I am a Christian, a retired teacher, a mother and a grandmother. I love to read and I love the Lord Jesus Christ! Unless otherwise specified ,all visual illustrations are from the YOU VERSION APP of the Bible.
The word “but” is a coordinating conjunction meaning that it connects words or groups of words. In the case of “but” it shows a contrast, an exception to what has already been said. I cannot possibly include all of the “But God” statements from the Bible, but here are a few of my favorites.
God makes the seeds we plant grow…we can depend on Him to do His part after we have done ours. Instead of trying to take credit for God’s work, let’s give Him all of the glory. But God…
Once again, people build houses, but God has built everything because He created everything. There is no material that a house is made of that was not created originally by God. All of those scientists who keep trying to be the Creator are not. But God…
We cannot save ourselves and never could. God showed us His love long before we even acknowledged His existence or His great plan of salvation. But God…
God raised Jesus from the dead and provided a way for all of us to have eternal life. When this verse says “you” the speaker is talking to the crowd that forced death on our Savior. But I know that I was one of them who caused His death because I am a sinner and He died for all of us. But God…
One day I will die. We all will. It is the end of life on earth, but it is the beginning of a new eternity with God. He promised and I believe Him. But God…
Getting old is not a picnic or much fun some days. But God continues to strengthen me daily and to show me new truths from His word that nourishes my soul. But God…
This verse is from one of my favorite stories in the Old Testament, when Joseph is reunited with the brothers who sold him into slavery. God takes the bad that others intend for us and changes it into a blessing, if we will just look for it. But God…
So, I hope this post has whetted your spiritual appetite to look for it the “but God” statements in the Bible. They are in the Old Testament and the New Testament, so keep an eye out. They mean good things for believers! But God…
The Bible is filled with promises from God, things He promises to His dear children, which is all of us who love Him.
Do you remember your parents making promises to you? I don’t remember the exact wording, but I remember things like “I’ll take you to the pool later” or “If you take care of your brother, I will take you to get ice cream later.” Unfortunately, some (perhaps many) of those promises didn’t happen. But I didn’t wallow in bitterness and self-pity because I knew that life interrupted those plans, so the plans (and the promises) had to change. I am certain that I told my own children many things that I planned to do and promised them we would do them…but then, life happened and those things didn’t.
The great thing about God’s promises is that He is actually able to keep all of them because He is in charge on the plan. Life doesn’t get in His way, circumstances don’t thwart His plan. He says it and He then fulfills it.
Do you see how these verses go together? God doesn’t lie. He fulfills what He says He will do. One of His promises is to watch over us, always. That doesn’t mean that we don’t get hurt sometimes. I have fallen more times than I can count and from my position on the floor, it didn’t look a lot like God was watching over me. But I know that He was. A few broken bones, but no serious damage or lasting harm. And each time I fell, I learned a lesson about how not to fall, like moving more slowly, not rising quickly and using my cane or Walker consistently. God watches over us, but He does expect us to use the tools that He has already given us to try to keep us safe.
Sometimes, the fulfillment of God’s promises don’t look like we imagine and then we start thinking that He didn’t keep His promise. Yes, He did and He does, just not always the way we expected. In the long run, what God does to keep His promise will be better than we expected and more than we needed. God does keep His promises in His Word, but sometimes we have to be in tune with the Holy Spirit to see God working in our lives as He fulfills His Word to us. If we are depending on our natural eyes to see God’s hand at work, we won’t see it. God is Spirit, and as hard as it is for us to understand, we cannot put Him in a box and say that He promised thus and so and it has to be exactly what we expect. Allowing God free rein (also reign) to work in our lives is the best way I can think of to release Him to fulfill His promises in our lives.
I am a person who loves to check off lists. So, here is one that I think you can use, too.
God saved me. ✅
God shows His love for me. ✅
God fulfilled His promise to sacrifice His Son for me. ✅
God sent the promised Holy Spirit to lead me. ✅
God desires a relationship with me. ✅
What can you add to this checklist that shows more promises that God has fulfilled in your life? As I said at the beginning, the Bible is full of His promises, and so are our lives.
If you read my blog last week, you know that the week was a hard one for me. Two friends passed away and I was devastated and faced with my own mortality and the certainty that death comes to everyone. I got through that week, only to be faced with another challenge.
My husband and I have one vehicle. For many years, when both of us were working, we had two, but once I had my stroke and my husband retired, he started doing most of the driving, so we just have one car now. We drove that car for thousands of miles last month to get to graduations and then at the beginning of June to go to the beach to meet my brother from Colorado. All of those trips were definitely worth the exhaustion I felt when we got home. Unfortunately, the car is feeling the effects of that long, arduous trip, also. On the way to the visitation for my dear friend, I noticed the engine was grinding so I told my husband that it needs to be checked again. Just before our trip, I paid almost $1000 for repairs because it needed a new valve cover gasket. So, I am not looking forward to new repair fees. When my husband checked the oil on Saturday morning, it was low, so he added oil. Now I have an appointment tomorrow to take the car in to have it checked for oil leaks and to have the oil changed again. That sound you hear is a big sigh from me.
My scripture verse this morning is one that I am now working on memorizing because I really need it.
That word “as” is very important in this verse. Joy and peace come at the same time that we trust in Him. That’s where we find our hope. So, even as I am frustrated about the car, anxious about the finances to pay for it again, and disappointed that this is happening now, God is telling me to trust and He will give me joy, peace and hope. That is quite a promise and one I really needed today.
We need to start looking for another car, but we are in total disagreement about what to look for. My husband wants a car for $5000 or less, so he is looking for what I call a “junker clunker.” I don’t want to put more money into repairing a car while we are paying for it, so I want to look at a mid-priced car with lower mileage, thinking it would last longer. We are not at a total impasse, so I am praying what to do. I love my husband, but his decisions are not always the wisest although they may be the thriftiest. I hope you will join me in praying that God will show us what to do in this situation and that we can reach an agreement by following Him.
Meantime, I will continue to focus on this verse and pray fervently that I can trust even as the anxious thoughts attack incessantly. I hope that you will join me in my prayers and that you, too, will find the joy, peace and hope you need for whatever you are facing.
I confess that I have been guilty of thinking that this verse is meant to be applied individually, to me personally. And when that doesn’t work out so well for me, I end of questioning God and wondering what happened to His fulfilling His word. This devotional today made a lot of sense to me and I don’t know why I didn’t realize this on my own. When we think of it as God addressing the church, then we know that it is indeed true. God is working for the good of everyone, not just me and not just you, but for His entire church. That may mean persecution, but the end result may be many coming to the Lord. It may mean our plans have to change, but we can trust that God will be in the new plan working everything out. I am seeing this verse with a new light and rejoicing in the fact that God isn’t letting me down, not ever! Rather, He is expanding my horizons to see the bigger picture of what He is accomplishing in the world, and I am a small part of His big plan.
It has been a tough week for me, but through it all, God has shown Himself faithful. Being faithful means He keeps His promises, and it is part of who he is, not just something He does. Since it is one of the fruits of the Spirit, God wants us to develop that quality in our character, too.
As I spoke quietly with the family last evening at the funeral home, I felt the Lord’s presence surround me with His comfort and love. I saw the teen granddaughters, trying to maintain their composure and smile, but I saw the hurt in their eyes, too. So, when I got up to them, I told them how much their grandmother loved them and talked about them all the time and that she would always be with them in their hearts. That’s when they shed a few tears and I gave them a hug. God is faithful to show us what people need and how we can help them.
God is faithful all the time, in all the ways we need Him. Sometimes, I think faithfulness means that God marches to the beat of my drum, but that isn’t true. God fulfills His promises in His Word, but it is His plan that is unfolding, not mine. He is faithful to His plan for all of our lives, oftentimes in spite of my getting in His way and trying to demand changes in His plan. God remains faithful.
God is faithful when I am irritated with Him. Be honest. You get irritated at God, too. His timing isn’t working out for you. His plan is taking too long. The prayers you consistently prayed weren’t answered the way you thought they would be. But God is still faithful. He is doing what is best for us, even when we are too short-sighted to see it.
God’s faithfulness to us is part of His great love for us. He faithfully works with us, to make us more like He created us to be.
God’s faithfulness surrounds Him and when we are in His presence, it surrounds us, too. There is no one like our God!
When God is shows us His faithfulness, He wants us to share it with others so that they, too, can have hope and believe. In a world where lying, deceit and chicanery are part of the everyday habits of most people, tell others about our faithful God, the God who does not change and who is always faithful in all ways. We may disappoint Him, but He remains steadfastly faithful.
Lord God, I thank you for who you are and for all you have done for me all the days of my life. I bless your name for your goodness and mercy that you have showered on me abundantly. I thank you for your gifts of children, grandchildren friends and other family. These relationships have taught me so much, Lord, about your character and how you want people to be. Thank you, Lord, for being there for me when I was lonely or afraid. Thank you, Father, for being a father to me when mine was not there. I am overwhelmed by your goodness, Lord and your unimaginable and deep love for all of your creation, including me. May I ever be aware of your presence and your desire to bring everyone to you. In Jesus’s Name.
This was my devotional this morning, after a heart-wrenching day yesterday. The devotional is from the YouVersion Bible App and is entitled “Knowing God Has a Plan: 5-Day Devotional by Anne Wilson.”
When Grief Comes, Is God Still Good?
Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Psalm 30:5
Some say grief is horror at loss…at not being able to touch them, laugh with them, or make new memories with them. Others may say it is soul-crushing…excruciating…and it makes eternity feel instantaneously close… yet so far away. For me, it is all of this on top of the what-ifs and what-could-have-beens rolled into one.
In the “Seventh of June” song, I wanted to be transparent about the process of grief…how it comes in waves and on anniversaries…how it spills out in tears. We are all in the trenches at times – “praying and trying to make sense of what don’t make sense in this life.” We are all put on notice, waiting for the impossible moment that we never want to face. But we all face loss. We are not getting off of this earth without it.
Grieving people ask themselves: Did they know how much I loved them? What should I have done differently? It can be heavy and full of despair, yet empty of adding up to make sense. How could this have happened? Why did this happen? And the ones no one likes to talk about: Is God still good? And where is God in the midst of our grief?
Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount: Blessed are the broken-hearted for they shall be comforted…but ask a new mother holding her stillborn baby if she feels blessed. Ask anyone at the edge of a hospice bed if they feel blessed.
I have learned that the blessing is having Jesus to weep with you. To hold you. To give you supernatural peace that only He can give. At my lowest times and my darkest days, the Prince of Peace is there to encourage me and to catch my tears. I want to remind you that He is good and promises us that weeping endures for a night, but joy comes in the morning.
Here are some questions to ponder as you process your grief with the Lord:
Is God responsible for our loss?
There must be a reason we have a period on earth to experience truth, beauty, and goodness but also deception, ugliness, and evil. What could God’s purposes be?
Now, back to me and my losses. Two good friends and former colleagues passed away this week, but I just heard of their deaths yesterday on my way home from my urologist. I was rejoicing that my bladder scan was good and the solution proposed was an easy one of long-term, low dose antibiotics. Then, I got the text that shattered my world and sent my heart into a tailspin. Ann Garner, the attendance secretary at the high school where I worked for so many years here in Virginia, passed away on Sunday morning. Ann was a dear friend as well as a co-worker. She and I used to go out to lunch together several times a month. After my stroke, she was gracious to include my husband Harry in our outings, since I couldn’t drive myself. We shared laughter, tears and a lot of happy times together. I spoke to her just before I went on the grad tour. She called me to tell me that a former student wanted my phone number and she wouldn’t give it to her without my permission. When I called her back, she sounded really weak, not like herself at all. So I asked her what was going on in her life these days. We hadn’t seen each other for over a year since I had health issues, she had health issues and we just couldn’t make our schedules work. But we stayed in contact, so I was devastated to hear her news that her cancer was not only back but she was on home hospice care. I asked if there was anything I could do and she just asked me to pray. So, my husband and I did. I knew then that the end was close, but I refused to accept that truth and kept praying for healing. After all, she had survived for twelve years with cancer. But the end came in spite of my prayers because God called Ann home to be with him. A widow since 2006, she is reunited with her beloved Clarence now, so I know that her cup is filled with joy. I, on the other hand, feel distraught and a deep grief, a sense of longing for our times together that won’t happen again.
The second blow came as I was online trying to find the information about Ann’s services. I finally found it on Facebook, of all places, and in scrolling, I discovered that a second colleague, Coach Joe Harper had passed away yesterday. Joe was a wonderful man and a good friend who encouraged everyone to enjoy life while we had it. After my stroke, he used to come by my room almost daily just to check in with me and ask how I was doing. I should note here that he taught all the way on the other end of a very large building, but he made the trek to the language hallway because he cared about others, including me. He used to greet us in the office at the mailboxes each morning with the same big smile and the words, “Another day in Paradise!” I truly believe that this kind and loving man who was unselfish to his core is also in the presence of the Father.
After these two deaths had time to settle in my conscious, I cried quietly, then I sobbed. Then, I went to bed early, long before my regular time. In fact, I was asleep before 6:30 last night, praying for peace and comfort for all of the friends and family and that God would give me peace and allow me to rest. He did, and I did. I awakened a couple of times as usual, made my bathroom stop and fell back to sleep. Today, I am feeling a little numb and like I have entered a world that is not well known to me. The death of two friends within days of each other invokes grief but also a wake-up call to my own mortality. None of is promised tomorrow, but if we know the Lord, we are promised eternity.
So, to answer the questions in the devotional: God is not responsible for the loss. Sin came into the world and death follows sin. God’s purpose is not always known, but He is always working out His plan, in others and in me. May the deaths of these loved ones point others to Christ. I know this must be part of His plan.
I am not really feeling joy this morning, but I am feeling a peace and a comfort that can only come from God. Whoever you are missing today, I hope that as you read these words, you will know that God is close beside you and longs to comfort you with His loving presence.
There was a lot of buzz this week about the appearance of the strawberry moon for the first time since 2006, an anomaly that we won’t see again until 2043. Naturally curious, I looked up information about it and when to best view it. During the best time to see it, we had dense cloud cover, so I couldn’t see the moon at all. But I did capture a shot of it as we returned from Bible study Monday night.
It was supposed to be most visible on Tuesday night at dusk, but our cloud cover interfered. So here is a photo from http://www.flicker.com that shows the strawberry moon over water.
Here is a second photo that my husband took from our front yard on Monday.
Why all these photos of the moon? Am I directing your attention to the created things? Absolutely not! I want everyone to understand that the Creator of the Universe makes all things beautiful for us to enjoy. He put the moon there and even created special views like a strawberry moon.
When we are gazing at the sky, at least we are looking up. While our eyes are focused upwards, let’s remember to give praise to the Creator for all the wonder He has made all around us.
To God be the glory, always and in all ways for all things!
I am fairly certain that at some point in your life, you have seen a turtle meandering across the road. Perhaps you even put on your flashers and got out to help it. What I am amazed at is the advice that if you move a turtle, you should move it in the direction it was headed. Turtles have a compass. One really good site I found information about this is:
If you are familiar with turtles and practiced in the art of helping them across roads, you are probably aware that turtle conservation groups and experts urge rescuers to move turtles across the road in the direction they are facing when found. Why is this? When you find a turtle crossing a road coming from a lush wetland, heading towards a dry rocky outcrop, doesn’t it make the most sense to turn it around and place it back in the wetland? Even though your natural instincts might tell you to turn a travelling turtle around and put them in a more “turtle-friendly” habitat, this will actually result in the turtle having to cross the road again when they inevitably turn around to head back the way they were going. To understand why turtles will turn back around if you take them off course, you need to know how turtles navigate.
Turtles are excellent navigators within the areas they are familiar with, ie. their “home ranges.” These home ranges include their yearly nesting site (if female), their overwintering grounds, and the wetlands they frequent during their active season. In the early years of their lives turtles will create ‘mental maps’ of their home areas, and it appears that as turtles age they lose this ability to create new mental maps (Caldwell and Nams 2006). Adult turtles tend to rely on their internal compass to navigate through their home range that they know well and have previously “mapped.”
So what do turtles’ mental maps and internal compasses have to do with always making sure to help them across roads in the direction they are facing? Well, everything! Because turtles are such good navigators, when you find them crossing a road, they are heading some where specific – don’t think for a second they are just wandering or confused!! They know where they are going – even if they are heading somewhere that seems to you like poor turtle habitat.
Now, let’s apply the turtles’ mental compasses to our lives as Christians. We can certainly learn from them how to keep our lives on course and keep traveling in the right direction, even when a well-meaning person (or even a temptation) gets us off course by moving us away from our destination. Our journey is one that does not take a few hours and one in which we can put the address into our GPS and just follow it. No, our journey is a spiritual one and to arrive at our ultimate destination, i.e. heaven with our Father, we have to stay focused. Our compass is God’s Word and the more we have it inside of us, the more likely we are to stay on course and not deviate from God’s plans for our lives. Like the turtle, others may try to “help” us and give us advice that is not Biblically based, so it is not sound advice that we should be taking. They are trying to move us in a direction in which we should not be going. So, what are we to do? Stay in God’s Word! When in doubt, pray and consult God’s Word. God is leading us in the right direction if we just follow. He has gifted turtles with the ability to know their home range. He has gifted us with His word so that we can stay on track and keep moving towards our eternal home.
My thoughts on this prayer are yes! and amen! I am not a bold person, but with the Holy Spirit’s help, I can be. I love that I can fight fear with faith. That is what I leaned on while we were traveling so far these last few weeks. I leaned hard into the Lord and he calmed me. I even fell asleep in the car yesterday, and I never do that (you can ask my husband). I’m usually so anxious about traffic and weather and the car in general that I just can’t relax. But I actually snoozed. Thank you, Lord! I needed that!
I am praising God that we are home for a while now and we can both rest and recover. Our daughter is traveling home today, my brother and his wife are going to see my sister in NC and then home to CO, so I am still praying for them and their safety.
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