Daily Devotional for December 12, 2013

Numbers 23:19
God is no mere human!
He doesn’t tell lies
    or change his mind.
God always keeps his promises.

 
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
 
Timothy has a memory like an elephant!  Last year after Christmas, I inadvertently erased “Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer” from our DVR.  In the nearly 12-months since, he has mentioned it every time he visited… “You’re going to record Rudolph again… and you’re NOT going to erase it this time… RIGHT?”  I have assured him that I would do this.  So when the iconic children’s program aired last week on a local channel, I was ready!  And when he visits later this week, I am quite certain that we will watch “Rudolph” more than once!
 
We try to keep our promises to Timothy and his siblings.  But there have been times when we told them they could visit… or that we would go to the park to play…or that we would watch one more episode of a program on televisions… and things just did not work out the way we had hoped.  We can’t control illness, icy weather, and other unexpected interruptions that are simply a part of mortal life.
 
As this scripture passage emphasizes… God is no mere human!  Unexpected interruptions are not in His wheelhouse!  He doesn’t change His mind or make promises He cannot – or will not – keep!  So when we read in the word of God that He will hear our prayers… and answer them… we can take that to the bank!  When we hear God telling us, “I am not going to desert you.  I’ve got this!”… we can believe it!  When Jesus tells us that He has gone to prepare a place for us…with “many mansions” and streets of gold, we who have made Him the LORD of our life can trust that this is most assuredly in our future!  You may live in a shanty in this life…but Baby, you’re destined for opulence in Paradise!
 
Each one of us is at a totally different point today.  For some, life is on an even keel and everything is seems incredibly positive and peaceful.  I know people who are looking forward to a wedding in coming months… others who are anticipating the arrival of a precious new baby…and folks who just got an exciting new job, a promotion, a new house, or a clean bill of health - and a “new lease on life” in the bargain!  For others, the road is rocky and uncertain.  I have friends who have openly admitted on Facebook that they are reminding themselves to breathe and put one foot in front of the other.  I know people who would give anything to hear that a baby is in their future, and still others who wish they would receive a “forever home”.  Some wish that a serious diagnosis – or a foreclosure bill – had never been delivered.  Many in our community face a plant closing the end of this year and the loss of their employment… and all of the ramifications that come with it.
 
Wherever you are today… whatever is happening in your life…God is with you.  He is fulfilling His promises… orchestrating the outcomes…and working on your mansion!  He won’t change His mind… He will not abandon you…He will never make promises and fail to keep them!  I know I sound like a broken record on this sometimes, but many of us need to hear this… several times a day!  We need to imprint it on our hearts and minds and remind ourselves of these words often!  We need to remember to breathe and put one foot in front of the other in the hard times… to be grateful and humble in the good times…and to remember that God is with us through all of them!
 
This is a message of hope!  God will NEVER “erase the program on the DVR” or forget to do what He has promised.  God will never have an excuse…He is forever and ever the REAL DEAL!  Do you trust Him?  Do you believe His word over your life?  Are you confident that God is working on your mansion… and numbering every step of your life in the meantime?  Will this be the day that you ask Him to remind you of His hand in your life? Will you begin to live with hope and confidence?  Isn’t it this a great time to begin?
 
©2013 Debbie Robus

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