She is a mom, wife, and passionate believer that Jesus changes everything.
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Isaiah 43:19 is my Scripture for 2020 and was the kick off verse for the 2020 Challenge | God’s Vision For You.
I wanted to share with you today, a portion from Forevergreen’s monthly Bible study because I felt you would greatly benefit from this study.
In addition, I have also included a free Isaiah 43:19 Scripture lettering sheet so you can write out the Bible verse yourself in a creative and unique way. You will find the sheet at the bottom of this post. I hope you enjoy both the Bible study and the lettering sheet and may the Lord speak to you in transformative ways!
For I am about to do something new.
See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?
I will make a pathway through the wilderness.
I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.
Have you ever had a season of life where you found yourself waiting? Have you experienced a time when your life and focus revolved around the future, while the present felt like a holding zone where very little of importance was happening
For example, perhaps there was a period of time when all you could think about was starting a family, but was prevented from doing so due to circumstances beyond your control.
Or maybe it was waiting the many months of a first pregnancy, quietly anticipating the unknown experience of giving birth and being responsible for a child.
Do you know the experience of waiting for a call back from a job application, not knowing if your entire career could change with a single phone call?
Or perhaps you’ve been forced to wait anxious weeks for a medical test result, repeatedly checking your phone to see if you’ve missed a call from the doctor.
Waiting can be really tough, right?
To live in the present, while your mind constantly drifts to the future, is not an easy way to live. And for me personally – I struggle deeply with having to wait.
However, what I have come to learn about waiting is that it’s not really the idle time that I have a hard time with, but rather not having a good perspective on the present time, a lack of understanding of the unknown future, and a lack of faith in knowing God is leading before me.
The time spent waiting isn’t itself the hard part – it’s the spiritual condition of not knowing, and often not trusting, what the future will look like.
In Isaiah 43:19, we are reminded that the Lord is working whether we see it or not. He is making a way – and He’s doing it regardless of our understanding or even appreciation of His work.
Often times, when we are working on change or focusing on building our relationship with God, it can seem like nothing is happening, that our efforts are not producing any fruit, and that our desires are not being realized.
The Lord knows I myself had these thoughts too many times in my own life during seasons of waiting.
I know that I personally have been guilty of focusing on the wrong thing in the past. I’ve often zeroed in too closely on the desired outcome instead of seeing what God is doing in the small and quietness of my life.
Look, I understand that we all tend to come to God with “Big Wish List” items. That’s when we approach God with prayer about a restored marriage, dramatic weight loss, a cure to a disease – and we throw ourselves desperately into prayer in hopes that God will save us. And don’t get me wrong – we should be praying for all of those things.
But…we also can easily become disheartened when the disease remains, the marriage is still broken, or our the scale hasn’t moved.
We can begin to lose faith when we find ourselves still waiting.
Change, and prayers answered, almost always takes time.
It takes time because God is vastly interested in your overall wellbeing, and not just curing the symptoms that most concern us.
You see, the symptoms are what we usually define as “The Problem,” but they are not typically the problem, but only the result of an underlying issue.
For example, what if your need for weight loss is only a symptom of a much bigger issue than the physical state of your body? What if your excess weight represents a deeply buried hurt that God wants to heal at your core? What if He wants to take care of your soul before the weight can come off?
And the same goes for all of our issues. There are always underlying problems that God wants to heal and make new in our lives. This is how He is always working, and how He is making running streams in the dry wasteland.
We can turn around our understanding of “unanswered prayers” by recognizing God’s work is a process, and not just the waving of a wand.
We have to choose to see and celebrate the small, often unnoticeable, things that are pointing us in the right direction, the sign that God is behind the movement in our lives.
And what do those signs look like? A renewed spirit, a sense of peace, more kindness, better self-esteem, and greater self-worth.
Seriously, these indicators are the road markers on the path to transformation with God. This is how He is changing all things, making a pathway through the wilderness.
We do not often recognize this kind of work because we are looking for the big, obvious miracle – the huge answer of “Yes!” to our prayers.
And that’s where we get tripped up, lose focus, and sometimes throw in the towel. Because when we find ourselves still waiting for the clear and unmistakable answer, while ignoring all the other signs around us, we start to believe God isn’t working in our lives.
We start to think, whether we realize it or not, that God has forgotten us.
And boy, the enemy wants us to believe that! Evil wants us to be confused, defeated, and forget who God is and what He is doing in our lives.
However, you can counter these feelings and thoughts by keeping your eyes on Jesus and your nose in Scripture.
You can find Bible verses that help you remember who God is and what He is doing in your life.
You can ask God to help you have eyes for Him and see His work in your life. Trust that God will answer these prayers.
God will reveal Himself and His movement to you if you ask.
Our God is good. He works on His timetable and in His perfect way. Although it may feel like you’re endlessly waiting – just understand that He holds you closer than you realize. Walk in this truth today!
And if you are interested in more intentional quiet time and monthly Bible studies, we invite you to check out our Forevergreen Membership-daily transforming your relationship with God!
How to use your lettering sheet
I have created a template you can use to learn how to write this out. Add it to your Bible, write it on a card, make wall art, or simply to draw out during your quiet time.
Print out the sheet and all you need is a sharpie or a marker. Print out a couple of practice sheets and then pull out some blank paper to try it out on your own. Feel free to stray from the template and make it your own!
Also, if you are looking for a visual on how to use the Scripture lettering sheet, I have one on this post.
