Life Verse

ANCHOR - Heb. 6:19 - This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the presence behind the veil, (NKJV)

STRONGHOLD - Ps. 18:2 - The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (NKJV)

SUPPORT - Acts 20:35 - I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (NKJV)

In order for us to fulfill the purpose of a small group of building community with one other - loving and supporting one another - we must first anchor ourselves in God's word and allow him to be a stronghold to us individually and as a group.

Therefore, I've asked everyone to spend some time choosing a Life Verse for this particular moment in your life. Something that you use as an anchor - a verse that you cling to for comfort or strength or hope. And something that you can share or use to support others that may be in need of an uplifting word.

This should be a verse that you prayerfully consider and choose. Spend the next few weeks flipping through your bible at random, using the concordance, or even polling family & friends for their favorite verse and looking each one up to see what jumps out and speaks to you.

For example, soon after my seperation/divorce I found great comfort in Malachi 2:13-16 (bear w/me, it's kinda long, but worth it.) This is another thing you do. You cover the Lord's alter with your tears. You cry and moan, because he does not accept your offerings and is not pleased with what you bring. 14 You ask, "Why?" It is because the Lord sees how you treated the wife you married when you were young. You broke your promise to her, even though she was your partner and you had an agreement with her 15.......So be careful, and do not break your promise to the wife you married when you were young. 16 The Lord God of Israel says, "I hate divorce. And I hate people who do cruel things as easily as they put on clothes," says the Lord All-Powerful. So be careful and do not break your trust. (New Century Version)
At the time, I thought "YES! He is SO gonna get his! God is gonna strike him down at every turn! hahahahahahah"(evil laugh) Now I realize that's not exactly what the point was; eventually, I figured out that it means - God has it all under control. I don't have to be a hater, or wish bad things upon the father of my children, or be depressed - God is taking care of the situation. HE is aware and will handle it - I could LET IT GO.

My new Life Verse is similar - Ps. 55:22 Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved. (NKJV)

Isn't that great? And it's true - I can honestly say that He really has sustained me through much burden over the years.

So I encourage each of you to seek out your Life Verse. We'll share it at the end of the Great Beginnings study.

See you Wednesday!