Weekly Memory Verse

It's Monday again (already?), so it's time for our Weekly Memory Verse. Let's see how well I did with last week's verse:

I am the LORD and there is no other, besides Me there is no God; I will gird you, though you have not known Me....Isaiah 45:5 (NASB)

Not too bad--I've again missed some punctuation, but the words are still there, and I remember the location of the verse, so the important issues are A-okay!!

Again, for this verse we need to back up a few verses, and God is again dealing with the Israelites.

This is what the LORD says to his anointed,
to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of
to subdue nations before him,
and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
so that gates will not be shut:

I will go before you
and will level the mountains,
I will break down gates of bronze
and cut through bars or iron.
I will give you the treasures of darkness,
riches stores in secret places,
so that you may know that
I am the LORD,
the God of Israel,
who summons you by name.

For the sake of Jacob my servant,
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge me.

I am the LORD, and there is no other;
apart from me there is no God.
I will strengthen you,
though you have not
acknowledged me

Isaiah 45:1-5 (NIV)

Again, the Israelites have gone their own way, and God has appointed Cyrus to lead them--away from their many idols--even though Cyrus does not know Him--is himself an idol worshipper.

As I look at these verses and read all that God says He is going to do for Cyrus--Cyrus who does not know Him or even acknowledge Him, I stand in awe.

These verses bring me right back to the time when I was far from God--yes, I knew of Him--but I did not have an intimate relationship with Him, I did not acknowledge Him as the ruler of my life, my King, the Lord and Creator of all.

And yet, during these times--very difficult times--times of discord, violence, circumstances that I was trying to control that I had absolutely no control over--God was there for me.

He was providing the practical things I needed daily for me and my children, giving me the strength I needed to carry on each and every day.

The most important thing He did during this time was to draw me closer to Him through someone who DID have an intimate relationship with Him. He spoke to her, and she obeyed.

Yes, I still find it amazing that the many things that I considered to be "coincidence" I now look at as "God at work", and I still remember things that I have forgotten and have an "Ah ha moment".

That is God girding us--giving us strength, knocking down the barriers, moving those mountains--even when we are far from Him and do not acknowledge Him as the leader of our lives.

He is there--always there--through the calm and through the storm. We just need to look to Him and He will provide us with our strength to carry on through difficult times.

It's difficult to praise God for storms in our lives, but He uses these times as growing times, times when He is drawing us closer and closer to Him--until we lean fully on Him in complete surrender.

I know many people who do not acknowledge God, and yet I still see Him working in their lives. I've started pointing these instances out to them--"That is God providing for you", "This is how God is showing that He loves you", "This is God giving you His mercy, grace and forgiveness through the sacrifice of His own Son".

How about you? Do you know someone who is far from God--doesn't acknowledge Him? Wouldn't you love to see that person come to Jesus, accept Him and receive salvation and eternal life?

Do you know someone who is worshipping something or someone in their lives other than God? We all have done this--worship something or someone else. Sometimes we even go back there, and then say, "Oh, why did I do this? This is not the answer. This is not the hope and joy of my life. This is not filling that empty hole."

And we return to God, seek His forgiveness and He welcomes us back into His arms, loving His children unconditionally.

I can think of no better season that this week--the week we recognize as the death and resurrection of our Savior--to invite someone else into this relationship with God.

Is God calling you to reach out to someone--invite them into His Kingdom--the only place where we are fully loved and accepted--just as we are.

Come as you are--all your fears and failures. God will take care of the rest.

So now, we move on to next week's verse which is the Queen of Clubs from the "Embracing the Word" cards:

She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.......Matthew 1:21 (NASB)

We're again using Mr. Linky, so if you are participating (I would love to be able to come home and see a lot of people memorizing Scripture!) please remember to link up and I'll be back after work to visit!!

Beth