“Fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10 ESV
The beautiful imagery in this verse resonates deeply in my soul.
Five beautiful promises from our Lord.
Five perfect assurances of who He is in times of…everything.
Every trial. Every grief. And every hardship.
Our God – our magnificent Father whose ways aren’t at all like our ways – He doesn’t save the best for last.
He gives us the best right up front: His presence.
“I am with you.”
You know what? I think He does that on purpose. Because He knows that He Himself is always the first thing,
the best thing,
the real thing we need. In times of…everything.
Just. Him.
But wait…there’s more. He lets us know that He’s on our side.
“I am your God.”
Lest we think that His presence with us means that He’s out to get us or that He’s stealthily stalking us or that He’s with us only to spy on us for the other side.
Oh no, beloved friend. Your Father is always on your side.
When His blessings are blatant and bountiful and beautiful. When trials threaten. When discipline is dealt. When tragedy seems to triumph. Even these things are sifted through the almighty hand of your Father who is on your side.
And wouldn’t this be enough? Knowing that He is with us and receiving that He is on our side.
Yes, that would be enough, and it would be so much more than we deserve.
But our God doesn’t stop with enough, does He?
Our God of infinite resources delights in pouring them out abundantly on His beloved children. On you, His beloved child.
And so He strengthens us. He gives us the power we need for what we’re facing. And not just any power. The very same power that raised His Son from the dead!
In fact, Ephesians 1:19-20 tells us that He already has given us this resurrection power.
What? There’s more? Yes, even more.
The God of all creation stoops down and gives His help. He actually comes alongside us and assists us as we fight, or endure, or persist, or overcome, or whatever it is He has called us to do.
And what about the very hardest times in life?
You know the ones…
Those times when we are up against a foe that threatens to overwhelm us, or an obstacle that seeks to derail us, or an enemy that intends to defeat us?
He upholds us…He actually picks us up and holds us in His hand.
Yes, those very same hands that measured the oceans and spanned the sky reach down to you and to me.
Sheltering us. Sustaining us. Surrounding us. Until the danger is past.
It’s enough to make my heart sing and my soul sigh contentedly.
Being held in His hand.
Maybe He saved the best for last after all.
This is the verse sitting on my desk and where you talked about overcoming/persisting it made me think of it. I love this verse. It excites me – because it ROCKS!!! Thought I would share:
Micah 7:8
“Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, THE LORD WILL BE MY LIGHT.”
Powerful verse! I love the assurance that “though I have fallen, I will rise.” We are never defeated! Struck down perhaps, but never destroyed. Praise His Name! Thank you for reading, and for taking the time to share! <3
This is how I feel; and I feel like everyone is coming against me
Hello, Dawn. I hear the pain in your words, and my heart aches for you. I’m sure all Christ-followers have felt the way you’re feeling right now. Peter tells us not to be surprised when we encounter trials (1 Peter 4:12); to address your comment more specifically, Jesus Himself told His followers to expect hatred from the world (John 15:18-19). He continues in John 16:33 by saying, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
I urge you to spend much time in God’s Word and in prayer. Let the truth of His Word sink deep into your soul. You might consider starting with Psalm 139. This passage describes how God knows you intimately and personally, as an individual woman who is dearly loved by Him. Remind yourself of how God sees you whenever you’re feeling discouraged. Pour out your heart to Him. Cry out to Him. Ask Him why this is happening. Beg Him for help. Tell Him what’s on your mind. He is close to the broken-hearted, and binds up their wounds (Psalm 34:18). I will pray you experience the fulfillment of this promise in your life.
Thank you
I needed to see this today. I have been going through so much struggle and I hope that God has something more beautiful in store for me! He gives me what I can handle but it’s not easy!!
Hi, Stefanie! I’m so sorry you’re enduring such a hard time right now. I’m glad you found me, and that you gleaned some encouragement here.
I’d like to gently suggest that sometimes God does indeed give us more than we can handle. Many people take a passage about temptation (I Corinthians 10:13), and apply it to other circumstances in life. God says He won’t allow us to be tempted beyond our ability. But I’ve certainly watched people bear such extremely difficult and painful circumstances that are truly beyond human ability to endure. And that’s when His strength shines through. Perhaps we would bring Him the greater glory He’s due by saying He won’t give us anything He can’t handle for us.
I just took some time to pray for you, friend. Keep casting all your cares on Him, for He cares for you. He doesn’t cause every trial, but He never, ever wastes one. I pray you see tremendous fruit from this time of pruning.
God has given us all. I am so ever grateful. Thanks for the reminder.
Thank you for stopping by, Elizabeth! I’m praising Him with you. He is so faithful.
God is always there with us when we walk through the most difficult situation.
Encouraging Post.
God Bless
Amen! And those hardest times are often when I sense His presence most keenly. Thank you for stopping by!
Hi Jennifer! This is one of my favorite verses, too. Each promise is so overwhelming just on its own, and then He gives us ALL of them JUST because we are His! And then there’s the amazing knowledge that the God of the Universe cradles us in His hand! Just WOW!
I recently found you (on Pinterest) and have been enjoying your posts. i’m so blessed by your ministry and the way you refuse to shrink back from scriptural truth even on the toughest subjects! Your compassion for others and your gentle instruction–and redirection when it’s called for–are a sweet aroma of worship. Keep up the good work, sweet Sister, and don’t lose heart… you will reap a harvest if you do not faint!!
Oh! And Happy Mother’s Day!!
Reading your thoughts about this powerful verse blessed me, Joan! Thank you for sharing your heart here.
Your uplifting remarks about my blog are a true encouragement in the Lord, and I thank you sincerely for spurring me on in this ministry to which God has called me. You’ve blessed me tremendously, friend.
I have been having a lot of trouble with my daughter. It seems that no matter what I say she sees it as offensive. My husband and her have a wonderful relationship and I am happy for that, but no matter how much I try it is not so with us. I have tried counseling by myself and with husband because it has affected our own relationship with one another, but she doesn’t go to counseling, she is 35 years old, married and with one child. I was hospitalized for depression when she was 6, for 3 months, and since I had 3 children, my husband stayed with the youngest, 3, and the oldest 14, and she stayed with a friend of ours who she knew very well and her daughter went to the same school as our daughter. Our counselor seem to think that maybe she felt abandoned by me for being hospitalized for 3 month, and her being the only one sent to live with someone else at the time.
This last episode we had was really bad, and I feel I cannot take it any longer. We, my husband and I are retired (we are 64) and take care of our granddaughter, she is 18 months. So I see our daughter every day, I cannot talk, it is like walking on egg shells. I told my husband that I didn’t think I could take it any longer that I really wish they would move away, and his response was that if they moved away he would die, my answer was, if they stayed, I would die! I am a Christian woman, but honestly this has been going on for years now, and I am at my wits end. I am in so much pain. Our older daughter passed away 11 years ago with complications from diabetes, and we have a younger son, 33, who lives pretty far, and don’t see him that often. He hurts me too, he is pretty hurtful when he wants to be. For my birthday he never even gives me a card or Christmas for that matter. My husband agrees with me when it comes to our daughter when I complaint, but a couple of days later, he might change his mind and blame me. What to do in Calif.
Hello, Lilly. I’m so sorry to hear of this extreme heartache you’re enduring. I often hear from parents like you, whose relationships with their adult children are painful. It breaks my heart, because the gift of family is a precious one. I know my feelings don’t compare to your heartbreak, though.
It sounds as though your daughter is also in a lot of pain. I don’t know whether you’re correct about the source of her pain, but I do know that there’s nothing you can do to change her. Heart-healing is a work of God alone, and while He often uses other people to help in that work, it doesn’t sound like she will be receptive to that help coming from you.
Are you and your husband born-again Christians? If you’re not sure, you can find more information about that here. If you are believers, praying together about this matter will help knit your hearts together in unity over your daughter. It would be helpful for some kind of agreement to be reached between the two of you regarding your interactions with her. If the drop-off and pick-up processes are stressful for you, would your husband be willing to handle those times? Perhaps it would be helpful for you to stay busy in another part of the house and thus eliminate the awkwardness and hurt that comes from seeing your daughter.
One thing that helps me in my relationships is to remember that at the end of the day, we’re all just people. If you’d like to read more about how I apply this philosophy, you can do so here.
Please know of my sincere and earnest prayers for you, your husband, your daughter, and your granddaughter. What a joy your granddaughter must be, and what a salve to your heart! I’m thankful for the good gifts God gives, even and especially during seasons of trial.
Jennifer Clarke I thank God that read ur words it turned my life, I believed in God he will continue to perfect his work in my life and my children