Latest / Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms / #148. When You're Weary: Isaiah Promise of Strength for Christian Moms | Isaiah 35-41 + Psalm 76

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#148. When You're Weary: Isaiah Promise of Strength for Christian Moms | Isaiah 35-41 + Psalm 76 · Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms

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  This is The Dwelling Place from Entrusted Ministries.
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  I'm Stephanie Hickox, And as we discuss Isaiah chapters 35 through 41 and Psalm 76 I'm confident that you'll find what you need today Whether you're overwhelmed, exhausted, or facing a situation that feels impossible Isaiah's words will meet you
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  right where you're at Today we're wrapping up the second portion of the Book of Isaiah, which focused on the judgment of Israel and the nations, and we'll begin the third section focusing on the blessing of Israel and the
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  nations This will include several chapters of narrative on the life of King Hezekiah.
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  after chapters of oracles against the nations, chapter thirty-four told us that not only does the Lord have a day, He has a sword.
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  He is enraged against the nations and has devoted them to destruction.
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  This is not the side you want to be on.
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  But chapter thirty-five tells us how the wilderness will bloom and the desert will rejoice.
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  In the renewed kingdom, not just the people will be restored, but creation will be also In verses three through six we read, Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees.
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  Say to those who have an anxious heart, 'Be strong.
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  Fear not.
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  Behold, your God will come with vengeance.
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  With the recompense of God, He will come and save you.'
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  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
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  Then shall the lame man leap like a deer and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
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  For waters break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert If this reminds you of the fulfillment of Jesus' ministry, you are absolutely correct, but verse eight points to Jesus' future reign.
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  There is a focus on joy in the kingdom of the Lord.
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  And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness.
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  And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing.
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  Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads.
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  They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away now we're beginning that third portion of Isaiah, which extends from chapter thirty-six to sixty-six at this point in Judah's history, Hezekiah is king and Sennacherib, the
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  king of Assyria, is attacking Judah.
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  The northern kingdom of Israel already fell to the Assyrians, and Judah has been warned several times by the prophets that their end is coming too But Hezekiah has been walking righteously with the Lord and doesn't want the Assyrian
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  captivity of Judah to happen on his watch I'm gonna give a brief pause to talk about some of the historical and archeological evidence that we have for Hezekiah and Sennacherib.
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  I've had the opportunity to be led twice through the University of Chicago's Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures with Christian archeologist Ted Wright, founder of Epic Archeology.
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  He walked us through these incredible historical artifacts that confirm the historicity of the Bible.
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  We have actual walls of Sennacherib's throne room that have been excavated and brought to Chicago.
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  In two thousand and fifteen, ISIS destroyed much of what remained, but thankfully we still have several portions of these palace walls, which depict cities from Judah such as Jerusalem and Lachish.
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  I'm astounded that we actually have a winged bull that's twenty feet tall and thirty to fifty tons.
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  It was carved out of one piece and is completely intact.
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  My kids and I have a picture with it and we believe that this would have been present in Sargon II's palace and passed down to his son Sennacherib.
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  We also have what's known as the Chicago Prism, which details Sennacherib's own account of his exploits.
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  The Assyrians, much like the Egyptians, were very careful to not list their defeats.
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  But Sennacherib records in his own words that he had battering rams outside the city of Jerusalem and that he had Hezekiah trapped like a bird in a cage while he stated that he had besieged many cities in Judah,
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  in a somewhat interesting passive detail, he doesn't say that he was able to conquer Jerusalem All of these remains show the advancement and the power of the Assyrian Empire that was coming against Judah.
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  It was the greatest nation in the world at that time, and Hezekiah had every right to be intimidated, but he knew a king that was even greater, and he continued to seek him.
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  This is the stage to which chapter thirty-six begins.
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  At the gates by the upper pool, which is the same location that King Ahaz had rejected the sign from Isaiah, this is where Sennacherib's messengers and a great army come.
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  They begin to taunt the people of Israel, and once again, we encounter Eliakim and Shebna hezekiah sent his messengers, and Sennacherib sent Rabshakeh, which means chief cupbearer Rabshakeh was trying to intimidate the people, saying, "Look, we've destroyed Lachish
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  and taken over so many of your cities.
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  Just give up.
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  Are you really gonna trust in your God?
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  That hasn't worked out for any of the nations around you."
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  The Rabshakeh intentionally speaks in a way that the surrounding people can hear.
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  Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah say basically, "Hey, the kids are listening.
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  Keep it down."
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  And they ask him, "Can you talk to us in Aramaic?"
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  But the Assyrians are determined to stir up anxiety in the people And he continues to speak in their language saying, "Don't let Hezekiah deceive you.
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  There's no way your God can deliver you."
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  As he continues blaspheming the Lord, listing off the nations that they've defeated, his taunting reminds me of the way that Goliath came out after the Israelites But the people and the messengers honor Hezekiah's order and don't respond to
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  the taunts.
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  They come back to Hezekiah grieving over the message with their clothes torn in chapter thirty-seven, as soon as Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord.
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  And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests covered with sackcloth, To the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz.
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  They said to him, Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace.
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  Children have come to the point of birth and there is no strength to bring them forth.
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  It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has
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  heard.
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  Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.'"
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  when the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, Say to your master, Thus says the Lord, Do not be afraid because of the words you have heard, with which the young men of the king
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  of Assyria have reviled me.
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  Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land."'"
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  Right when Hezekiah prays, he receives the encouragement from the Lord that Jerusalem will be protected God will not let them fall.
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  But meanwhile, Rabshakeh goes to Sennacherib and says, They're not going to surrender."
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  Sennacherib writes a letter Further taunting Hezekiah, Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.
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  Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, devouring them to destruction, and shall you be delivered?"
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  Hezekiah takes this letter, goes into the temple, and prays to the Lord, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth.
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  You have made heaven and earth.
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  Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear.
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  Open your eyes, O Lord, and see.
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  And hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.
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  Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their lands And have cast their gods into the fire.
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  For they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone.
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  therefore they were destroyed.
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  So now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord Right away, God sends Isaiah to come to Hezekiah, letting him know his prayer
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  has been answered.
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  The Lord declares against Assyria, Whom have you mocked and reviled?
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  Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted up your eyes to the heights against the Holy One of Israel?
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  By your servants you have mocked the Lord."
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  After God says, "I have used you to accomplish my purposes He promises, Because you have raged against me, and your complacency has come to my ears, I will put my hook in your nose, and my bit in your
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  mouth, and I will turn you back on the way by which you came."
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  God encourages Hezekiah in verse 33.
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  Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city.
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  By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city,' declares the Lord, for I will defend this city to save it for my own sake and for the sake
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  of my servant, David.'"
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  Though from an outward perspective it seemed all hope was lost, now the angel of the Lord appears, which is most likely the pre-incarnate Christ, and he strikes down one hundred and eighty-five thousand of the Assyrians.
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  When the people wake in the morning, there are dead bodies all around, which causes Sennacherib to return home, and as he is worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, two of his sons come and strike him down
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  with the sword, just as God foretold But they may have not even had the crown in mind because they flee and a different son reigns in their father's place Sennacherib's mocking of God is silenced, and he meets his
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  end.
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  The god he worshiped could not defeat the Lord of the Bible and could not even protect him.
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  And just to put the nail in the coffin that the Lord is completely sovereign over the affairs of men and of kings, psalm through 12 tells us, Make your vows to the Lord your God and perform them.
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  Let all around him bring gifts to him who is to be feared, who cuts off the spirit of princes, who is to be feared by the kings of the earth."
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  I want to point out that it's believed that this encounter with the Assyrians actually happened after chapters 38 and 39.
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  But because the focus of Isaiah is now going to shift toward Babylon, Isaiah chose to put this account after The Assyrian encounter.
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  And perhaps placing these shortcomings of Hezekiah last is an attempt to ensure that we don't look upon his legacy believing that he was the savior king In chapter 38, Hezekiah becomes very sick, and Isaiah comes to him with
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  a message from the Lord that he will die.
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  Hezekiah understandably pleads to the Lord I've honored you with all my heart.
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  Please extend my life."
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  God answers his prayer and gives him 15 more years to live God offers him a sign changing the way the shadows fell upon the sundial And Hezekiah writes a prayer about this wrestling in his heart.
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  I'll highlight a few of those verses.
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  Like a swallow or a crane, I chirp.
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  I moan like a dove.
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  My eyes are weary with looking upward.
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  O Lord, I am oppressed.
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  Be my pledge of safety."
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  In verse 17, Hezekiah writes, Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness.
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  But in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back."
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  And then he tells God, If I went down to Sheol, I wouldn't be able to praise you.
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  The living, the living, he thanks you as I do this day.
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  This father makes known to the children your faithfulness."
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  The Sheol he referenced here is not hell.
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  It's a very nuanced topic in the Hebrew, but he's just saying, If I'm dead, I can't praise you, Lord Chapter 39 is probably where you'll be most disappointed with his reign.
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  The king of Babylon finds out about his sickness and brings him a gift.
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  Hezekiah welcomes him in and shows him every last bit of treasure that Judah has.
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  I've heard some comment that this was due to Hezekiah's pride, but scripture doesn't assign any motive to Hezekiah's actions, so I think we need to be really careful that we don't make assumptions either, It was very common that
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  when you were forming an alliance with another nation, you would show them what you're bringing to the table.
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  but even if this was Hezekiah's motive, it was wrong because he was still seeking security in a foreign king instead of the Lord, and God rebukes him for it Isaiah delivers this message, Hear the word of the Lord
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  of hosts.
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  Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house and that which your fathers have stored up till this day shall be carried to Babylon.
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  Nothing shall be left," says the Lord.
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  And some of your own sons who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon."
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  Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, The word that you have spoken is good," for he thought, "There will be peace and security in my days."
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  In my opinion, this is the most disappointing and selfish thing that we encounter of Hezekiah.
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  And since the Davidic line is coming through him, he should be very concerned that his sons would become eunuchs, as this doesn't just threaten his legacy, but also the Davidic line Now Isaiah shifts to these oracles of blessing.
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  Whereas the second portion began with the king rejecting a sign and the judgment for the nations, this third section of Isaiah kicks off with the king receiving a sign from the Lord and then describing how Judah and the
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  nations will be blessed.
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  I'm gonna highlight a few really beautiful verses.
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  I'm sure several will be well known to you And rightfully so, because they meet us right where we're at.
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  In chapter 40 verse three, "A voice cries in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way of the Lord.
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  Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'"
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  This verse was also written in connection with John the Baptist in the Gospels In 40 verses seven and eight, The grass withers, the flower fades.
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  When the breath of the Lord blows on it, surely the people are grass.
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  The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever."
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  40:11 is particularly sweet for moms.
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  He will tend his flock like a shepherd.
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  He will gather the lambs in his arms.
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  He will carry them in his bosom and gently lead those that are with young."
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  I have a dear friend whose son was diagnosed with a brain tumor.
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  It was terminal and inoperable.
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  And as she was inundated with attempts of well-meaning people trying to offer solutions, the Lord placed this verse on her heart to encourage her that she didn't need to figure it all out and that God would guide her
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  Sadly for us, but joyfully for him, that precious little boy is now with his Savior.
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  But my friend will emphatically proclaim that God did gently and tenderly lead her every step of the process Chapter 40 concludes, Have you not known?
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  Have you not heard?
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  The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth.
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  He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
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  He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.
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  Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they
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  shall walk and not faint."
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  Isaiah 41:10 has been a verse I've clung to over and over, particularly when I lost my father unexpectedly Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
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  I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand And 41:13, For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand.
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  It is I who say to you, Fear not.
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  I am the one who helps you.'"
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  Heavenly Father, we come before you completely humbled that you are our helper.
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  Though you are sovereign and powerful enough to destroy nations and to bring kings to an end, you choose to gently lead those that are with young We thank you that you hear our prayers.
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  And whether we're concerned about physical health or our children's eternity, that these are things that matter to you as well.
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  We thank you that we do not do it alone.
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  And Lord, I confess that as I read that you do not faint or grow weary, I'm convicted that I have not pressed into you enough for my strength today.
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  I know I'm praying with many moms that are also weary at the responsibilities you've placed before them.
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  When motherhood and life are beyond what we can accomplish in our own strength.
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  I ask that you would strengthen us for the work you've put before us.
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  Give us the wisdom and the endurance to be faithful and to praise you.
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  Thank you that you help us, lead us, and fill us with your peace We know your word will stand forever.
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  Jesus, it's in your name we pray.
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  Amen