Here is another monthly recap of my reflections for Illustrated Faith’s February devotional called Preparing Hearts.
I recently shared my reflections from January’s devotional – All Things Beautiful – in a previous post. These are the same reflections I share on Instagram, sometimes with a bit more detail.
I’ve been faith journaling using devotional kits by Illustrated Faith for several years now. I’m a big supporter of the ministry partly because I have seen my faith grow incredibly from taking this creative approach to lingering in God’s word.
The devotional is written by Becki Baker who encouraged us to see the difficult times we face through a biblical perspective. To see His faithfulness in preparing us for what is to come. To also see how He uses them for good. This was written from her perspective as someone who lost her husband; young and most unexpectedly.
He is preparing our hearts
The God who created all things in the beginning and declared it good… is still God.
He’s still redeeming.
He’s still bringing life to empty wastelands.
He’s still creating goodness.
We may not see it now but we know Him and we know His ways; expect goodness. He’s preparing us for what’s to come. Ask Him to help you see it and know it’s true.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,
Jeremiah 29:11-13
plans for welfare and not for evil,
to give you a future and a hope.
Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
This was a good reminder that God is ultimately preparing us for Himself. When we believe this it becomes easier to see difficult times as trials meant to refine our faith. In the hard, He’s doing a good thing and we find courage in looking for that goodness. I know this isn’t always easy but when we know Him, we can trust His character, we can trust His word and we can choose to seek Him in it.
Beauty on the other side
There’s beauty in the hard.
We don’t see it all this side of Heaven but we know His word – He uses all for good.
He draws us closer and into His presence.
He comforts us and teaches us to comfort others.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Becki also reminded us that sometimes it’s not about us, though we’re affected. It’s about what God is doing in fulfilling His promises. Perhaps, then, we can come to see it as an invitation to witness His faithfulness and respond with praise.
Having a mindset of seeking goodness in the hard enables us to get glimpses of the good God is doing. One of them is that He draws us closer and comforts us. In comforting us, he also equips so that we can comfort others in the same way. In this way, we make His name known; we can tell others that He is our hope in any circumstance.
Reminders of His presence
How would you describe the Christian walk to someone as you invite them along?
Our pastor touched on this recently when he preached on Psalm 15. He exhorted us to walk faithfully and talk truthfully… Not to see the gospel invitation as contingent on a checklist of impossible requirements. Jesus invites us to come as we are; we inevitably change as we walk with Him.
I was also reminded of an article I read years ago that asserted Christians should be the most joyful people on the planet yet that’s not always obvious from our lives.
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 16:11
It might be that we’re distracted by what’s directly in front of us and have taken our focus off our God… taken our eyes off what He said to seek first. The challenges, then, would seem insurmountable… but not to our God. Becki reminded us that God is up to something in those moments when we can’t see the light, and that we’ll surely see it all in time.
Walking through the hard
“God is here, God is in control”
“If God will allow it, I will accept it”
I was so encouraged by these words of faith in the Preparing Hearts devotional. It makes me also brave to say yes to the paths He calls me to walk with Him. Keep me in Your presence, Lord – You are my Strength.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous.
Joshua 1:9
Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Using the kit elements to make cards
Becki also challenged us to use the kit elements in different ways. One way was to create cards and send them to loved ones to encourage them with God’s love. I really enjoyed doing this for Valentine’s. I gave one to my husband as well as each of my kids. I also sent some to a few galentines who were blessed to receive them. I love snail mail so this was doubly fun for me and such a great idea!
You can check out the #IF_PreparingHearts hashtag on Instagram for more inspiration. Also, visit IllustratedFaith.com for the kit (if still available), the digital version and/or any related products. Stay tuned for March’s recap coming soon!
