Whatever Lies Ahead

I was reading some of the OT prophets over the weekend. As I was spending time in prayer, the scripture out of Habakkuk came to my mind and I whispered it in my prayers. In the last part of verse 2, the prophet says, revive Your work in the midst of the years, oh Lord. That was my prayer and later became my meditation.

We are living through some tough times, and I'm seeing lots of whining come across social media channels. I'm certainly not unsympathetic, but I'm like you've been home for two whole weeks... seriously? I recall when I became a caregiver and the social isolation was one of the most difficult parts. And honestly, even as caregivers, we can mourn the loss of the freedom we have enjoyed - whatever level of freedom we had, even if it was minimal.

But there's always some good news, and I found it in the latter part of this same chapter of Habakkuk. Verses 17 and 18 say this:

Though the fig tree does not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines;

Though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food;

Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls--

Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.....

There is so much in these two verses - and we are living some of it right now. Just a few weeks ago we could go to the store and buy eggs if we needed them. Now there is a limit - if they are available at all... things like that are just crazy. But when I think about our situation - and the trouble so many are facing - I have to find peace in this - our salvation is sure.

We've talked a lot about how as caregivers we didn't lose any of our promises. Our righteousness is secure in Him - there isn't an exempt card from Christianity - we still get ALL the benefits and we still have ALL the responsibilities. Nothing shakes His kingdom - and that Kingdom is inside us. Nothing in the spiritual realm has changed - His word still stands secure. God didn't change His mind on anything when this man-made virus started in China and moved across the globe. He didn't take a deep breath and say, Oh no.

We know as caregivers that it took us some time to figure that out - because for some of us - our worlds were greatly shaken. Our faith was shaken. Mine was redefined. We know God carries us through those tough times- He continues to speak, to care, to watch, and love us just like always.

Today, no matter what lies ahead - I'm going to trust God. I will rejoice in my salvation because it's not from this earth and nothing on earth can shake it or change it. My meditations will be on staying hidden in Him - for today. I'll trust Him just for today. I will wait for Him today. I will thank Him for being my soul's anchor - today and for whatever lies ahead. Will you join me?

Comments

Ups and Downs

Maybe it's just "that time of year" for me, but I've struggled a lot the last few weeks. I still affectionately call it the caregiver's fog. Lol. Okay, maybe it's not-so-affectionately. I know I can share my true feelings with you guys because you get it. You understand the day-to-day grind of caregiving. The military has a saying about there being no easy day. I think we live in that reality. It's just not easy caring for another whole person, is it? Caregiving presents many difficulties. We can find ourselves alone, so very alone on this journey. It doesn't just go away. We don't just work through it. It seems to go on and on. There are lots of ups and downs - and that can be about every 90 seconds some days. Right? (smile!) As I've been working through this emotional maze the last few days, I turned my thoughts to Daniel. Let's take a realistic look at his circumstances because as we read his story in the Bible, we tend to glamorize i

Seasons Are Temporary

This morning, I found myself reading in Isaiah 28. I ended up there because I was looking for something in particular, and even though I didn't find what I was looking for, I found what I needed. God's so cool like that, isn't He? My eyes first fell on verse 29, which says in the NKJ: This also comes from the Lord of hosts, Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance. I rolled that over in my mind and heart a few times and spent a few minutes thinking about how I'd seen His counsel in action in my own life. We've all had those times when we weren't sure what to do or where to go, and suddenly, an idea drops into our thoughts. There are many ways He provides direction for us. He may direct our steps through a passage of scripture, a trusted spiritual leader such as a pastor, a YouTube teacher, and maybe even a lowly blog writer. Lol. No matter how He chooses to deliver His counsel, it comes - but we must listen. After I had rolled these thoughts and t

Seek and Ye Shall Find

Over the last few weeks, I've been trying to strategize ways of dealing with stress. It's something we all deal with, especially caregivers. I'm walking and exercising more, which helps the body get rid of stress and it helps improve sleep to some degree. But I've also been working on training my thoughts. I've been working on purposefully finding things to be thankful for. At first, it was a bit difficult because let's face it, caregiving is hard work. This morning, I was plugging Chris into a nebulizer for a breathing treatment as he had an asthma attack yesterday afternoon after we'd been out for a little bit. As I was doing his treatment and his tube feeding, I didn't even really think about it; this "thought" just rolled up out of me. I thought, thank you, Lord, for carrying us through the long night. My own thankfulness surprised me! Lol. I realized at that moment that it's getting easier and easier to be thankful, even for the litt

Daily Devotions for Caregivers

Search This Blog