will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.”
MiChal in College Station, TX
“…You surround me with shouts of deliverance.
Selah ”
Psalm 32:7 ESV
Pamela Williams, Olive Branch, MS
You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.
Psalm 63:1 NIV
Galatians 6:2 NIV
Carry each other’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Cyndi, Lexington KY
I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.
Isaiah 49:25b NIV
Michelle from Waterloo, ON, Canada
“For I know the plans I have for you.” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” – Revelation 1:8 NIV
Cathy, Russellville, AR
Jeremiah 31:34 NET
āPeople will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me. For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,ā says the Lord. āFor I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.ā
Cindy, Rochester, MN Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue; I will proclaim your greatness. -Psalm 145:6 (NLT)
Dawn – Pampa, TX
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.
Micah 6:8 NIV
Cindy, Fort Worth, TX
āMoses answered the people, āDo not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you todayā¦ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.ā
Exodus 14:13-14 (NIV)
Charlene, Waterloo, ON
Col. 3:23-24 (NIV)
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
Keely, from Hermann, MO learned 1 Cor. 13:12-13 NIV “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”