Promises are great. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like promises. Especially when a promise works out the way we want. When we receive a promise, we don’t know the result. For us, promises are also hard to keep.

We understand that most promises cannot be survive long term. With the little promises, it is easy to swallow my disappointment. We cannot not know what circumstances might come up in the future. When I started this blog in 2016, I promised to write twice a week on Wednesdays and I think Saturdays.

I did pretty good at keeping that promise for a couple of years. Then things changed. We bought property and dreams unfolded. Life continued to shape my blog. Like so many others, the virus crisis disrupted our dreams and lives. I had trouble writing even twice a month. The lessons learned were hard. My eyes opened to the truth and lies I did not want to know.

In reality, I broke that promise to you when I started the blog. I feel guilty when my inspiration is hard to grasp, let alone explain, like in this post. I know I have a sheepish look on my face because I started writing this on Thursday night!

Through it all, we have watched leaders, churches, media, professionals, retailers, employers, friends and, yes, even family break their promises. We’ve reacted out of fear. We can understand, but no matter how you slice it, the broken promises hurt.

Then I found a treasure on my journey with the prophet Isaiah. Last week I read Chapter 35¹, I thought, this is a chapter of promises. Promises from the King of Kings. If that doesn’t make me sit up and take notice, nothing will! Unlike we, the people in this world, we know this King keeps His Promises.

The promise in verses 3-4 soothed my soul (I will read Isaiah 35 at the end of this post. You may find another promise soothes you):

“³ Strengthen the weak hands,

And make firm the feeble knees.

⁴ Say to those who are fearful-hearted,

“Be strong, do not fear!

Behold, your God will come with vengeance,

With the recompense of God;

He will come and save you.””

Oh! What a promise! To one whose swollen joints have made her hands weak and injuries have made her knees feeble. To one whose heart has known fear. God promises to make me whole again. In the Kingdom of our Lord, the injuries, chemicals, and fear will no long scar me. I will move and grasp with whole health. How and when this will happen, I do not know. There is one caveat for me. The scripture clearly states: “Be strong, do not fear!”

This one is hard for me. I know I discuss fear a lot. It is because the Holy Spirit discusses it with me a lot. I get sucked into fear easily. At beginning of the virus crisis, I was afraid. It was hard not to be with all the dire propaganda warnings. He got me through that time and I am stronger from His teaching. Now, I can sense the fear before it overtakes me. There is more peace in my life. My soul knows He will get me through this scary time, too.

I want God’s promise of restoration in His Kingdom. This means I will remember His promises and not be afraid. He promises a future and a hope.² Here’s the thing. I don’t know what the future and hope is for me. God has not revealed it yet. But whatever God promises is better than I can imagine.

Promises are important. People rely on them. That is why I feel bad when I have to break a promise for any reason. Now with so much loss and the lies exposed, in who will we trust now? King David sang,

“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;

My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;”³

Please pray with me:

Holy Father,

Thank you for your promises. You are our only future and hope. You know what we face today and in the future. Help us lean on you as we face the unknown, unafraid. We declare You, Lord, are our strength. Despite our weak hands and feeble knees, you have promised a place for us. It is You we trust. May we never forget You or Your promises. In Jesus’ name, amen. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, amen.

Keep your faith strong by finding his promises for you and accepting them as yours. Remember, you are His child. He loves you. This is our future promise… and He keeps His promises.

Blessings,

Milly

Isaiah 35:

Behold the Coming Kingdom

¹ The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them,

And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;

² It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,

Even with joy and singing.

The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,

The excellence of Carmel and Sharon.

They shall see the glory of the Lord,

The excellency of our God.

³ Strengthen the weak hands,

And make firm the feeble knees.

⁴ Say to those who are fearful-hearted,

“Be strong, do not fear!

Behold, your God will come with vengeance,

With the recompense of God;

He will come and save you.”

⁵ Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,

And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

⁶ Then the lame shall leap like a deer,

And the tongue of the dumb sing.

For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,

And streams in the desert.

⁷ The parched ground shall become a pool,

And the thirsty land springs of water;

In the habitation of jackals, where each lay,

There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

⁸ A highway shall be there, and a road,

And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.

The unclean shall not pass over it,

But it shall be for others.

Whoever walks the road, although a fool,

Shall not go astray.

⁹ No lion shall be there,

Nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it;

It shall not be found there.

But the redeemed shall walk there,

¹⁰ And the ransomed of the Lord shall return,

And come to Zion with singing,

With everlasting joy on their heads.

They shall obtain joy and gladness,

And sorrow and sighing shall flee away”

Footnotes:

¹All scripture is from the New King James Version: Prophecy Study Bible New King James Version, Editor John C. Hagee © 1997 by Thomas Nelson, a registered trademark of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

²Jeremiah 29:11:

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

³ Psalm 18:1-3:

¹“I will love You, O Lord, my strength.

² The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;

My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;

My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

³ I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised;

So shall I be saved from my enemies.

⁴ Please, remember I am not a theologian. This is from my private discussions with the Lord, study, and experiences. You may see something I do not. That is okay. Let the Lord lead you. Ask Him questions and discuss this with Him. He is faithful to lead and guide us. Just like you, I am searching for wisdom and understanding. Milly.