Day 39: Victory is Ours!

Read: Romans 8:18-39

 Romans 8 | NIV Bible | YouVersion


Romans 8 reminds us that our suffering is only for a season.  The time spent in the desert will be worth it all for the glory that will be revealed.

It is in these times of suffering, these desert seasons, that the Holy Spirit steps up to help us.  At times, our suffering may be so great that we don’t even know how to pray.  Ever been there?  I have.  I can remember a few specific times when I agonized over how I should pray.  I just didn’t know what God would want in that specific situation.  Maybe I knew what I wanted.  But I really wanted to pray in accordance with God’s will, and I just didn’t know what to say.  All I could do was cry.

Should we ask God to take our suffering away?  Do we ask Him to help us to bear it?  Or should we be praying something else altogether?

This is when the Holy Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.  And yet, because He is God, His prayers are in perfect accordance with God’s will.

And God promises us that He will work everything together for good.  And He reminds us how much He loves us, that nothing can separate us from His love—certainly not even a desert!  And in Him we will have victory, even in the desert!

Take time to meditate on these passages today, and allow them to minister His comfort and reassurance to you.  He has not forgotten you in the desert.  He has not abandoned you.  He is interceding for you, and is working to bring about victory in your life and in your situation.  And I think that deserves a hallelujah!

 

Listen: Kari Jobe - I Am Not Alone (Live) - YouTube

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 31: Desert Blossoms

Image
Read: Isaiah 35 Isaiah 35 | NIV Bible | YouVersion The first 34 chapters of Isaiah have delivered a message of judgment, gloom and doom on all nations, including Israel and Judah.   However, God is a loving and compassionate God, and here He offers a ray of hope, as He shares a beautiful picture of His coming Kingdom, in which He will establish justice and destroy all evil. Sometimes the desert feels like a place of judgment and punishment.   But we can have hope because we already know what the future holds—God reigning on the throne in righteousness and justice. What a beautiful picture He paints as He describes a kingdom where even the desert will be green and covered in lush blooms!   A place of joy and gladness.   A place of singing! And right through the middle of that once-barren wilderness will run a great road, the Highway of Holiness.   On this highway, the righteous pilgrims will journey from the desert of suffering to Jerusalem.   Only...
Read more

Day 40: After a Little While

Image
Read: 1 Peter 5:6-10   1 Peter 5 | NIV Bible | YouVersion Jesus warns us that the Christian life is not a bed of roses.  In fact, He prepares us by saying, if He suffered, how much more will His followers suffer.  He knows the enemy Satan is alive and well, and looking for his next victim.  Peter describes him as a roaring lion seeking out his next prey.  So, of course, sooner or later, he’s going to come after you. But Jesus also promises us, “After you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and He will place you on a firm foundation.”  If we look at our season of suffering as time spent in the desert, we must realize that the purpose of the desert is not to get through it as quickly as possible, although when we’re in the desert, that’s exactly what we’re thinking.  “Let me out of here, and fast!” When we moved to our home in Kapolei, on the Ewa Plain, we were surprised to see desert plants, cacti and succ...
Read more

Day 10: Water From a Rock

Image
  Read: Exodus 17:1-7   Exodus 17 | NIV Bible | YouVersion   What is your first reaction when troubles arise?   Even though the people of Israel had seen God’s hand moving on their behalf in miraculous ways time and time again, at the first sign of trouble, their immediate reaction was to complain about their problem instead of praying. Now, it’s true that some problems can be solved by with careful thought and action, but some problems can only be solved by prayer. When you run out of water in the middle of a desert, well, that’s a prayer kind of problem. When we worry and complain, we only serve to stress ourselves out even more as we focus on the problem itself. But when we pray, we set our focus on the One who is able to solve our problems. Who would ever think of such a crazy solution to their problem?   Just hit this rock with a stick.   What kind of a solution is that?   But this is where the presence of the All-Powerful God comes an...
Read more