Lately, I have been frustrated by my inability to cope with stress and migraines. All I want is enough energy to practice good self-care and rest in God. Instead, I find myself lying in the dark, silently fighting another migraine attack and beating myself up for not knowing my limits. As I paused and brought this to God in prayer, He reminded me that, despite the state of my soul, I praise Him everywhere with an “even if” faith rather than “what if” fear. When I feel shame because of burnout, stress and rumination, God tells me, “Peace is not the absence of stress. Peace is the Presence of your Savior, my Son.”
As I listened to the Heartstrong podcast that week, the following words of Isaiah came to mind. “But forget all that – it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” Isaiah 43:18-19(NLT).
These verses are part of a larger passage in Isaiah 43 where God tells His people to forget the past and look forward to the new things He is about to do. He promises to provide a way and sustenance even in the most desolate places. This passage is a promise of God’s transformative action, new beginnings, and hope in difficult, perhaps chronic, circumstances. It is a call to action:
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Release the Past
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Seek Spiritual Renewal, including life in Christ, a new heart, and a new creation
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Hold on to Hope as an anchor, a reminder of God’s strength and power to provide new paths through difficult situations
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Be open and willing to Transformation, leading to new passions, joy, and a transformed perspective
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Accept God’s invitation to perceive something new
This passage provides assurance of the LORD’s promise of Victory! Do you not see it? There’s nothing I love more than when God uses a “then” word for a “now” moment. Recently, God reminded me of an encounter I had with Him in the late Fall of 2022. Through this same passage, I learned many things that are still relevant today.
First, do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. – I need not fear making a wrong decision or worry that it cannot be undone because when I turn it over to God, all things are possible. Secondly, Behold, He will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? – as I walk by faith and stand steady and ready against the enemy – I shall look up and know that God loves me – He sets me free to live my best life. And lastly, He will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Only God can meet me where I am, engage my vulnerability, and awaken my soul to the goodness of others. That weekend in Muskoka, through a young woman’s story and prompting to go outdoors and enjoy my Majesty’s Creation, I stepped outside and experienced the prodigal’s return for myself. In awe and wonder, I noted that to the right of the majestic maple tree I was looking at from all angles since Friday were two “scrawny dead” trees and an evergreen. I sensed God telling me my marriage is worth fighting for together. Followed by an assurance that He would enlarge our territory and grant our request as He promised to each of us separately in the prayer of Jabez before we met and got married. Lastly, God welcomed me to welcome my husband and our marriage to the abundant life. I came to forgive my husband and to know that, as God continues to restore, redeem, and strengthen our marriage today, He uses us mightily to weave a thread of hope into other people’s lives. His ministry for us since that Sunday in the late Fall has been to equip us to help others navigate their own grief. The grace of God beautifully weaves love and loss, yet society stigmatizes our mourning and refuses to let us grieve and be grateful for the LORD’s arm of strength.
Without a willingness for transformation and the infilling of the Holy Spirit, I would not be able to work towards a new life – to become the new creation God desires me to be. To trust God, trust the process, trust myself. His promise to provide a way and sustenance even in the most desolate places assures me and reminds me that through Christ, the victory is already mine. Despite my “desolate places” found in chronic illnesses such as migraines, distorted thinking and addiction, I know the truth of God’s present strength.
When I doubt God and His arm of strength, I turn to Habakkuk’s prayer, in Chapter 3, verses 17 to 19. (Good Word Translation).
“17 Even if the fig tree does not bloom and the vines have no grapes, even if the olive tree fails to produce and the fields yield no food, even if the sheep pen is empty and the stalls have no cattle— 18 even then, I will be happy with the Lord. I will truly find joy in God, who saves me.
19 The Lord Almighty is my strength. He makes my feet like those of a deer. He makes me walk on the mountains.”
The truth of God’s present strength caused Habakkuk to trust God even during the most difficult times. Like Habakkuk, we can choose to praise God even in the face of desolation. Like Habakkuk, we can praise God for the salvation He provides in Jesus Christ. And, by seeing God as our source of strength, we, like Habakkuk, can trust God’s promises.
It is only because, daily, I choose to respond with joy, praise, trust and tenacious faith that I am strengthened now!
