April 18 – Right Handed Helper

For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”  -Isaiah 41:13  (ESV)

The past few weeks have been difficult and upsetting for us and for various reason.  Having to limit our activity to our homes or having a job that has required us to be out where the danger of exposure to illness is significant.  Stories abound about people who have been seriously affected.  Some even have passed on due to this sickness.  We would expect and not want to be told to not be afraid.  But that is exactly what our LORD says to us.  He is our God, perfect in every way and all powerful, all knowing, we can trust Him when He says to us “I am the one who helps you.”  He holds us by our right hand which means God is immediately beside us.  He knows all that we are experiencing.  All the physical fears, all the emotional turmoil, all the financial challenges are known by Him.  In verse 10 He has promised to strengthen, help and hold us up with His right hand.  At our side, on our side, loving and caring for us, we can trust Him and give Him all our anxiety, all our cares.  He will help us not be afraid.

-199-

December 25 – Christmas Day

“And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.’” Luke 2:10 (ESV)

The good news of the birth of Jesus was promised for everybody. The following verse, which we read three days back, explains that the baby would be a Savoir – a very special Savior for He was Christ the Lord. And this Savior was not just for a small group of shepherds. He had come to be a Savior available to everybody – for all the people. The news from heaven was about a great joy available to all who would believe and accept the Savior as their own.  We should never forget this. And what is it that brings us joy at Christmas?  We should enjoy having time with friends and loved ones. We should enjoy the gifts. But the really greater joy that never ends comes from knowing Jesus as our Savior. So, enjoy the promise of eternal life he gives and the assurance of His presence with us. And, if you do not know Jesus as the Savior, you can right now – believe and receive the gift from God and you will receive forgiveness, have great joy and eternal life.

# # #

How Christmas came to be on December 25.  A look at the history and background on this holiday.  

July 27 – No Fear, He Will Help

“For I am the Lord your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’”   Isaiah 41:13 (NASB)

In the forty-first chapter of Isaiah we find many reassuring and encouraging promises from God.  Today's verse records words spoken by God through His prophet to His people at that time, and we believe that He is still closely involved with us who are His people today.  These words of promise are also for us.  When we put our faith in God and in His Son Jesus Christ, we can recognize that He is our loving Father.  Our promise today says that the Lord will take hold of our right hand.  This expression shows is an illustration of how close and how personal our relationship is with God.   God also promises to help. What a tremendous promise when He declares "I will help you."  We do not have to fear.  We do not have to allow anxiety and upsetting circumstances to disrupt our lives with God because whatever we need, God will help us through it while holding our right hand.  God is close to us and we are close to Him when we trust these promises.  Let's do that.  

# # #

July 11 – Surely He Will – He Said He Would

“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (NASB)

There are many reasons why we hold this verse as one of our most frequently recalled verses.  Today's verse has been chosen because it has several promises.  We will focus mostly on the last one. God promises to uphold His children with His righteous right hand.  God can promise this because He is a righteous God.  According to common definition, that means that He does what is right.  So when He holds us up with His righteous right hand, He does it to help us do what is right. And he will surely do it even when we doubt that He is.  We don't naturally always do what is right and God knows that we need His help for that.  So lets allow His hand to uphold us, to keep us doing what is right and proper.  And let's be sure we do what He prompts us to do, do not fear, do not be anxious, believe in God, trust He will strengthen us, help us and in that way He upholds us and we can rest in the battle.  God's hand is righteous and He will never fail.

January 1 - He Will Not Fail

“The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8

We start this new year with a verse from Deuteronomy that brings to us a wonderful promise. God promises over and over in His word that He will not fail us, not forsake us, not leave us. We do not have reason to fear or be dismayed. These are words spoken by Moses to Joshua in the presence of the people of Israel who were soon to enter their promised land. We believe that we can take these words and apply them to ourselves. As we begin our new years 2018. We believe that our Lord will be with us each day as we trust Him. He will not leave us or forget us. He knows our every need and He will be with us to care for us all along the way. Let's be sure to thank God for this assurance and for the promise we can trust. We do not have to be discouraged – even when we are tempted to.  

March 21 – No Need to Fear

“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.” Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)

We have chosen a verse that has a promise for you from the writings of the prophet Isaiah. It was given to God’s people in Isaiah’s time but is also a promise for us today and every day. The promise sounds like words of a loving parent who senses the needs of its child. And of course that’s what they are. They are words of a Father in Heaven – our Father if we have accepted Jesus as our Savior because we have been brought into God’s family. When we need help in times when we might be fearful, if we reach out our hand, He will hold it up for us. That means that God has control of the things of our life today. He will guide us and even give us the strength we need to get through the difficult circumstances. Recognize today that God is holding up our right hand and giving us what we need because He is the Lord our God and that is what he does. We do not have to be afraid we can trust Him instead.

December 4

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14:27 (NIV)

On the last evening that Jesus was with His disciples before His crucifixion He gave them some encouraging words. What Jesus gives His followers is very different from what we find in this world. There are many disturbing things in this world and we encounter them often. Jesus knows that such things cause our hearts to be troubled. There are also things in this world to make us afraid and apprehensive. Jesus knows all about this, too. That is why He offers to give us peace. He knows how different His peace is from what the world can give. Let us accept the offer Jesus gave us.