God will and He is able...

    Bless the Lord oh my soul and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. (Psalm 103:2-5)
    Although Rebecca enjoyed going to church as a child and watching her father play the guitar, outside of church she went after a different lifestyle. She started smoking marijuana and by the age of sixteen she was a teenage mother. She married the father of her baby but their relationship was turbulent and she resorted to drugs to ease her pain. Suicidal thoughts stepped in while her marriage fell apart. 
    She was invited to church by a friend and when she went she felt good. Unfortunately, however, outside of church she continued living her life of drugs. She finally became tired of promising God to stop using drugs if He would just help her out. She became so tormented and was so afraid that she would take her life, that one day, she called her pastor and asked him to come get her before she did just that. He took her to his parents’ home where she felt loved and experienced a sense of freedom from her old life. She went to a Christian Rehab program. There, the Lord told her that she was free and never had to go back to her old life. She surrendered to Him completely and became free from addiction. She now has a new purpose and ministers regularly to those bound in addiction like she once was.
    Psalm 103:2-5 tells us that God forgives us, heals us, redeems us, loves us and renews us. I think a lot of this sums up what He has done in Rebecca’s life. He did above and beyond what she hoped. When she felt discouraged and hopeless, He stepped in and came to her rescue. 
    Sometimes I am sure, we all feel as hopeless as Rebecca felt. She kept trying to get out of the hell she was in and kept failing. She kept promising God that she would do better but kept falling right back into the same pit of destruction. Only God could deliver her out of her mess. No matter how hard we may try, there are times when we have to realise that only God can deliver us especially when the odds are against us and the giants are way bigger than we can handle. Yet, it can be a comfort to know that we don’t have to do it ourselves, God is more than able to do what we can’t. 
    What’s interesting is the fact that she chose the destructive path that she was on yet, God did not reject her when she needed His help. He did not blame her for being in the situation she had gotten into, He did not leave her there either. God will never leave you in your mess - whether or not you have brought it on yourself. In the book of Judges, the Israelites consistently strayed away from God and did what was evil in His sight and consequently brought trouble on themselves. But, whenever they cried out to God in their distress and oppression, He sent a deliverer (or judge) to deliver them. 
    God loves us too much to leave us where we are. When we humble ourselves and cry out to Him, He will come to our rescue. Whether or not our mess is because of any wrong we have done, God is there and will show up when we need Him. Psalm 103:2-5 is a reminder to us that God is the One who does the forgiving, the healing, the redeeming, the loving and the renewing. It’s not up to us because we will surely fail. When we leave it up to Him, He will do it and will never fail!
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. No matter what you are facing, God will not abandon you or fail you. Whether or not you are responsible, He is very willing and able to see you through.

---