He will provide

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Renewed hope”

Our Bible verse for today: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.” Matthew 6:33 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “He will provide”

In the two previous devotional messages, I shared a couple of my personal life-verses and I told of some ways in which those verses/passages have helped to carry me through tough times in life. On numerous occasions they provided a sense of renewed hope when all might otherwise have seemed lost. I also encouraged you to share your life-verses, and many of you did. Thank you. It’s always interesting and instructive to hear about how others find hope and guidance as God speaks to them in direct and personal ways through His written word.

Today I want to share with you my wife Linda’s primary life verse, and tell you why it was so important to her. It was really a life-passage as opposed to a single verse (Matthew 6:25-34,) but the hinge verse in the passage is Matthew 6:33, cited above.

When I was in the process of retiring from the Navy in 1993 and preparing for my second career in ministry, it quickly became apparent that God was calling me to serve in small churches (and for a time in a small mission agency), and by necessity that was going to involve small salaries.

The prospect of living those decades of our lives on limited and uncertain incomes was of greater concern to me than it was to Linda. She seemed to be more confident in my calling than I was. She was convinced that God would provide as needed and that we would be just fine. She adopted Matthew 6:25-34 as her personal life-verse/passage and she recited it often during those lean years that followed. In that passage Jesus teaches that we should not be overly concerned about money, possessions, and financial security, because our Father in heaven knows what our needs are. Instead, we are to focus on serving Him faithfully and trust Him to provide for us.

As the years unfolded it became increasingly clear to me that Matthew 6:25-34 was true. But it was Linda’s faith and confidence that kept me grounded in this area and focused on the ministry instead of worrying about money. Time after time, as we learned to live below our means with limited resources, God always came through for us and we never lacked in any area of true need.

As a result of that experience, God has given me another life-verse from which I have drawn considerable peace and comfort, and which is also proving to be true now that I am in my older years. This is my tailored and personalized version of Isaiah 46:4, “Even to your old age and grey hairs, Jim, I am He. I am He who will sustain you. I will sustain you and carry you; I will sustain you and rescue you.” And He always has.

It turns out that Linda was right all along (as she usually was. Lol)

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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