Promises Through the Struggle

So, last week was rough. How was yours? I find it strange how one minute you feel strong and the next, it’s as if your feet were knocked out from in under you. At least that’s how I felt. In the midst of the hard, though, came God’s assurance as I read from Isaiah 41. Verse 10 kept echoing in my mind: “fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” There are a lot of promises packed into that verse, and last week I depended on every single one of them! As I meditated on this verse last week, I began to unpack them slowly over the course of the week.

The first part is “fear not, for I am with you.” This part of the verse also seemed like a command to fear not. He’s commanded me not to fear. It’s not an open-ended command, though. None of His commandments are. He’s telling me that I shouldn’t fear because He is with me! I don’t have to struggle with this situation on my own. I don’t have to fight alone, for He is with me. This part by itself was so very comforting to me.

The second part is “be not dismayed, for I am your God.” If I’m honest, I get dismayed from time to time, and this was one of those times. This part of the verse is also another command, “Be not dismayed.” Again, not an open-ended command, though. Why should I not be? He gives me the answer, “Because I am your God.” I then started thinking about Who He has been in my life, and that encouraged me.

The third part is, “I will strengthen you.” Last week I also read Isaiah 58:11– “And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong…” I believe that He will strengthen not only my faith, but He will strengthen me physically. We all know that when we go through a trial, it tends to make us tired and exhausted. I believe that He will strengthen us in every means possible for us to endure the trial.

The fourth part is, “I will help you.” Man, did I depend on this part last week! I trusted that He would help because there was nothing else left for me to do. No one could fix the problem, only Him. Sometimes that’s the whole point of the trial. God works His biggest miracles when there’s nothing left for us to do but to trust. God shows us who He is when we are in those types of circumstances either by God, Satan or by our doings. God doesn’t leave us to try to endure this life on our own. He’s always willing to help us, and if we ask, He will move mountains for us!

And the last part is, “I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” To me, this part was the promise that held the other pieces together. This part was a promise that God would allow me to be victorious through this struggle. It assured me once again that He would be faithful to me.

So, although last week was a spiritual battle, God gave me everything that I needed to fight the fight. God remained with me. He continued to be my God, He strengthened me, He helped me, and He upheld me with His righteous right hand. Yes, God continued to be faithful to me. He kept His promises once again.

If you are struggling this week, I hope you recall this verse and let God speak to you through the struggle. You don’t have to fight the battle alone. He is a faithful God, and He has a plan for you to prosper you and not to harm you (Jeremiah 29:11). Place your trust in the One True God that can stand in the battle with you. Let Him uphold you with His victorious right hand.