Renee Swope
"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)
We've had workers in our house hammering, banging, scraping, and fixing things for the past two days. It's been so noisy! I've really missed having my home office to myself and being able to leave when I need to.
In the midst of the clamoring and interruptions, I've been telling myself to be thankful. After all, this work is being done for free as part of our one-year home warranty. The process was optional. We could have let our home warranty expire and waited until things were so broken that we had to do something. But why would anyone pass up having things repaired at no cost?
So, we opted for inconvenience and lots of noise with the promise of our "broken-ness" being fixed.
This morning while I was running, I asked God to help me have a good attitude about all the interruptions. I knew it would help if I had a grateful heart, so I decided to thank God for our home warranty and each item on the repair list.
I thanked Him for helping us notice the leaking toilet upstairs, the gap behind our counter tops, the hardwood floors that started popping, the loose carpet, and creaking stairs. I was especially grateful that He helped me see the hairline fractures in our bathroom, kitchen and laundry room tile, which I almost missed.
My prayers transitioned from my house to my heart as I asked God to show me areas of my life that needed repair. He reminded me of hurt feelings from a difficult conversation, disappointment and broken trust from my son's disobedience, grief for a friend whose husband committed adultery and deep concern for another friend with cancer. I hadn't realized all that was bothering me.
Walking through each room in my heart, God showed me that I had my own brokenness to address. But He also reminded me that like my home-warranty, Christ has promised me a lifetime heart-warranty with unlimited repairs.
As I let that truth sink into my broken places, His comfort came. His Spirit ministered to mine as I exposed my hurts to Him. I remembered Jesus' promise to bind up the brokenhearted as I held up my heart and all that is in need of repair. I finished my run and headed back to the house soon to be filled with repairmen. Just before I got home, I smiled towards Heaven and thanked God for setting His seal of ownership on me, His lifetime heart-warranty, guaranteeing what is to come.
Each day, Jesus invites us to come to His throne of grace with confidence and ask Him to repair whatever is broken in our lives. We don't have to wait for a scheduled walk-through. We don't have to make a list and coordinate any appointments, or even be at home for Him to do the work. We can come to Him with full assurance knowing that He's available right now. Right where we are. With mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
Dear Lord, thank You for always being there for me, and for promising to make me new, even when I sometimes feel so broken. I pray that You would help me see the ways you are working in my life, fulfilling Your promises to me as I put my hope in You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Who Holds the Key to Your Heart? by Lysa TerKeurst
The Wonder of His Love by Nancy Stafford
Visit Renee’s blog for more thoughts on how God can restore our brokenness and make it into something beautiful.
Application Steps:
Take time to thank God for His promise to make all things new. Then tell Him about the areas of your life that feel broken and in need of repair. Ask Him for mercy and grace in your time of need.
Click here for a chance to win a copy of Who Holds the Key to Your Heart? by Lysa TerKeurst, and find out how God can take your brokenness and do something beautiful in your life.
Reflections:
What are some areas where I have seen God repair my brokenness in the past?
How can I remember His faithfulness so that I have confidence that He can and will be there to help me again and again?
Power Verses:
2 Corinthians 1:21-23, "Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (NIV)
Revelation 21:5, "And He who sits on the throne said, 'Behold, I am making all things new.' And He said, 'Write, for these words are faithful and true.'" (NAS)
Lamentations 3:21-25, "Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.' The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him." (NIV)
© 2009 by Renee Swope. All rights reserved.
"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)
We've had workers in our house hammering, banging, scraping, and fixing things for the past two days. It's been so noisy! I've really missed having my home office to myself and being able to leave when I need to.
In the midst of the clamoring and interruptions, I've been telling myself to be thankful. After all, this work is being done for free as part of our one-year home warranty. The process was optional. We could have let our home warranty expire and waited until things were so broken that we had to do something. But why would anyone pass up having things repaired at no cost?
So, we opted for inconvenience and lots of noise with the promise of our "broken-ness" being fixed.
This morning while I was running, I asked God to help me have a good attitude about all the interruptions. I knew it would help if I had a grateful heart, so I decided to thank God for our home warranty and each item on the repair list.
I thanked Him for helping us notice the leaking toilet upstairs, the gap behind our counter tops, the hardwood floors that started popping, the loose carpet, and creaking stairs. I was especially grateful that He helped me see the hairline fractures in our bathroom, kitchen and laundry room tile, which I almost missed.
My prayers transitioned from my house to my heart as I asked God to show me areas of my life that needed repair. He reminded me of hurt feelings from a difficult conversation, disappointment and broken trust from my son's disobedience, grief for a friend whose husband committed adultery and deep concern for another friend with cancer. I hadn't realized all that was bothering me.
Walking through each room in my heart, God showed me that I had my own brokenness to address. But He also reminded me that like my home-warranty, Christ has promised me a lifetime heart-warranty with unlimited repairs.
As I let that truth sink into my broken places, His comfort came. His Spirit ministered to mine as I exposed my hurts to Him. I remembered Jesus' promise to bind up the brokenhearted as I held up my heart and all that is in need of repair. I finished my run and headed back to the house soon to be filled with repairmen. Just before I got home, I smiled towards Heaven and thanked God for setting His seal of ownership on me, His lifetime heart-warranty, guaranteeing what is to come.
Each day, Jesus invites us to come to His throne of grace with confidence and ask Him to repair whatever is broken in our lives. We don't have to wait for a scheduled walk-through. We don't have to make a list and coordinate any appointments, or even be at home for Him to do the work. We can come to Him with full assurance knowing that He's available right now. Right where we are. With mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
Dear Lord, thank You for always being there for me, and for promising to make me new, even when I sometimes feel so broken. I pray that You would help me see the ways you are working in my life, fulfilling Your promises to me as I put my hope in You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Who Holds the Key to Your Heart? by Lysa TerKeurst
The Wonder of His Love by Nancy Stafford
Visit Renee’s blog for more thoughts on how God can restore our brokenness and make it into something beautiful.
Application Steps:
Take time to thank God for His promise to make all things new. Then tell Him about the areas of your life that feel broken and in need of repair. Ask Him for mercy and grace in your time of need.
Click here for a chance to win a copy of Who Holds the Key to Your Heart? by Lysa TerKeurst, and find out how God can take your brokenness and do something beautiful in your life.
Reflections:
What are some areas where I have seen God repair my brokenness in the past?
How can I remember His faithfulness so that I have confidence that He can and will be there to help me again and again?
Power Verses:
2 Corinthians 1:21-23, "Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (NIV)
Revelation 21:5, "And He who sits on the throne said, 'Behold, I am making all things new.' And He said, 'Write, for these words are faithful and true.'" (NAS)
Lamentations 3:21-25, "Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.' The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him." (NIV)
© 2009 by Renee Swope. All rights reserved.
Labels: Balance, Overcoming, Purity, Time with God, Walking in Faith
5 Comments:
Thank you...once again it "hit the mark" in my heart. I am struggling with relational changes and hurts, disappointments, losses....I will heed your recommendations...
God bless you.
Even after messing up a zillion times, God wants me to use this warranty over and over again. Thank you for helping get my day off to a Godly start instead of falling back into habitual sin.
I can identify with the workmen in the house hammering and disrupting everything. I am in the middle of that now. It is hard to be thankful and praise God that it will soon be over and your house will be in order. Right now that feels like it never will happen. However, faith is what pleases God so I will praise Him even though my feelings are contrary. I will thank Him for giving me grace to get this far and to finish. I thought it was great that you were able to transition this to areas of a broken heart. I had not thought of that. I rejoice in God's forever warranty of the heart.
I liked how you said you started thanking God for all the blessings in the midst of what seemed to be an uncomfortable situation. I have been learning that lesson myself lately. His peace really seems to follow quickly behind once my attitude changes to one of thankfulness!
Thank you for a great devotion!
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