God's Word to a Widow's Heart: Daily Hope to Overcome Personal Loss

By Ronda Little Martin

In Gods Word to a Widows Heart, author Ronda Little Martin provides daily inspiration from Gods Word for those recovering from personal loss. A widow herself, Martin is the cofounder of PHOEBE Connections, which connects widows for fellowship and service. This collection gathers the daily devotionals that she writes each day to the widows of PHOEBE Connections based upon her own devotion time with God. They are designed to inspire, strengthen, comfort, and encourage widows in their journey to overcome grief and to gain new identity and purpose in Jesus Christ.

Martin spends the early part of each morning reading and personally applying Gods Word. She then shares whatever message of inspiration He gives her with the ladies of PHOEBE Connections via e-mail, social media, and the PHOEBE website. Therein, she seeks to fulfill Pauls command in 2 Corinthians 1:4 to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction through the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

From Determine to Sing a New Song to Just Keep Asking, Gods Word to a Widows Heart can strike a chord with anyone who is dealing with profound, personal loss.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Sep 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781490884141

Ronda Little Martin

Ronda Little Martin is a widow and cofounder of PHOEBE Ministries, which connects widows with each other for fellowship and service in their local church and community. She and her teenage son live in Lebanon, Tennessee, where she works as an educational assistant and a freelance Christian writer.

Book preview

Copyright © 2015 Ronda Little Martin.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

1 [phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8412-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8413-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8414-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015913945

WestBow Press rev. date: 08/29/2015

CONTENTS

A Beautiful Plan

A Safe Place

Encouragement for the Journey

Enlarge Your Tent

Determine to Sing a New Song

Comfort for the Waste Places

From Cursed to Blessed

God Surrounds You

God’s Declaration Over You

Happy Are His People

Living on the Edge

When Nothing Makes Sense

Prescription for Discouragement

Reaching New Widows

A God Like No Other

At His Feet

Come and Dine

Becoming a Woman of Influence

Completely His

Destined for Victory

Distinguishable Difference

From Lament to Dancing

He Has Done Everything Well

A Flourishing Olive Tree

A Wide-Open Place

Blooming Where You Are Planted

A Shield of Favor

Don’t Jump!

God is For Me

God Protects the Widow’s Territory

How Big Is Your God?

God’s Eternal Love

A Heritage of Faithful Love

A Royal Wedding

A Knight in Shining Armor

Beautiful with Jewelry

Date Night

The Blanket

My Delight is in Her

Pleasant and Friend

The Sorrow of Settling

Hesed

Divine Providence Unfolding

Faith that Moves Forward

A Lily Among Thorns

Love Meets Needs

Filled with Abundance

The Brightness of a Shadow

Restoration of Hope

A Strange Proposal

Commit or Submit?

Making it Legal

One More Thing

Missed Orpah-tunity

Love and Fruitfulness

Bridging the Gap

A Blessed Family Line

Satan’s Destruction, God’s Masterpiece

Widowhood with a Purpose

The Power of Grace

Walk Free by Grace

Created, Saved, and Living by Grace

Access God’s Grace through Faith

God’s Promise Comes through Grace

Righteousness from Grace through Faith

Blessed to Display His Grace

Grace and Discouragement

Grace and Truth

Faith, Grace, and Hope

Grace, Mercy, and Peace

Stand in Grace, Rejoice in Hope

Strong in Grace

Gold, Silver, and Grace

Equal Through Grace

Cling to Grace

Grace for the Testy

Grace in His Kindness

Grace to Wait

Grace and Glory

Acting on Grace

Grace to Guard Your Heart

From Grace to Thanksgiving to God’s Glory

When Grace Does Not Apply

Gifts and Varied Grace

Prosperity and God’s Favor

Favor for Rain

Favor through Relationship

God’s Favor for Strategy and Purpose

Glory and the Favor of God

Favor That Turns Back Trouble

Hope in Christ

Real Hope for Real Problems

Our Hope and Our Victory

Hope or False Expectations

To Hope, Trust, and Never Be Disgraced

Return to Hope

Hope Unashamed

The Hope of His Calling

Our Restoring God

God’s Restoration

The LORD Redeems His Servants

Personal Restoration

Strength that Revives and Restores

Rest for Restoration

From Remembrance to Restoration

The Prayer that Brings Restoration

Restored to Dream

Threats to Restoration

From Suffering to Glory

God’s Glory Revealed

He Also Glorified

Splendid and Majestic

Face to Face with Glory

The Glory of a Completed Work

His Riches in Glory

Would God Be Glorified?

God’s Glory, the Devil’s Shame

Destined for Victory

Suddenly, Life Changes

You Have Made Me Rejoice

To Live By Faith

According to Your Faith

Desire, Hope, and Faith

Expect the Best

Everything is Possible

Faith in the Person of Jesus

Let Faith Arise

Faith that Heals

Crazy Faith

Moving Mountains

Real Faith, Real Power, Real Fruit

The Fight of Faith

When Faith Works

God’s Faithful Love

Led by Faithful Love

Faithful and True

Great is Thy Faithfulness

God is Faithful

God’s Faithfulness is a Protective Shield

Always Faithful, Loving, Merciful, and Forgiving

Faithfulness that Conquers Unbelief

Good and Faithful

He Who Calls You is Faithful

Our Faithful Creator

Yahweh: The Faithful God

If You Are Willing

Just Keep Asking

How Great is Our God

Before You Call

Scandalous Faith

Power for Persistent Women

From Promise to Fulfillment

Waiting Expectantly

Integrity to Wait

Waiting Quietly

As Long as It Takes for These Things

The Beauty of Patience

The One Who Waits for Him

At the Appointed Time

Your Appointed Time

Waiting for Your Red Carpet Moment

Why Do I Wait?

Work or Wait?

As Waters that Cover the Sea

Lifted Gates and Open Doors

Supply Until Blessing

God’s Wait

Suffering with a Purpose

Thanking God for Adversity

The God of Endurance and Encouragement

A Waiting Audience

Learn to be Content

Satisfied and Filled

Be Filled with God’s Best

Satisfied with His Goodness

God’s Goodness Now

Satisfied by His Faithful Love

Remembering God’s Benefits

The Presence of God

God Suffers with You

Something of Value

Service is Opportunity

Serving in Love

Serving with the Right Motive

Sharpening Your Ax

A Servant’s Role

Preparation

Just Keep Running

Our Greatest Mission Field

Partners of the Gospel

Responding to the Nudges

Servant, Manager, and Heir

Sowing Seed for Harvest

A Heart Worth Anointing

The Outpouring

Ears and Eyes

From Experiences to Ministry

Jump on Board, or Get Out of the Way!

Magnificent Works and Profound Thoughts

Mourning for What God Has Rejected

Number Your Days

Reaping What We Sow

Significance and Sacrifice

What the Father is Doing

Works of Righteousness

Made a Servant by Grace

Your Life – An Object Lesson

The Power that Works in You

Your Life is a Letter

Your Trumpet Sound

God’s Work in You

No Fear

Ask

Go Boldly Before the Throne

Effective Prayer

Pray at All Times

Searching with All Your Heart

Pressing Through

Prayer and Confidence

The Privilege of Prayer

The Lord Accepts My Prayer

Prayer as Incense

A Confident Heart

Your Praise is Beautiful

Time to Praise

Praise in the Assembly

The Power of Rejoicing

Praise Brings Power

Praise, Fruitfulness, and War

A Reason to Rejoice

Worship in Spirit and in Truth

Your Freewill Offering

Clothed with Strength

The Secret to Inner Strength

Limited Strength, Open Door

Strength Training

When I am Weak, I am Strong

Spiritual Exercise

Finding Strength in God

Ascribe Power to God

Your Strong High Priest

If the Lord Had Not Been My Help

A God Like No Other

Consider the Work of God

My Redeemer Lives

The God of Comfort

Our Good God

A Friend of God

Who is Jesus to You?

The Man at God’s Right Hand

One Word

The Goldsmith

Reflect on What God has Done

Remembering Your Ebenezer

Hidden in the Messiah

Reminding God

Devouring Fire and a Storm

My Shelter and My Portion

Stop Living Among the Dead

Our Refuge, Our Strength, and Our Helper

Heaven is the Lord’s

The Source of All Things

A Bonfire and a Storehouse

Jesus Has Conquered the World

Our Protector

Shout for Joy!

Streams of Living Water

We Remember Your Name Alone

Start an Earthquake

The Benefits of God’s Grace

Remember the Works of the LORD

I Commit You to God

Oil in Your Lamp

Let There Be Light

Liberty to the Captives

Precious and Valuable in God’s Sight

Our Most Effective Defense

Blessings and Persecutions

Free Does Not Mean Cheap

It is Finished!

How Hungry are You?

Lighten Your Load

Saved or Crushed?

The Appropriate Response to Loss

Set Free

Sweet Victory

Speak Life

Set Apart

Moving Forward

Moving from Locust to Luxury

The God of Rest

Whoever Welcomes One Child

Love and the Law

He Takes Away the First to Establish the Second

God’s Dwelling Place

Blessed by the God of Truth

A Promise for Families

Practicing Selah

Your Time of Visitation

Shiloh

Hidden by God

Receiving God’s Favor

Be Willing to Fight!

God of Peace

God’s Faithfulness is Our Peace

Peace of Mind

His Plan, His Peace

Peace in the Storm

A Prize Worth Seeking

God Has Searched You

When God Speaks

Discerning God’s Will

Finding and Following God’s Wisdom

Listen

Determine to Hear from God

When God Stoops

Learning to Walk

Is it God, or Is it Me?

From Hurt and Disappointment to Purpose

When God Gathers

The Good Choice

God’s Good, Pleasing, and Perfect Will

Our Personal God

When God Mocks

When God’s Glory Departs

Again I Say, Look Up!

God’s Supply

Entering into God’s Rest

Get a Revelation

Leaving the Past Behind

The Rest of the Story

Something of Value

The Need for Wisdom

Today’s Shield, Tomorrow’s Success

God’s Pleasure

The LORD Shines Over You

Reflections of My Grandmother

Blue Iris

From Garbage to Nobility

Repent

Out of the Mouths of Babes

On the Outside Looking In

Ruling Over the Enemy

The Gift that Opens Doors

Good News

Birth from a Stump

From Disgrace to Delight

The Value of a Gift

A Light Has Dawned

The Glory of the Lord Shone Around Them

Good News of Great Joy for All

Peace and Favor

Go Straight to Bethlehem

Celebration and Meditation

Return with Joy

A Gift Worthy of Worship

Joseph’s Heart

Christmas: An Act of Warfare

Out of Egypt

From Egypt to Nazareth

The Herod Throne

Not By Bread Alone

No Compromise

God’s Last Word to Us

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated in loving memory to Edgar (Eddie) Adolph Martin and Clinese Hargett Little. Without a doubt, my husband and my mother were the two most impressionable individuals who influenced me most. My husband showed me true, unconditional love while my mother instilled a strong faith in Jesus Christ in me. I sense their absence every single day, but I take great pleasure in knowing I will see them again and rejoice with them in heaven. Salvation through Jesus Christ is the greatest gift you can leave behind to your loved ones, and they both left me with the comfort of knowing they are in a better place than I. I love you, Eddie and Mama.

Ronda

INTRODUCTION

After more than a decade of praying, seeking, and crying out to God, I finally had everything I always wanted. In 2005, I found myself in a very good place as I was living my dream as a wife and stay-at-home mom to a beautiful four-year-old boy named Samuel. I had a wonderful, godly, loving husband who adored me and who was an excellent father. We were both dedicated Christians, actively involved in our church serving God. While we had endured both struggle and disappointment in our short marriage, we had learned to turn to God and to each other to see things through to the end. I felt truly alive and blessed to be where I was.

August 5, 2005 changed everything. My husband, Eddie, went to work that morning on his motorcycle and never came home. He was killed in an accident on his way home from work that day, and all of my dreams came crashing down on top of me. My husband, best friend, and son’s father was gone at the age of 37. Every part of my life began to change as I was thrust into a lifestyle and identity I did not want and for which I never asked: I became a widow.

When you become a widow, everything changes. Your family, your relationships, your finances, your security – everything changes in ways you probably don’t expect and cannot control. You have a different social status, and you are forced to find a new identity now that you are no longer a wife. Just what do you do to find yourself again as you pick up the pieces of a shattered life and begin to rebuild? I found my answers by going to the Bible on a daily basis and crying out to God. As a committed Christian already strong in my faith, this was the only thing I knew to do. In retrospect, I now see it as the path God gave me to begin a journey where He would reconstruct a new life for me – one of which I neither expected nor dreamed.

While I had taught Sunday School and women’s Bible studies for years, I found myself with an insatiable desire to study the Bible and hear from God. I learned that He would speak directly to me and to my problem if I would only spend time with Him as Mary did at His feet. I loved to research and often found myself digging through a concordance or commentaries to learn more on different subjects – especially on that of the widow in Scripture. This newly found hunger for the Word of God led me to complete a Master of Arts degree in Theological Studies from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate School in 2009. Going to seminary was never in my original plan.

In late 2009, I attended a missions program at my church, Immanuel Baptist in Lebanon, Tennessee, where I had been a member only a short time. I began asking God where He would have me serve and to show me where my spiritual gift of teaching and my experiences might best serve Him. Since I had just completed seminary, I thought I would find the answer by going on one of the wonderful mission trip opportunities my church supported. God, however, answered in a different way.

My pastor, Rev. John Hunn, went to the pulpit during this Wednesday night missions meeting and began to announce prayer requests, as he did every week. He mentioned a new widow who had asked him the question, Pastor John, when does it ever stop hurting? He did not know how to respond. He explained to the congregation that he had never walked that road, and he could not give her an answer. He knew, however, that someone had walked that journey and needed to step forward to be a support to those who are hurting now. I knew what I had just prayed, and I could clearly see that my mission opportunity at this point was not to go to a foreign country but to begin to minister to other widows around me who were experiencing the same thing I had. I went forward at the end of service and told him I had walked that road, and I felt God was calling me to help others. He asked to meet with me to discuss ways to begin helping other widows.

I called my friend, Elaine Pearson, who lost her husband in August of 2006, just a year after my husband, Eddie, died. Elaine has a compassionate evangelistic heart and has been involved in mission work throughout her lifetime. We both met with Pastor John and learned the need to minister to widows was tremendous from his perspective. We both felt overwhelmed, and I recognized the need for someone with administrative skills to help.

Elaine called her friend, Carol Pharris, to join us. Carol is the most gifted administrator I have ever met, and she immediately began to orchestrate and give wise direction. Carol called her friend, Glynda Green, who is the life of the party as a socialite and encourager. We began to see that God was bringing together widows with different gifts and talents to minister to the needs of other widows. Through much prayer and the support of Pastor John and Pastor David Freeman of First Baptist, Lebanon, we formed PHOEBE Ministries as a support group to connect widows with one another and to minister to the needs that require someone who has already walked that road and understands. The organizational name was changed to PHOEBE Connections, Inc. in 2015 upon incorporation as a 501©3.

After numerous attempts to name the ministry something that would not sound somber or depressing, Carol suggested we focus on writing our mission statement and purpose statement. She believed the name would just pop out at us once we did. She had no idea how prophetic her instruction was! The four of us discussed our purpose, our mission, and I wrote those suggestions down. I went back to my group with a draft, and they continued to edit. While I was incorporating the final edits, something literally popped out at me. I found the first letter of each of the declarations of our purpose statement spelled the name, PHOEBE, as an acrostic. I immediately began to research what the Bible had to say about Phoebe, and I found her name mentioned in only one place.

Romans 16:1-2:

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church in Cenchreae. So you should welcome her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever matter she may require your help. For indeed she has been a benefactor of many – and of me also.

Phoebe was most likely a widow who had committed herself to the service of the church, as is explained in 2 Timothy 5:9-10. Paul instructed the church at Rome to welcome her because she had been such a great help to the church in Cenchreae (port city for Corinth) through her service. Phoebe, however, is not mentioned as a widow; she is forever recognized for her acts of service—that is the heart of PHOEBE Connections.

PHOEBE Connections, Inc. seeks to help widows connect with other widows for the purpose of fellowship and to provide a platform for service. Widows need the strength, friendship, and encouragement of one another as they engage in their respective journeys and begin to discover a new identity as an individual. They also need to find a place to serve, where they feel they are making a difference and contributing to society. Service is a part of healing, and we encourage participation in a local church and the local community to meet that need.

Prior to our launch in September of 2010, I began writing daily devotions via email to the dear PHOEBES who worked so diligently to help us prepare. They were originally simply meant to bring a timely word of encouragement, but I found myself continuing to write after the launch as the PHOEBES requested more devotions. Therefore, the daily devotions became a part of my ministry. I found myself giving to them what God would give me every morning in my own personal devotion time with Him. As a result, His word to me flowed also to many others who needed to hear the same words of hope and encouragement to take on another day in their widow’s journey. This book is a compilation of those devotions.

To learn more about PHOEBE Connections, visit our website: www.phoebeconnections.com, where the daily devotions are posted from our Facebook® page. Like us on Facebook, and you can receive the daily devotions in your newsfeed every morning. May you find hope, encouragement, direction, and a new zeal for life as you turn to Jesus Christ daily for the answers you need.

JANUARY 1

A Beautiful Plan

Jeremiah 18:2-6:

Go down at once to the potter’s house; there I will reveal My words to you. So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, working away at the wheel. But the jar that he was making from the clay became flawed in the potter’s hand, so he made it into another jar, as it seemed right for him to do. The word of the LORD came to me; House of Israel, can I not treat you as this potter treats the clay? - this is the LORD’s declaration. Just like clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, house of Israel."

Notice where the jar was when it became flawed — in the potter’s hand! The potter was in control of the jar the whole time. When he found something that didn’t pass his inspection, he reformed it. He removed the flaw by creating another jar from it.

As long as we live in this earthly body, we will have flaws. God will continue to create us into new jars that are effective for His purpose. This is why we experience changes in eras or seasons in our lives. We are still in the Master Potter’s hand, and He is still working. What starts poorly can be beautiful in the end. Success depends upon realizing the vision He gives for our lives and allowing Him to fill us with passion for our purpose. As long as we are being transformed for God’s purpose, we can count on a beautiful ending. Once His purpose is served, God recycles us to extend the use of His creation. He wastes nothing!

Today, know that God is the Master Potter in control of your life (Eph. 2:10). You could never make yourself the masterpiece He intends to create. You are merely clay and not a skilled artist. Submit to His leadership, and look for His purpose in creating you. Stop comparing yourself to other lumps of clay that are flawed and unfinished. Whether God is removing a flaw or recycling to extend your usefulness, He has a plan, and it is beautiful!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 2

A Safe Place

Psalm 12:5:

Because of the oppression of the afflicted and the groaning of the poor, I will now rise up, says the LORD. I will put in a safe place the one who longs for it.

God is angered when His children are oppressed. He has compassion for the poor and those in need. When He rises, His enemies scatter. Never hesitate to cry out to God in your pain. Expect Him to rise up on your behalf.

God promises to put those who long for it in a safe place. Just as a mother will remove her child from danger and place him next to her, so God will remove us from the people, places, situations, and spiritual forces that threaten us. He moves us to a safe place that is close to Him.

When a mother removes children from danger, they may not realize what she is doing. They may see the danger as adventure and think she is spoiling their fun. Just think about how many times you have seen children cry, rebel, and even kick and scream when their mother moves them to a safe place. We do the same with God at times.

If you find God moving you from one place to another, realize that He may just be taking you to a safe place. Don’t fight it. Just move with Him. If your life seems to be in transition at the moment, let go of what is in the past, and embrace the place where God is taking you. His safe place may not always appear to be a fun place, but it will protect us from the Devil’s schemes against us. Submit to His loving care, and rest in His presence.

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 3

Encouragement for the Journey

Acts 14:21-22:

After they had evangelized that town and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, to Iconium, and to Antioch, strengthening the hearts of the disciples by encouraging them to continue in the faith, and by telling them, It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way into the kingdom of God.

Paul strengthened disciples by encouraging them. Encouragement certainly seems to have a way of motivating us for our journey; it is an extremely valuable gift to the church. Discouragement is one of Satan’s greatest weapons against us. When he knows he can’t defeat us, he will try to discourage us so we will give up the fight.

This verse reveals the reason Paul needed to encourage the believers. Troubles were necessary and inevitable in their journey into God’s kingdom. Troubles are necessary because we are in a battle. The Devil won’t give up without a fight. Our journeys are all a part of God’s plan in defeating the Devil and in overcoming evil. While Christ has already gained the victory through death in the spiritual realm, our earthly battles still remain to be fought. We need both courage and grace to overcome.

Storms damage, injure, and kill. The storms and battles we face may leave us injured, but injury does not mean defeat. We need healing and strengthening to continue.

Our victories provide us with testimonies that encourage others to face an approaching storm or battle. Any wisdom or insight we gain can be a tool to help others survive. For some, just knowing they are not alone in their journey can give them strength to go the next mile. While some have the gift of encouragement, we are all called to encourage one another and to help strengthen one another.

Dare to be an encourager to someone today. Tell someone how God has helped you through a storm or a battle, and pray for those who are encountering difficult times now. If you have fallen, reach out to someone who is standing. God gave us the gift of fellowship as a tool to encourage, strengthen, and sharpen one another.

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 4

Enlarge Your Tent

Isaiah 54:2-3:

Enlarge the site of your tent, and let your tent curtains be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your ropes, and drive your pegs deep. For you will spread out to the right and to the left, and your descendants will dispossess nations and inhabit the desolate cities.

In the previous verse, God compares Israel to a barren woman, and a later verse refers to her as a widow. God promises to give her a greater blessing than the married woman, who was perfectly capable and equipped to build a family. In order to contain the blessing God planned to give this barren woman, she was to enlarge her tent so she could hold what He was about to give her.

A barren woman would have had a small tent. A married woman would have had a large tent to accommodate her family. God wanted the barren woman here to believe Him for a blessing and to prepare for it. He needed room in her life to give her more. You cannot pour more water into a glass that is full without making a mess and disturbing everything around it. If we are to hold what God has in store for us, we must make room for Him to bless us.

Just how do we enlarge our tents? We can begin by clearing out the clutter in our lives. Get rid of things, attitudes, motives, bad habits, and even people, if necessary, that you don’t need. If you are currently managing your tent well, take on a new responsibility or volunteer where you can meet a need. Take on a new project or a new hobby you’ve been considering. Be open to new people and adventures. Start living life, rather than allowing it to pass you by. Stop waiting for something to happen before you decide to enjoy your life.

Today, find one area where you can enlarge your tent. Make a little room for God to bless you. Rejoice, barren one! Burst into song and shout because God wants to bless you with the very things you cannot do for yourself!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 5

Determine to Sing a New Song

Psalm 144:9:

God, I will sing a new song to you; I will play on a ten-stringed harp for You.

In this Psalm, David is crying out through praise for deliverance from his enemies. He vows to sing a new song to God in response to His deliverance. Apparently, David has learned something through this experience, and he is determined to give God the glory for it.

Where do you need to be delivered today? Cry out to God in praise. What is He teaching you through this struggle? Where has He been faithful to you already? Determine to respond to His deliverance with a new song.

Old songs may be easy to remember, but they can become monotonous with repetition. While reciting their familiar words, we often forget their meaning. We need a new reason to praise God! We need a new victory, a new testimony, a new passion to share! Determine to sing a new song to God for what you are experiencing right now. He is alive and active in your situation, and He is waiting to reveal Himself in a whole new way. He deserves a new song of praise!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 6

Comfort for the Waste Places

Isaiah 51:3:

For the LORD will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places, and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and melodious song.

This verse brings great comfort and hope to those who are hurting. We have all experienced hurtful situations where we need to be comforted. God promises us that comfort. Many of us have experienced waste places where it seems nothing can be salvaged from a life that was once full and vibrant. We may even have had to cut our losses and start anew in an unfamiliar place. Some of us have gone through dry places where it seems no life could grow; these are the very places God promises to comfort.

God allowed Zion (Jerusalem) to be taken into captivity. He allowed the waste places, the wilderness, and the desert places to take over what was once a blessed, vibrant, flourishing city devoted to Him. God’s intention, however, was not to leave her in such a condition. He fully purposed to restore her with joy and gladness, thanksgiving and melodious song.

If you find yourself in a dry, wasteful wilderness today, look up. God does not intend to leave you there! He who has promised is faithful! Has He not done great things for you before? He still wants to show Himself strong in your barren places. A garden doesn’t grow in one day. Wait for His harvest, and watch with eager expectation of good. Joy and gladness will soon come to you, and you will break forth with thanksgiving and melodious song. If you never experience the dry, lonely, barren places, you may never come to appreciate the blessing.

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 7

From Cursed to Blessed

Jeremiah 17:5-6:

This is what the LORD says: Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind, who makes human flesh his strength and turns his heart from the LORD. He will be like a Juniper in the Arabah; he cannot see when good comes but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land where no one lives.

If we put trust in anyone’s ability, including our own, we will be disappointed. Some things require a power greater than any earthly power to succeed. Only the divine providence of God can provide the right breakthrough at just the right time. Trusting in people, government, or self is futile.

This passage explains that such people cannot see the good that comes to them. They are focused on the wrong thing. If we look to human flesh, we will see weakness, inability, and lack. We will lose hope and fail to see the good that God is doing behind the scenes. It is as if we need bifocals and refuse to use them! If we need bifocals and try to read small or even normal print, we will become frustrated! We will miss the blessing that is right under our noses because we are focused on the wrong thing. Our blessing will be hidden from us.

The juniper in the Arabah is a parched, dwarfed bush in the desert: dry and fruitless. This is the condition of the cursed person who puts trust in the flesh: barren and unproductive. In contrast, we see the blessed person who puts his trust in God; he or she is like a tree planted by the water, which gives life—fruitful and productive, even in drought.

Today, if you feel like a dry, parched juniper, move to the water. Sink your roots deep into the life-giving source of Jesus (John 4:14), and drink from the well of His Word. Take your eyes off the flesh, whether yours or someone else’s. Place your trust in the finished work of the cross, and believe in the grace of God for your situation. You will find yourself changing from cursed to blessed!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 8

God Surrounds You

Psalm 125:2

Jerusalem - the mountains surround her. And the LORD surrounds His people, both now and forever.

A village surrounded by mountains is much harder to attack than one on an open plain. The mountains provide an obstacle to the enemy. God gave Jerusalem a form of natural protection, but He also gave her undeniable spiritual protection. He surrounds His people like a mountainous terrain so no enemy may come in and completely devour to take what is not rightfully his.

This does not mean the enemy won’t howl, threaten, or intimidate. The greatest strategy of the enemy is to create fear in you by intimidating your thought life. If he can gain control of your mind, you lose sense of God’s protection and may ultimately give yourself over to the enemy. Your mind is his battlefield. This is why it is so very important to meditate on God’s Word daily and to concentrate on what it says. God’s Word will make you aware of His presence and enable you to resist the Devil, and God’s hedge of protection becomes even stronger.

The fact that God surrounds His people does not mean that bad things won’t happen. As widows, we have all encountered this. By turning to God, His presence surrounds us and begins to radiate His glory through us. When an enemy attacks, he does not remain victorious. What doesn’t kill us really can make us stronger. When it does, the enemy will think twice before he attacks you in that area again. When God made Job’s latter years greater than his first, the Devil didn’t go back and try to do the same thing again! He knew he was defeated! When any enemy knows a mountain terrain will derail and defeat him, he won’t try to take that path again. He will look for a new one or give up altogether.

Today, realize that God surrounds you. No weapon formed against you shall prosper because God is your bullet proof vest! What greater covering could we have?

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 9

God’s Declaration Over You

Isaiah 43:10:

You are my witnesses - the LORD’S declaration - and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. No god was formed before Me, and there will be none after Me.

God has declared that we know Him and believe Him. He is intentional about having a relationship with us. He wants us to know that He is alive and active in our lives. He is working out every little detail, and His plans for us are the best! He plans to do something that only He can do, and no other god we try to substitute in His place can accomplish His great purpose for us. When He is finished, His glory will surround us, and others will recognize His distinct handiwork in our lives. He has chosen us for such a purpose, and we can count on Him to accomplish it.

We are His witnesses and His servants. We must do what He has called us to do. We know He equips us and works through us, but we have to seek Him and obey Him for His glory to appear. When everything falls apart and all our dreams or plans crumble before us, God is up to something bigger than we can imagine. We must simply submit, trust, and obey. God works through His submissive servants.

God has declared that you know Him and believe Him. Trust Him today as you submit to His plan for you. Expect Him to appear in your situation in a big way so that no other god can compare. This is His declaration over you!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 10

Happy Are His People

Psalm 84:5:

Happy are the people whose strength is in You, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

This verse tells us that those whose hearts are set to worship are happy people. This doesn’t mean you have to be happy to worship; it means that when your heart is determined to worship, you will become happy as a result of your worship.

This verse also tells us that those who are determined to worship and are committed to the journey it will take, are those whose strength is in the LORD. They do not depend upon their own efforts. Their happiness does not come from what they can accomplish. Happiness comes from the LORD.

Today, set your hearts on pilgrimage and enter into worship of our heavenly Father. Place your hope in Him, alone. He is your strength. The end result is your happiness!

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 11

Living on the Edge

2 Corinthians 5:7:

… for we walk by faith, not by sight…

We often ask the question, What is God’s will for my life? We want to be in His will. We have a longing inside that needs to be satisfied, and only He can satisfy that longing. Just how do we find God’s perfect will for our lives and live a life that is fulfilled?

When a need arises, we know God can meet that need, but we might wonder if it is His will to meet it. Matthew 8 tells us of a man with a serious skin disease who knew Jesus could heal him if He were willing. Like this man, we may know God can work in our lives, but is He willing? Just how do we determine God’s will?

God’s will is to increase our faith. He tends to bring us to the very edge of our faith, where we feel like we are hanging over a cliff. If we look down, we become terrified of the fall below. If we look to those around us, they discourage us and call us back. Yet, when we look straight ahead, we face the One who bids us, Come. We must take one step forward, trusting that He loves us enough not to let us fall. When we do, a road rolls right out underneath our feet, allowing us to walk in places we never dreamed we’d walk! We can walk that road only by keeping our eyes on Jesus. Walking by faith is living life on the edge. It is God’s will for us.

Most of us are not comfortable living on the edge—it’s just too nerve wrecking! This life, however, is no place to become comfortable; it is temporary. If we are going to truly live, we must experience the edge. We may not be able to see the road before us, but we walk it by faith, one step at a time. We may not know the answers when we begin to walk, but we walk anyway, believing God will answer.

Hebrews 10:38 reminds us that the righteous are called to live by faith. That means we are called to live life on the edge. If we draw back into our comfort zones, God is not pleased with us. When we begin to walk that road that rolls out beneath us from the edge, it leads us to another edge. That is a life of increasing faith!

Today, we have a choice. We can shrink back into safety and discontentment, or we can take one step over that edge in faith. Christ bids us to come. He doesn’t push us off a cliff! The safety of the mountain behind us won’t satisfy. How long can we live an unsatisfied life? Dare to step where you have never stepped before, and allow God to increase your faith.

Have a blessed day!

JANUARY 12

When Nothing Makes Sense

Proverbs 3:5-6:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where nothing made sense? You thought you heard from God and began following in that direction, then everything began to crumble and fall apart? Mary Magdalene must have felt the same way (John 19–20). Having been freed from seven demons, she followed Jesus from town to village, watching Him perform one miracle after another. Then, she followed Him to the hard place of the cross and watched Him die. She continued to follow Him to see where He was buried, and she returned three days later to find Him missing from the tomb. How can you continue to follow a Savior who is not there?

These verses from Proverbs are for those times when nothing makes sense. Did you really hear from God, or did you follow your own flesh in hopes God would comply? Did God lead you to a place where your faith would be shattered only to leave you high and dry? Like Mary Magdalene, we don’t have the full story. Something wonderful had just happened, but Mary could not comprehend it with her own eyes or her own understanding. Jesus had to reveal Himself to her. When we come to a place where nothing makes sense, we cannot rely upon our own understanding of the situation. We must trust God with all our heart, focus on Him, and rely upon Him to guide us. Our faith can never be in another person or something we want God to do for us. Our faith must be in Him—and Him alone.

Before you act, trust God. Even if you made a mistake and wandered onto the wrong path, He still has the power to guide you back to the right one. Don’t dismiss all you know to be true simply because you don’t know what God is doing. He is still there somewhere. This is the time to be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10). Accept the fact that your understanding is limited, and trust the One who knows all things. At the right time, He will reveal Himself to you, and you will see where He has been all along. You will