Jeremiah 29:11

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.

This life can be scary and uncertain; thank God, He is there and can put reassurance back into the equation. The problem stems from the removal of God from a person’s life. It is a person telling God that they know what is best for the situation. In the attempt of trying to restore the brokeness, they end up acting tough and trying to solve the problem alone. It ends up blocking out the grace and help God offers, often through others who care for the individual.

I wanted to encourage you that even though what you are looking at today may seem hopeless, God is still there. He is just waiting for us to let go of our pride and turn it all over to Him. It is a matter of accepting His help and the help of others. Just because we are not all put together, it doesn’t mean we are worthless. The Creator didn’t think so, and that is why He gave us life…both physically and spiritually. He is Emmanuel, God With Us.

Before I end the devotional for this week, I wanted to share a couple of things in my life that made me think about God being in our stories. It made me put into focus our underlying need for Jesus, and that He so desperately wants to have a relationship with us. The first situation involves my Husband’s son. My Husband and I would love to see Him turn His life over to God. The Lord has allowed this young man to come to the end of himself; he apparently is now in a recovery plan for those with addictions. We are interceding and praying that this will open a door for him to give his life totally to Jesus! The second thing is for my Sister and her husband to be open to receiving assistance from the Church and individuals who love her. She doesn’t have to fight the battles alone. My Husband and I know what they feel like; it is so natural for us to act like we can accomplish anything in life alone. In doing this, we end up only getting the realization that we have removed ourselves from people; we actually are all alone. Let us all take the time to seek God, and ask Him to guide us and give us His wisdom. Please take the time to share about turning yourselves over to His Spirit, and what that looked like in your lives. Let us let Jesus give us a future and a hope!