Writing down a promise of God and saying how it answers your situation
We know many promises in the Bible. We quote them, frame them, sing them. But we rarely connect them to our own situation. This quest invites you to an exercise in two gestures: copy out a promise and write, in a few lines, how it answers what you are living right now.
What it looks like in your day
Choose a promise. One that touches your current situation. If you are anxious about the future, a promise of presence; if you are tired, a promise of strength; if you have sinned, a promise of forgiveness; if you are alone, a promise of company. A few examples: Joshua 1:9, Isaiah 41:10, Matthew 11:28, 1 John 1:9, Philippians 4:19.
Copy it out by hand. Word for word, with the reference. It slows down the reading and fixes the text.
Write three lines underneath:
- What the promise says (to whom, in what context).
- What I am living right now: your situation, in one sentence.
- How the promise answers: what it changes, what it invites you to believe or do.
An example. Promise: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God" (Isaiah 41:10). Situation: "I'm anxious about my exam on Thursday." Answer: "God doesn't promise success, but his presence. I can walk into the room without being alone."
Keep the page. Slip it into your Bible or stick it up somewhere. Reread it in a few days.
If you are in a hurry, copy it out and write just one line of response. If you are shy, this work is private. If you hesitate over a promise, check the context before applying it to yourself.
What the Bible says
Paul sums up the character of God's promises:
“For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”
"In him are yea": all God's promises find their "yes" in Christ. They are not vague intentions, but guaranteed commitments. The book of Joshua looks back over a long history:
“There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.”
"There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass": God kept his word. Finally, Paul describes Abraham's faith in the face of the promise:
“He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.”
He was strong in faith, giving glory to God, fully persuaded that God was able to perform what he had promised. And the psalmist testifies (Psalms 119:49-50) that God's promise is his comfort in affliction: it gives him life.
Pitfalls to avoid
Taking a promise out of its context. Some were addressed to a specific people, at a specific time. Read the context before using it.
Turning the promise into a guarantee of comfort. God promises his presence, his forgiveness, his faithfulness. He doesn't promise the absence of difficulties.
Demanding from God. "You promised it, so you must..." is a way of imposing. A promise is welcomed, not claimed as a debt.
Collecting without believing. A page full of promises is useless if you don't lean on them.
Always choosing the same one. Widen it: a promise of forgiveness, presence, strength, wisdom, hope.
Today, choose a promise. Copy it out, then write in three lines how it answers your situation.