Do Not Forget

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqKO-MwJ2sM

Crowned ~ Highlands Worship feat. Rebecca Hart

 We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of the LORD,
about his power and his mighty wonders.

~ Psalm 78:4 NKJV

 The media offers us so much to fear, both for the present and the future. Typically, we’re advised not to look to the past, but scripture tells us to not forget the faithfulness of the Lord:

·         In giving our tithe or our first fruits, we are to remember and tell our children: “By strength of hand the LORD brought us out of… the house of bondage,” (Exodus 13:14).

·         After crossing the Jordan, Joshua told the twelve tribes to each take up one stone as a sign and so that they could tell their children, “the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off,” (Joshua 4:7).

Every generation, from the beginning till the present, has gone through hardships:

·         In 1929, our grandparents and great grandparents were rocked by the Great Depression, as many lost jobs and homes.

·         December 7, 1941 will forever be etched in U.S. history with the bombing of Pearl Harbor, propelling this country into World War II and sending many men to the battlelines.

·         On September 11, 2001, many lost loved ones and a sense of safety and protection as terrorists crashed planes into the Twin Towers.

·         March 13, 2020 turned a lot of families upside down as President Trump declared a COVID-19 national emergency, closing schools and businesses.

Through every event, each person had to decide, for themselves, if they were going to let the events paralyze them, or if they were going to push past the fear and keep going, not knowing what would happen, but knowing Who was walking through it with them.

If we keep looking to the future through the lens of fear, we will become anxious and depressed. However, if we look through the lens of God’s promises and faithfulness, we will be enabled to stand firm and persevere.

The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. ~ Exodus 14:14 NIV

©Heather Potts 2021

Change

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqa8O1ktxk8&list=RDcqa8O1ktxk8&start_radio=1

Hidden ~ United Pursuit ft. Will Reagan

Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. ~ Psalm 37:4 NKJV

Have you ever tried to make a change in your life, but couldn’t, though you tried again and again? Whether it’s overeating, overspending, yelling at your kids, overwhelming schedules, substance abuse, addiction to pornography, or something else, Paul said it best: I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do, (Romans 7:15). Have you ever considered that the issue isn’t your issue?

In Soaking in Expectation, Graham Cooke encourages us to shift our focus from discipline to delight, saying that we can’t force change, but when we delight ourselves in the Lord, His desires become our desires. The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you … (Zephaniah 3:17 NIV). God delights in you, even with all your faults. But He wants the best for you, so He’s changing you from your old self into His masterpiece.

In the medical field, change is written as a triangle. The triangle represents your life: God is the top point, while you and the issue are the bottom points. The more you focus on the issue, the closer you will get to it and the further away you’ll be from God. But the more you focus on God, delighting yourself in worship, reading His Word, and spending time with Him, the closer you will draw to Him, growing further from the issues, until eventually, they aren’t issues any longer.

God doesn’t want us stressing over issues or wearing ourselves out trying to get rid of them. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still, (Exodus 14:14 NIV). He’s asking us to trust that as we draw closer to Him, His love will overshadow everything else. After all, true and lasting change comes as Father God changes us from the inside out.

©Heather Potts 2018

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKj_sVetnXI

From the Inside Out and With Everything ~ Hillsong United