Unfettered Hope

I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
yes, my heart instructs me in the night seasons.
I have set the Lord continually before me; because He is
at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad and my glory (inner self)
rejoices; my body too shall rest and confidently dwell in
safety and hope.
Psalm 16:7-9

Dearest Friends,

As you wake up and face this new day, how much
hope are you feeling?

If any of you spend a lot of time watching the news, my
guess is that your hope meter runs lower because of it.
And if any of you are focusing on and worry about your
finances, or your personal problems and feeling consumed
by them, my guess is your hope is draining away.

How can hope be restored? Absolutely!

There are many ways. But the most important?
Is to recognize God is in control. We focus on everything
but that. We focus on our leaders expecting them to "fix"
everything. We focus on our friends and family to help "fix" us
when we are down. And we allow money to bring us a false
sense of security. Sometimes spending it when we don't have
it to feel better because life is so hard.

It is no wonder with this false sense of what we can
be secure in, we often feel let down and disappointed and
lose hope! We are looking at things and people who cannot
live up to the demand of restoring our hope. It isn't their job!

My dear friends, what we put into our spirit is what helps
it thrive or become ill.

We must find hope in God's word every day. It restores
our soul. I find the Psalms to be a great source of hope and
restoration to me. David was man acquainted with mistakes,
flaws and failures, heartache and grief.
He disobeyed God many times, yet
God says David was a man after his own heart. Why?
Because David always repented and sought God. He sought
Him when he knew he was doing wrong, He sought God morning
and night, and he sought God when he knew he was right before
God. David had a heart seeking God!

David sought hope and restoration through God everyday!

David wrote this:

The Lord is my shepherd
(to feed, guide and shield me);
I shall not lack.
He makes me lie down in (fresh, tender) green pastures;
He leads me beside the still and restful waters.
He refreshes and restores my life --
my self; He leads me in the paths of righteousness
(uprightness and right standing with Him -- not for
my earning it, but) for His names sake.
Psalm 23:1-3

Are you feeling restored?
Do you feel rested as if you laid in a bed of
soft meadow grass, comforted by the presence of God?
Do you feel right before God?

These things are vital. You cannot do without them
and expect to have inner peace if you cannot cry out to
God in all situations and rely on, cling to, trust in,
find hope in, and stand strong in God and his precious
promises and powerful abilities, far beyond our
thinking or imagination.

Now unto Him Who is ABLE to do exceeding
abundantly above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that works in us.
Ephesians 3:20

Who is that power within us? God!
This power works in us according to our level of
surrender to Him. He is the only one that can
bring the restorative hope you need to face the
day with courage and a rested heart.

But you have to spend time with Him.

Hope deferred (put off) makes the heart sick,
but when the desire is fulfilled, it is a tree of life.
Whoever despises the Word of God brings
destruction upon himself, but He who
reverently fears and respects the commandments
of God shall be rewarded.
Proverbs 13:12-12

We can count on God. Everyone else comes and
goes from our life. No one is on this earth that
will not let us down, and we will let people down.
But Jesus never fails.

Hope looks forward with constant expectation.
Despair robs hope from our very soul.Time away
from God uninterrupted, breaks that stream of hope
we all so desperately need.

Choose hope! Abide in God

love always
millie

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Abide With Me

author: Henry F. Lyte 1793-1847
musician: William H. Monk 1823-1889

Abide with me: fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide!
When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see:
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

I need Thy presence ev'ry passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter's pow'r?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness:
Where is death's sting? where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies;
Heav'n's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.