Read Isaiah 41:10; 49:14-16; 2 Corinthians 4:16-17
Someone once counted all the promises in the Bible and came up with an amazing figure of almost 7500. Among that large number are some specific promises servants can claim today.
Believe me, there are times the only hope to keep you going will be in something God has declared in His Word, promising that your work is not in vain.
Isaiah 41:10 has often encouraged me:
“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.”
And a little further on, Isaiah writes:
But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,
And the Lord has forgotten me.”
“Can a woman forget her nursing child
And have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.
Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your walls are continually before Me.” (Isaiah 49:14-16)
Isn’t that fantastic! More faithful than a nursing mother, our God watches over and cares about us. We have frequently received counsel from Paul the apostle. Let’s look now at a few of the promises God led him to write. In 2 Corinthians 4:16–17 we read:
Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.
And who can forget Philippians 4:19?
And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Or his words of hope regarding a choice servant named Onesiphorus?
The Lord grant mercy to the house of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains; but when he was in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me—the Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on that day—and you know very well what services he rendered at Ephesus. (2 Timothy 1:16-18).
No, our faithful God will never forget His own.
Excerpted from Improving Your Serve: The Art of Unselfish Living, Copyright 1981 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. (Thomas Nelson Publishers). All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.
