Many of you have reached out to me for prayer requests, and I mean it when I say I consider it a great honor to lift those requests up to the Lord. I would love to hear how He is working in your life lately, what He’s showing, and perhaps teaching you in these uncertain, ever-changing times.
I feel like He is urging me not to give in to the spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7), but to lean into His love, for “perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18). When we focus not on our external circumstances, or on the volatile nature of this world, or on the fearmongers on TV or social media, or anything else that causes us to feel anxious, alone, or afraid, and instead turn our gaze upward to the One who knows all, sees all, loves all, we can be filled with the peace which surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7).
Like Jesus, who slept soundly in the fishing boat during a terrible tempest, we can have peace.
Like Paul and Silas, who sang hymns in their jail cell after being flogged and had their feet fastened in stocks, we can have peace.
Like Queen Esther, who bravely declared “If I perish, I perish” in an effort to save her people from annihilation, we can have peace.
Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who walked within the fiery furnace after refusing to worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s golden idol, we can have peace.
Because Immanuel – God is with us.
Because He promised to be with us always, “to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
Without the Lord, we would have reason to fear, to hole up inside our homes and quake at the violence, the dissension, the hatred and health threats running rampant across this globe. We would have no reason to hope, to get up each day with a joyful smile and proclaim, “This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!” (Psalm 118:24). No. It would make more sense for us to groan, complain, even cry, because the days only seem, from worldly eyes, to be growing darker.
If you are a believer in Jesus, then perhaps you know that the word “church” comes from the Greek word “ekklēsia,” which literally means, “called out ones.” We are called out from the darkness so that we can melt the shadows covering our planet. We are called out to sing a tune that’s completely different from those that have drifted through the ages, a tune that flows down from Heaven, not up from our devices’ screens or out through the voices of celebrities, politicians, or so-called experts.
We’re called to walk by faith, not by sight, which means that no matter how bleak the horizon may appear, we refuse to let it dim our light or steal our joy. Jesus came to give us “life more abundantly” (John 10:10).
So even amid a pandemic, protests, terror, and unrest, we can rejoice because Immanuel is still here, and He’s still on His throne.
Christ has already won the victory, my friend. Be assured of that. The Bible says that the reason He hasn’t come back yet, to do away with evil and death and injustice, is because “He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9-10).
Have you placed your trust in Him? Have you gone to Him with a repentant heart and received Him as your personal Lord and Savior?
He is waiting patiently for you with open arms. Run to him. Rest in Him. And find healing in His wings, and comfort in His embrace (Malachi 4:2).
I hope that that encouraged you in some way. If you could use some prayer, or perhaps a pair of listening ears, please do not hesitate to reply (diana.tyler86@gmail.com). We are all on this journey of life together, and never has it been more crucial for us to pull together and fight together.
Keep the faith,
Diana
“I once met a man who had this statement printed on the back of his business card:
‘Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry. Live simply; expect little; give much; Fill your heart with love; scatter sunshine. Forget self. Think of others, and do as you would be done by. Try it for one week—you will be surprised.’”
Norman Vincent Peale