A Verse for the Year: 2016

As in past years (2013, 2014, 2015), I chose a few verses to carry with me through Twenty-Sixteen.

The year began with Psalm 84:5-7.

Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
     who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.
As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
     they make it a place of springs;
     the autumn rains also cover it with pools.
They go from strength to strength,
     till each appears before God in Zion.

Then part way through the year some verses from Lamentations became special to me in a fresh way, and I added them to my memory list.

Every time I review them or share them with other friends going through affliction, they speak fresh encouragement and truth to my heart. Lamentations 3:19-27 even formed the framework of the update I sent out to praying family and friends in November. Below is a portion of that update.

19  I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall.
20  I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me.

[Here I shared some of the current challenges Elsa and I are facing in our journey through chronic Lyme disease, etc. But I will leave that out and let you "remember" your own challenges. In Lamentations, as well as many of the Psalms, we see an honest, human response to affliction. It does not help to ignore it. But it does hurt to dwell only there. So, "remember"... then read on!]

21  Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
Despite the reality of all I wrote above, it’s time to change focus. Do you need hope in your life today too? Read on!

22  Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  23  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
It is true! Because of God’s faithfulness, love, and compassion, we are not consumed.   As the apostle Paul wrote centuries ago, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed...” (2 Cor. 4:7-8)  We still wake up each morning, see God’s beautiful creation, eat from an abundant supply of food, learn and grow within the blessing of family relationships, have slowly-increasing abilities to be involved in occupations and hobbies, and experience God’s grace – even when we don’t realize it.
“Because He lives, [we] can face tomorrow.” That includes you!

24  I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him.”
I am coming to see how the first four words are pivotal in this verse. To stay on track, we must “say to ourselves” the truth. We must purposely claim God as “enough” and chose to wait for Him to act in His good timing.

25  The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;
When we keep our eyes on God, we see His goodness touching us in countless ways – both little and big. From the lovely colors and textures of the yarns Elsa and I get to use in our handwork business, to the great joy we get from our cat (even from a safe distance for allergies), to the perfect timing of a November blizzard, to a good report from my one year post radiation full-body scan (in the Radiologist’s words, “It’s about as clean as they get.”)...

26  it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.
It is “good,” though not natural or easy. But does anything of real value come naturally or easily?!

27  It is good for a man to bear the yoke while he is young.
This is good perspective to be reminded of when we tend to feel like we are being left behind and missing out on the prime of our lives. We believe that God has something beautiful to bring out of these stretching and growing years. Something He wants to help us learn earlier than we ever could have otherwise.

I am not ready to leave these verses behind for 2017. God has so much more to teach me through them. But at this time next year, I will likely have another verse to share as well.

Do you have a verse to carry with you through Twenty-Seventeen?