Recently as I was visiting with my friend, Janet, she said something in passing that meant much more to me than she intended. She talked about giving scriptures to go with a person's name. Scriptures that would be an encouragement to that individual... scriptures that might describe who that person is or the journey that he or she has been on. Since our daughter Jessica's 26th birthday was last week, I knew that was something that I wanted to do for her. As I have shared before, Jessica has had 24/7 migraines and chronic pain since she was 12 years old. She had multiple surgeries as a young child. She also has multiple challenges with her eyes. She is no stranger to difficult circumstances. Through the pain, she has graduated from high school and been a student at 3 institutions of higher learning. She has worked with and mentored people "on the fringe" and found herself standing to defend her God in classes where God was cursed. .I sat down to write some verses with Jessica's name and in a short amount of time God, in His goodness, gave me some powerful messages from Job and Hebrews for Jessica:..J - esus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him ENDURED …
Hebrews 12:2
..E - arlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest
in the face of suffering (Remember?).
Sometimes you were publicly exposed
to insult and persecution;
…. So do not throw away your confidence;
it will be richly rewarded…
persevere
so that when you have done the will of God,
you will receive what He has promised.
Hebrews 10:32-37
..S - ee to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root
grows up to cause trouble…
Hebrews 12:15
..S - lay me, yet will I hope in You! I will surely defend my ways to Your face.
Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance,
for no godless man would dare come before You!
Job 13:15-16
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.I - f I speak, my pain is not relieved; and if I refrain, it does not go away.
Surely, O God, You have worn me out;
you have devastated my entire household.
Job 16:6-7
..C - onsider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men,
so that you will not grow weary
and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:3
..A - pproach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and
find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16
..Powerful! Thank You, God! Thank You for this gift that You gave to Jessica through Janet and then through me! Giving encouragement to each other is so powerful when it's through God's own Word! ..
1 Thessalonians 5:8-11
"For God has not destined us for wrath,
but for obtaining salvation
through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who died for us, that whether we are awake or asleep,
we may live together with Him.
Therefore encourage one another,
and build up one another,
just as you also are doing."
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..
Who could you encouarge this way? Besides my immediate family members, there are many others who have come to mind who would benefit from such a gift because life IS hard. Just this past week alone...- I attended the funeral of a virtuous woman who died in her sleep at the age of 60, one month after her physical exam gave her a "clean bill of health". Her memorial service was a celebration of GOD'S GOODNESS in her life!
- I listened to someone pour out her heart to me about her abusive son-in-law and her fears for her daughter and grandchild. She ended our conversation pointing to heaven and then putting her hand over her heart, saying, "GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME..."
- I listened as another someone shared of deep wounds from anothers words. She said, "Patti, I'm hurting! Please continue to pray for me! I know that GOD IS GOOD and He will see me through this." Then, she proceeded to talk about how she had doubled, tripled, maybe even quadrupled her time spent in the Word and prayer.
- I stood in a store and had a conversation with a young lady as I was looking to make a purchase. The more we talked, the more connections we had. Not only was she a believer, but she had been on a very long journey trying to decide what she wanted to do with her life. Through it all, she saw the GOODNESS OF GOD in her life. She now is completing her college degree and plans to spend her life as a teacher around the world for missionary kids.
- I sat in front of my sister-in-Christ, Tanya, during our Sunday morning service. She had propped herself up on a chair next to the wall with heating pads plugged into the wall to help her pain. Tanya has spent the last few years in excruciating pain with one thing after another. After the worship service, she said, "I now have two tumors growing on a lung and evidently one of those tumors is touching a _____ nerve.... God will get me through this, Patti... He always does."
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Yes, Tanya! GIGATTAATTGIG!
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