Adverse Circumstances Cannot Hinder Him

Verse of the day: Genesis 26:12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him.

What a wonderful reminder today of God’s faithfulness in providing for us. Isaac, in obedience to the Lord, remained in Gerar during a famine. In spite of famine (v. 1), and while dwelling in Gerar for a long time (v. 8), Isaac believed God’s promise that He would bless him (v. 3), and the result was that against all odds, in the midst of a famine, God blessed, and prospered, Isaac and his family. It is amazing to me, that even in reading this, we who are already blessed because we are in Christ, panic when needs arise in our lives. Did not God promise to provide for our needs? Did He not say that He knows what we need even before we ask (Matthew 6:8)? In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus told us that if we seek the Kingdom of God first, He would take care of our needs; therefore, there is no need to worry.  Philippians 4:19 tells us that God will provide our needs in accordance to His riches. Do we realize what that means? He does not provide for us out of His riches, but in accordance to His riches. That is quite the difference. If we have one thousand dollars and give someone ten dollars, we have given them from out of our riches. However, if we give them nine-hundred and ninety nine dollars, and keep one dollar for ourselves, we have them given in accordance to our riches. This is the picture that the Apostle Paul wanted to convey to us regarding how God provides for us. So think about this for a moment; God owns EVERYTHING! Deuteronomy 10:14 tells us that to the Lord our God belong heaven and the highest heaven, the earth, and all that is in it. It is from these riches that God provides for our needs. Therefore, it is not impossible for Him to provide for us, even in the most adverse of conditions or circumstances, as He did with Isaac. King David expressed the care that God has for us in Psalm 23. When God is our Shepherd, we will have need of nothing, because He will provide us with all that we need. Even in the face of those that would see us poor and needy, God prepares a table before us. Our cup overflows with His blessings (not with our idea of what a blessing is, but His blessings, which come in many forms). His goodness and mercy follows us all the days of our lives. Isaac, and his family, were blessed greatly because of the trust, and obedience, he demonstrated in staying in a place where there was a famine; and because of Abraham’s faithfulness to God, and His promise to prosper him and his descendants. The bottom line is that our circumstances, no matter how difficult they may appear to us, will not hinder God from taking care of us, and providing us with everything we need; note that I did not say everything we think we need and want. We sell ourselves short when we try to go off on our own to seek what we think we need, or chase after our selfish wants. God wants us to bring our cares and needs to Him, because He truly cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). God can choose to prosper us, even in the midst of the greatest famine. Even when everyone around us is suffering loss, materially, and financially, God can choose to prosper us by supplying us with everything that we need; food, shelter, or any other physical need. However, let me take this time to warn each of us who are born again believers; this is not an excuse to become a “name it, claim it” propagator. God blesses whom He chooses to bless, and allows those of us to suffer, for His sake, if that is His will and plan for our lives. The Apostle Paul being our greatest example of that suffering. Acts 9:15-16, Jesus said this to Ananias regarding the Apostle Paul, “But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.’” Regardless of which He chooses for us, one thing is sure; we will never go wrong trusting our God for all our needs, whenever and wherever. The greatest need that God met for us was our need to obtain eternal life. He provided for this need through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. Romans 8:32 tells us, “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing their sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).