The Weekly Word

Hi, friends! Over the past weeks the Lord has put something on my heart. I try to read my Bible most mornings, and it truly gives me encouragement for the day ahead and puts me in a good mood! Since this blog is all about what I'm reading, I decided to add a weekly feature to share what I've read in the Bible this week and share a little encouragement! This is not meant to sound preachy at all, nor am I trying to push my beliefs on anyone, this is just meant to share a little love and a little encouragement into your day! My hope is that you will read this post, and it will give you some encouragement and inspiration for the week ahead.

I use the She Reads Truth Bible, which has devotionals throughout and wide margins for note taking, and I love it! I use an erasable pen (because ya girl can't write half the time), and I also colorcode using highlighters. Yellow stands for something I think is important, green is a promise God has made, and pink is something I love.

This week I read Genesis 17-22. This section was all about Abraham, his faithfulness to God, and his journey through having Isaac. He and Sarah had to wait a very long time and be patient while waiting for their promised son. Abraham stayed faithful to God throughout, and God was faithful and kept his promises. The lessons I learned from these chapters and the pieces of encouragement I gained from them are:

• God hears us 

In Genesis chapter 18, God visits Abraham in the form of three men. They tell him of the great sins of Sodom and Gomorrah and how they are going to destroy the towns. However, Abraham asks the Lord if he will spare the small amount of righteous people left in the towns for they should not be punished for the sins of others. And God listens to him. While the ultimate plan is the Lord's, we do have the ability to speak to him! We can ask the Lord for something in prayer, and the prayers of the faithful will be heard! That is so amazing to think that the God of the universe thinks of us as special enough and loves us enough that He would take the time to listen to our hopes, our fears, our arguments-  everything. 

• God sees us, no matter where we are 

Many times we may feel like we are all alone, floating on an island that no one can seem to find us on. But that isn't true. God loves every single one of us, and He sees us no matter where we may find ourselves and no matter who we are. Hagar was just a slave, yet God still saw her, loved her, and provided for her needs. Hagar was sent out into the wilderness with her son, but God watched her and provided for their needs. He will do this for us too. It does not matter who we are, what we have done, or where we find ourselves. God loves us, and He will always see us and care for us. We may not be wondering about in the wilderness scared for our lives like Hagar, but we are trying to navigate a broken and confusing world full of decisions and pressures. God will see us through the journey, and we will never be invisible because we will always be someone significant and loved in the eyes of God. 

• God will always provide what we need when we need it 

As I was talking about Hagar, she found herself being cast out of her home in Genesis 21. She was alone and scared in the wilderness with her son, and they soon ran out of water. She was terrified, desperate, and sure that they were going to die. But, Genesis 21:19 says "Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well". At the exact moment that she was crying to God and sure that she was going to die, God came to her and provided her with exactly what she needed. Not a moment too soon or too late. He did the same with Abraham in chapter 22. God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac to test his faithfulness to Him, but before any harm could come to Isaac, God told Abraham to stop and provided him with a ram. God always comes through when we need him to, and He will never let us down. If you are going through something that seems utterly impossible, remember that little piece of encouragement- God will always provide exactly what we need at the exact moment we need it. He will never be early nor late. 

I hope that this has given you some encouragement for the week ahead! What do you think of these lessons that I found while reading? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments! Thank you for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful week!