Holiness moves through the small things, grace for the moments, simple and short. Added together, holy moments change lives and steer destinies in God’s direction. But it all comes down to attitudes and choices made…one moment at a time. If I reach for the grace of holiness in this moment, what difference could it make? (From One Simple Thing).
What simple choices can become holy habits to give us strength when the day is hard and the night is long? What simple (not easy) ways can we overcome fear? We are continuing finding God’s strength in Psalm 46.
Who or what is your most high?
God has been reminding me that joy and well-being cannot be tethered to the responses and approval of others. Security is elusive when it is based on circumstance or relationships. It cannot be tied to success and it can’t be rooted in the world’s systems or definitions. No person or situation can be a stable source of joy and strength. We are not made for that.
When we put our faith in the world’s mountains and false places of security, we are at the mercy of the roaring waters when they burst through the strongholds of our false gods.
What we depend on, whether for joy or for strength, becomes our most high.
God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
Whatever we are trying to draw life and stability from (apart from God) blocks the flow of God’s Spirit with in us. We will not know His very present help when we look to other solutions or try to fix our problems with our own resources. This doesn’t mean God won’t help, but what we learn and experience will be entirely different.
God will help and the sun will rise.
Sometimes, morning seems a long way off, but the sun always rises and morning always comes. Light is dawning and God is helping as we learn to trust Him.
He is our Lord of hosts and our strong place.
The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered;
He raised His voice, the earth melted.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold.
When the waters roar and foam, the rushing sound of anxiety stirs us up within. It is the inner striving that drowns out the gladness of God in our hearts, isn’t it?
Find your strong in the knowledge that God is with you.
There is very little God asks of us. He is the One who wins the wars, breaks the spears, burns the chariots. He is the One who overcomes everything that can come against us. Notice there is not one word about fighting our own battles here. Again, the focus is all on Him.
He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
He burns the chariots with fire.
What does God ask of us? What is one way to find our strong in the moment we need it?
Find your strong when you come and behold the works of the Lord.
Come and behold the works of the Lord. –Psalm 46:8
What are you looking at? Are you looking at the problem, or are your eyes on the work God is doing? Come–be present with God. Come and behold His works, perceive and see what He is doing. God invites us to a front row seat to His action in our very own lives.
And when you can’t see what He is doing in the moment, stand in faith and remember what He has done in the past. Remind yourself again and again. Remind yourself as many times as it takes. Notice how many times the psalmist makes a bold statement of God’s strength and presence.
The psalmist shows us exactly how to keep our focus on God in the very writing of this psalm. He doesn’t just tell us what to do, he shows us as he writes out his heart as enemies gather against him. Though he cannot help but recognize the danger, the power of his words exalt God as his strength and help.
May God give us the ability to find our strong as we keep coming and keep beholding His work.
How can keeping presence with God and focusing on His work strengthen you in this moment?
So glad you're here. I help busy women—gals like you— build healthy habits for living well with biblical wisdom and practical steps to deepen your faith, increase your hope, and thrive in your purpose.
I love that verse..”Find your strong” Thanks for taking us deep in to the Word. I am your neighbor at TPT/3DLessons
Thank you for sharing my art and my words in your space today. So blessed!
I love being able to share your beautiful work! Have a wonderful weekend!
This is beautifully written and says so very much, Barbie. Ginger, you are a near-neighbor at Missional Women and I have been blessed by Barbie’s words here. Thank you. Those words: “Find your strong…” will hold present in my world for awhile. Finding my strong in the God of all Strength.
Caring through Christ, ~ linda
I am always blessed by a visit to your blog. I am so glad to be able to share Barbie’s poem and painting. The words “find your strong” are resonating with me as well. Blessings today and everyday, Linda.
Hi Ginger, I love your blog! Very nice and welcoming. I hopped over to see Barbie’s blog too and it is awesome.
Thank you and I am glad to meet you.
God Bless
Welcome to my little corner of the world. I’m honored you enjoyed your time in this space. I enjoyed visiting your blog as well!
I love this! I minister primarily to Christians dealing with marital infidelity. Some of them have been abandoned by their spouse, and they are devastated. I encourage them to find their security in God. He never changes. There is comfort in the stability that God brings to our lives and in knowing that He will never leave us. I would love to have you do a guest post for my blog at http://encouragementfromtheword.com
What a needed place of ministry God has brought you to. I know your encouragement to the heartbroken is making a difference in the lives of many. I’m so glad our paths crossed today in this bloggy world. Thanks for the invite, I would love to share something on your blog.
There is such strength in your words today because God is behind all of them. I loved reading-find your strong in the knowledge that God is with you! Just reading those words and holding them close makes everything else feel better.
Barbie is an amazing artist, writer and friend! I am always blessed by her and her heart for getting real!
Yes, His name is a strong tower. When I call His name and rest in Him, I find my strong. My word for this year is courage. I see strong and courage inextricably linked. This is yet another confirmation for me to move forward STRONG and COURAGEOUS. Happy to be join you from 5 Minutes for Faith linkup.
So glad you came for a visit. My word this year is STAND, which is very connected to strength and courage. My God show you many new evidences of strength this year. Blessings friend.
Sometimes strength comes from being too tired to give up.
It’s maybe a contradiction, but I know that dealing with a terminal illness, I’ve hit a place in which I’m too tired, and perhaps too irritated with the whole mess, to do anything except fight harder.
I know God is with me in this; that is not the issue.
It’s just a choice to say, I’m not retreating one more inch. My feet hurt, I’m tired of running, so bring it. This is where the fight is going to happen.
And I am here from The Weekend Brew
What a challenge you are facing! I am inspired by your fighting spirit, even if it rises from exhaustion. There is such strength in the not giving up. I truly respect that. I enjoyed visiting your blog today. Love meeting new bloggers.
Beautiful post, Ginger. I’ve heard the word “strong” and “strength” at every turn in recent days. The term “finding your strong” especially resonates. Thank you. God often uses your posts to speak directly to my heart. (Thank you for your prayers for my surgery yesterday — I felt them!) Blessings to you my friend.
Hope you are recovering well. Thank you for sharing with me how God has touched your heart–it encourages me so very much! Let’s find our strong together in this writing life!