(Excerpt)…”You may find yourself in a place of extreme pain and derision. Perhaps, you don’t have the natural strength to move forward due to all the stress from a situation. Maybe you’re contemplating all the months ahead and wondering how on earth you are going to make it. Perhaps, you don’t have the physical strength to even move forward from all the stress you are experiencing. Do you find yourself in a desert wondering how you are going to provide for your small kids, make the house payments, go to work and function with excellence, to just getting out of bed? You are the very one God wants to speak to right now and take you to the place of totally depending upon Him and trusting Him with your every need. 

God wants to open your eyes to His well of provision just like Hagar saw in the middle of her desert. God not only wants you to have provision but He wants you to be in peace. He tells us in His Word, “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3 NIV). 

As we trust the Lord, pray, and renew our minds, we find that our emotions do not run wild but rather, we have a calm assurance that God will provide in every area as we wait upon Him. That is the most amazing way to live. 

Not only does God keep us in peace as we keep our mind stayed on Him, but He also provides food. The psalmist tells us, “I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread” (Psalm 37:25). The LORD can move on someone’s heart to bring you a meal to providing for you in some manner you least likely expect. Several months ago, I remember I was at an appointment and the doctor was running late. I had a lunch appointment and knew I was not going to have time so I called and cancelled lunch. I also knew if I didn’t get a little something to eat that I would have a headache. 

I remember thinking I would just drive over to the bagel shop and get a toasted bagel for a snack. Just in front of the door, a lady dressed in a warm-up suit asked me if I had some change. I told her I would get some inside. I walked inside and the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to ask her to join me and buy her lunch. I walked back outside and asked her so we both proceeded through the door together. We began to have casual conversation in line and I asked her what she would like, so we ordered and I paid for it. We sat down and I prayed over our meal and then she began to tell me that she was homeless due to several bad choices. She expressed that she had a good job but lost it due to falling back into some sin and not getting to work on time. I asked her if she had a relationship with Jesus and she said she had heard about him. We ended up praying again and I shared how God had rearranged my day to meet her. I gave her money for a bus, for food, and for a hotel for the night. She told me she stayed off Sugar Creek Road somewhere. I felt compassion for her and her situation. 

On my drive home, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to go and get a pedicure. Now I can guess that some of you might be thinking, “Why would God tell her to get a pedicure?” God sometimes gives us strange instructions, interrupts our days, and positions us to hear from Him specifically. God knows I rarely watch TV news. So listen to this.

While getting the pedicure, I heard a man on the news that was on in the nail salon and tentatively listened to every word. He shared how he had been homeless himself, how the churches in the area were coming together, God had given him a ministry, and that a shelter to house the homeless was opening off Sugar Creek the next day. This was the area the lady stayed near. 

God was letting me know that He positioned me to take care of the lady I met for the day, and He would provide the rest. God never ceases to amaze me. 

Now, you may not be homeless, but in your heart, you may feel the same. All alone in this big world! Just as God provided for the lady’s day, He is providing for you. I don’t know all the details, but HE does. 

God provides for our needs because He says so in His Word. The apostle Paul says, “My God will meet all your needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus.” I believe Him. Jesus told His followers not to worry about what they would eat or drink or wear, but to seek His kingdom first and His righteousness, and then all other things would fall into place (Matthew 6:33). 

God provides comfort as we walk through the desert. He brings encouragement in detailed ways. He goes to extreme measures to encourage and provide for His Sons and Daughters. Our God is described as the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles.”

(Excerpt from GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE…published 2011, Creation House Press)

God bless you!

Deborah Starczewski

BOOKS BY DEBORAH STARCZEWSKI

GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed and Know Your Purpose) 

THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)

A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)…the miraculous account of God raising my husband from death, healing him from two strokes and two open-heart surgeries. This book will keep you turning the pages and give you faith to believe God for yourself. 

Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors 

The Bible states that children are a heritage from the Lord and a reward. Therefore, it is wrong to take the life of an unborn child. The following scriptures reveal the truth:

“You shall not murder” (Deut. 5:17).

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is his reward” (Psalm 127:3).

“He grants the barren woman a home, like a joyful mother of children. Praise the Lord” (Psalm 113:9).

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

You may be ashamed because the child you are carrying now was conceived outside of marriage. This can create great turmoil with an unwanted pregnancy. Or perhaps you have absolutely no desire for a child and find yourself pregnant with anticipation of all the medical bills not knowing which way to turn. Perhaps you have already had an abortion, possibly two and now feel guilty about it.

IF YOU ARE CONSIDERATING AN ABORTION:

If you are considering an abortion, abortion is not an option. There are no hopeless situations with God.

Just decide today to have your baby and trust God to redeem the situation, just as he did for Joseph. Joseph’s brothers meant to kill him when they threw him in the pit, but God preserved him and used the sequence of events to save an entire nation, not to mention his family and the very ones who tried to kill him. What redemption! In Genesis 45:7, Joseph explains to his brothers how God was able to turn bad circumstances around for good: “And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

You may even be carrying a child from an illegitimate union. Many great people would not be alive today if unwanted children had been aborted. The life within you is a very precious gift from God.

IF YOU HAVE HAD AN ABORTION:

If you have already had an abortion, you more than likely are feeling burdened with guilt. Be encouraged by the fact that some of the greatest Biblical heroes in the Bible were guilty of taking lives. BUT GOD forgave them when they repented.

Moses and King David committed the sin of murder. Paul consented to the murder of Stephen. After Paul’s conversion on the Damascus road, he because the apostle to the Gentiles. Each of these repented and were forgiven. In fact, they became the greatest of God’s men ever known as we read in the Bible.

Although God despises murder just as He does all sin, He loved these men. God loves you too. If you are truly sorry for having taken a life and mean it with your heart, God will forgive you and cleanse you when you ask Him to forgive you (1 John 1:9). God has an enormous love for you. The Bible says that in Christ, old things (sins) pass away. All things become new. Your sins will not be remembered by God once you confess and ask His forgiveness and have turned your life over to Christ (Isaiah 43:25).

THERE IS HOPE IN JESUS

There is hope in Jesus as you call on His name, confess your sin, and receive Him as Lord and Savior (1 John 1:9; Romans 10:13; John 1:12).

Ask Jesus to baptize you in the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). You will receive this free gift from God which will enable and empower you to begin living a victorious life (Ephesians 6:10-18). As you begin to help others walk through what you have gone through with your life testimony, you will find an unspeakable joy that floods your soul and will want to live your life for others instead of for yourself.

PRAY FOR GOD’S GRACE and courage to face all that you must face. Give God praise for forgiving you and accepting you with His divine love. Thank Him for giving you grace to also forgive yourself and anyone else who may be involved in the situation.

SCRIPTURE READING:

Psalm 139:13-16 God knows each person from conception

Proverbs 31 Ideal woman and mother

Matthew 6:33 Seek God first

3 John 2 God promises that as your soul prospers, you will prosper

Romans 8:31 God is for you

Phil. 3:13-14, 4:13 Put your past behind and move forward

Isaiah 40:31 Promised strength from God to carry on

Isaiah 44:2 Formed from the womb

Jeremiah 1:5 Known by God before conception