“God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?”
(Numbers 23:19).
I was working on my Bible study in Genesis and one of the verses in the study questions was Numbers 23:19! It is stuck in my mind (believe it or not, there is enough in there to hang up a thought or two)! Why am I so quick to focus on circumstances, stresses, hurts, and difficult times (the coffee grounds keep surfacing) instead of being on autopilot, trusting in the One who never leaves my “cup”? (See my two previous posts here and here for more information about the “cup.”)
Does He promise His presence and not fulfill? In the midst of cancer surgery and chemo treatments did He promise His presence and not fulfill? In the midst of circumstances that are pushing life to its limits, does He promise His presence and not fulfill?
Numbers 23:19 is gripping my heart (tightly, I might add). How do I put it into words? (no words? seriously?) This verse is running passionately into the core of my being, and I’m trying to grasp why it is grasping me! Oh, that not even a millisecond of my life would live outside the depth of this truth! “Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?”
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).
God “declares” to me that even in the midst of the coffee grounds of life (seemingly out of control), He has a plan to prosper me and not to harm me, to give me hope and a future! He is acting on His plan for me.
“Does He speak and then not act?” He does not declare His promise to prosper me, to give me hope and a future and then forget all about me. “Does He promise and not fulfill?” He is always with me — I am part of His plan!
“God is not a man that He should lie, nor a son of man that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?”
I just want to let that soak into my soul! No clump of coffee grounds stands a chance! Ever!
And all the cream and sugar swirled with a great “Amen”!!
God’s Plan prospers me
God’s Promises sustain me
God’s Peace abides in me
God’s Presence never leaves me
(Dodie Largent, 2013)
“I lift up my eyes to the hills — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip — He who watches over you will not slumber; Indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you — the Lord is your shade at your right hand. The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore”
(Psalm 121:1-5, 8).
