Precious

“My sheep listen to My voice, I know them, and they follow Me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand. For My Father, has given them to Me and He is more powerful than anyone else.  No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand.”   

                                                                                                                                   John 10:27-29

“Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wing.”   John 17:18

“For you are a holy people, who belong to the LORD your God.  Of all the people on earth the LORD your God has chosen you to be His own special treasure.”   Deut. 7:6

I love you.  You are very valuable to Me.  Very precious to Me.  You are the apple of My eye; My treasured possession.  I will not let you go.  We are connected now by covenant, by blood.  You belong to Me; you are My own.  Revel in your daughtership.  You are safely nestled in the palm of My hand—My Father has given you to Me.  He is the ultimate power beyond even the universe—atomic power is within Him—and no one can take anything away from Him.  You are secure; your future is secure.  My love will never run out. Even beyond time it will keep coming like the waves of the ocean, covering you enveloping you in warmth and safety.  You will never be out of my hand.  You will never be out from under My protective gaze. 

“Do not be afraid,” he said, “for you are very precious to God.  Peace!  Be encouraged!  Be strong!”

Tribulations

“Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.”   Ex 23:20

I Am leading you; I haven’t left you.  Just because you have tribulations doesn’t mean you are not smack dab in the middle of My plan for you.  In fact, in you follow Me and give your life in My service you will have even more tribulations, but My victory and joy is yours.  Also, not every situation is going to resolve to your satisfaction.  You are working towards My satisfaction not your own.  Sometimes you will give the message and it will not be received—but My message went out. The gift was offered; your job was done.  Shake the dust off your feet and move on.  Follow the cloud and pillar of fire as I lead you to the perfect places I have for you.  Do not be discouraged; do not be dismayed.  I Am at work in your life and I will achieve My purposes.  I have prepared the way follow Me in it.

The Backside of the Desert

“I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”   Ps 27:13

“Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring.  Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.”     Ps 27:14

“But those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up on wings like eagles.  They will run and not grow weary.  They will walk and not faint.”   Is 40:31

“Quitting is not an option.  It’s not an option.  What we are a part of is way too important for you to quit.  Jesus said you couldn’t quit.”  Todd Mullins

Take courage I have not left you.  David became very discouraged.  He had been anointed king but instead of ruling he spent years running away from Saul in the back side of the desert.  This was not the life of an anointed king being chased around like a beggar with a rag tag bunch of men.  Yet this was My perfect plan.  It was here on the backside of the desert that David—My chosen leader of Israel—learned to trust Me.  He learned to look to Me for encouragement.  He learned to look to Me for strength and direction.  He learned that his value and worth came from who I said he was not who his circumstances said he was.  Here he learned to wait upon Me.  He learned to not despair, but to take courage in My Word.  It is here, wrestling with the depths of despair, that I prepared his heart for leadership.  The wilderness is not a place for losers; it’s a place for My anointed in training.  So, take courage—actually reach out and latch on to the promises I have placed in your heart.  And above all seek Me.  Spend your time pursuing Me not your destiny.  I will bring your future as you chase after Me.