No one compares...

Psalm 40:5

"O Lord, my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all you wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them."

     God is always working on your behalf. "Always" meaning he never stops, ceases or fails to be constantly work out things for your good. I love this verse above, because it shows us a small glimpse into the immensity of our Father's goodness. He isn't a God who makes us struggle, strive or stress to prosper in this life. All we have to do is trust him. 

     When I started working as a nurse, I was constantly struggling with worry. I would fight worry going into work, while in the midst of working and on my way home from work. I was always scared that I was going to mess up and cause a catastrophic disaster in someone's life in some way. I can't fully explain what I felt, and I don't fully know why I felt this. All I know is that it was pretty crippling. It was crippling to my ministry. The ministry of being a nurse to my patients on a level that the world is not familiar with all for God's glory. It was crippling, because for a while I really thought that my job fully relied on my physical ability to fulfill the position I was hired for.

    On my long commute home after working one day, the Lord spoke to me. As I've said before I think that is where I get quiet enough to hear His still small voice. The 45 minutes of pure silence probably has something to do with it too. But in the stillness of the moment where I was struggling with worrying about what I did or did not do that day at work, the Lord revealed something to me. He showed me that he does not exist in the fabrics of our comprehension of "time". He told me... "Candace, I am behind you, before you and all around you. I'm going behind you, working on and fixing anything you are worried about in your past. I am with you right now taking care of anything that concerns you. And I am in your future, taking care of anything you are concerned about then. I've got it all covered because I don't exist in human's reality of time. I'm greater than time, and I'm greater than your fears." This small but powerful message is enough to set anyone free from ever worrying about anything again. Yes, we are human and will probably struggle with things despite God speaking to us, but that doesn't stop him from speaking or working on our behalf. Another thing I noticed that God revealed to me in the moment, is that he ministered to me in the moment of my worry. He didn't wait until I was finished worrying and in His presence to speak peace to me. He didn't condemn me for worrying or make me feel bad for not trusting His goodness. He was loving, kind and precious enough to meet me in my moment of weakness. He knows what we are dealing with. He knows how it feels. He loves us. Who can compare to our God? To our Heavenly Father? There is none. No one can compare to the goodness and love I've seen the Father bless me with. No one compares to the love and goodness that the Father wants to bestow on you in your moment of weakness.

     A friend shared a verse with me this past week that I want to leave you with...

1 Corinthians 12: 8-10

"Three times I did that, and then He told me, 'My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.' Once I heard that I was glad it happened. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size-abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over. And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become."

A Psalm 23 moment...

While walking through hard times, one thing I've learned... God is always, always faithful. I know it is hard to see and believe that when you are in the midst of a situation, but I want to take a moment to encourage you in something...

In Psalm 23, the Lord entrusted David with words to encourage us, and they are as follows...

"The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along the right path bringing honor to His name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast before me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever."

I'm sure you have read the words above before, but the Lord is always wanting to show us new things in regards to His love and affection for us... So here is an interpretation of Psalm 23 that the Lord gave me in order to delve deeper into is character.

"My Father is always watching out for me, protecting me from every possible threat of the enemy. I live in favor and abundance. I get to rest in times of hardship for He always works on my behalf; I have peace in the most chaotic surroundings for I am led my him. In my weakest moments, I find new strength in His promises. He continuously and relentlessly shows me where to go in life, which will unfailingly bring Him praise. He has promised to walk me through the dark valleys and not leave me in the midst of them alone. So there is no need to be afraid, because I am under the shelter of His wing the whole time. Your ways, oh Lord, are always motivated to keep me safe and secure, because my heart is your number one priority. I am able to stand in the face of those who come against me, because I'm accepted by You. You hold me in the highest regards as your child, your creation, your heir. You dance over me with blessings giving me way more joy than I can contain. Your goodness and love will chase me, hunt me and pursue me every second of every day of every month of every year. Your presence is home to me forever and ever, and you will never cast me out. You are my home sweet home."

Rest in the fact that your Father is a loving and caring Father, who places your heart's condition above anything else. He is more concerned with our well-being than we are. That just screams of His unconditional love. So when you are in what I like to call a Psalm 23 moment, know that your God is faithful! He is incapable of failing you. He is incapable of lying to you. He is incapable of abandoning you. He is a professional at love, and it is in everything He does.