Recently, I was catching up with a friend I hadn’t spoken to in a while. The conversation went something like this: “Melissa, how are you and JP doing?” “We are great. I’m having surgery in a couple of weeks and JP lost his job in August.” After I said it I realized how silly it sounded – neither surgery nor unemployment are great. So why did I say we were great? Because it was exactly how I was feeling. Despite a couple of major things going on in our lives, things are good! OK – every once in a a while, for a second, I remember that there may be complications, as there can be with any surgery, and I will most definitely experience some pain. I remember, too, that things I am accustomed to might soon be unaffordable if my husband doesn’t find a new job in the near future. I try not to let my mind stay in that negative place for too long, though. Instead, I try to focus on the positive things going on (like the fact that I’m working on a fun stewardship project for church right now, JP has been cooking dinner almost every night and he has been keeping busy with projects around the house. Never mind that it has been nice having him around while we are still adjusting to being “empty nesters” and he’ll be home to take care of me after the surgery! See, lot’s more good happening than bad). I know, trying to stay positive can be really hard and I’m making it seem very easy right now. I have found something that really does help when things are tough. Ready for it? Reading, praying over, and meditating on scripture. I believe God uses scripture to speak to us and remind us He is with us whenever we need Him.
A couple of days after my conversation with my friend, I asked my husband what his favorite Bible verse was. Without hesitation he said “Right now it is Isaiah 26:3, ‘You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.'” The “right now” is important because different verses apply to different situations and there is a verse for every situation! Did you know that there are 31,102 verses in the Bible, according to Wikipedia? And during this time in my husband’s life God chose Isaiah 26:3 for him. And because my dear husband IS faithful, God has kept true to His word by literally transforming JP’s thoughts and reflecting peace into both our current situations. That is the power of scripture.
So how do you “find” the scripture you need in the Bible? Well for me, I usually do one of two things. First, I will pray about it, asking God to bring me to the place in the Bible where I will find the message I need to hear. I will then be still and “listen” for a book or chapter to come to my mind. Sometimes, after praying, I will randomly open up the Bible and read pages I have turned to, looking for a verse that jumps out at me. Second, many bibles have a subject index or concordance at the back. If there is a topic I want to hear about I will look it up there. Again, I pray to God before I read, asking Him to allow me to find, hear and understand the message He has for me. The important thing is that we open the Bible and start reading. There is so much wisdom in there and I’m excited for you to discover it!
If you have a special verse God is using to speak to you right now, I’d love to hear about it.
Love, Melissa
Earlier I mentioned I’m working on something for our church’s stewardship committee. November is stewardship month for many churches and it is right around the corner! Since stewardship is at the forefront of my brain, this week’s verse will be about stewardship, too! “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
Melissa Pillone Speaks 