Marissa Henley

Encouraging weary women to hope in Christ alone

The Lord Will Bring Fruit from Your Suffering {No Matter What Monday}

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The Lord brings beautiful fruit from our patient suffering. Biblical encouragement, Scripture, and devotionals for women.

A few summers ago, my kids helped their dad plant a garden. Among the tomato plants and varieties of lettuce (all of which they will not eat), they planted one of their favorites—a strawberry vine.

But here’s the thing about strawberry vines: they don’t produce fruit right away. Nothing in the first season. You might see fruit a year later, during the second season. And when you’re just five years old, waiting more than 20% of your lifetime for a piece of fruit you could buy at the store this afternoon—well, it seems a little crazy.

In James chapter 5, suffering is compared to planting a garden. It takes patience and endurance, and at times it seems fruitless. But the Lord has a purpose.

James 5:10-11: As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.

James says to take the Old Testament prophets as an example of patience in suffering. The lives of many of them, when taken at face value, look like dismal failures. Many of them were ridiculed, ostracized, or even killed. And yet, James says we consider them blessed. They had the privilege of suffering while proclaiming God’s Word and foretelling His promised Messiah. In their suffering, they put the Lord’s compassion and mercy on display.

James tells his readers they have already “seen the purpose of the Lord.” God has shown us the certainty of His compassion and mercy in our salvation. We can trust Him to bring beautiful fruit from our patient suffering.

No matter what you face this week, the Lord’s compassion and mercy are at work in your patient suffering.

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You Never Suffer Alone {No Matter What Monday}

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You never suffer alone. Biblical encouragement, Scripture, and devotionals for women.

Have you ever felt alone in your suffering? When we’re going through something hard, it can feel like no one gets it, so we feel isolated. But God’s Word gives us hope that we are never alone in our struggles.

In Daniel 3, God’s people are living as exiles in Babylon. Three of the Israelites, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, face a difficult choice between worshipping a golden image or being thrown into a furnace.

In the minds of these three men, the decision is a no-brainer. In fact, the confident manner in which they defy the king’s order to bow down to the idol sends him into a rage.

After the men are thrown to the flames, the king’s fury changes to confusion. “Wait a minute,” he says, “how many men did we throw into that furnace?”

A fourth man, whose appearance was “like the son of the gods,” walked with the three men in the furnace (Daniel 3:25). 

We all know how this story ends: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are pulled from the furnace without even a scent of smoke on their clothes. But we know from experience that this type of deliverance isn’t always God’s plan for His people. Sometimes the flames feel like they’re killing us. We may not be pulled from the furnace until we reach heaven. So what can we take away from this story?

Dale Ralph Davis puts it this way in his commentary on Daniel: “Christ did not keep them out of the furnace but found them in it. He does not always shield you from all distresses and dangers, but it is in the loneliness, the betrayal, in the loss that the Fourth Man comes and walks with you.”

If you belong to Christ, you never walk through suffering alone. He has found you, and He will never leave you.

No matter what you face this week, your Savior walks with you in your struggles.

 

(An earlier version of this devotional originally appeared on my website on February 22, 2016.)

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Your Imperishable Inheritance is Waiting {No Matter What Monday

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You have an imperishable inheritance waiting for you. Biblical encouragement, Scripture, and devotionals for women.

My hairstylist and I chatted as I sat in her chair, discussing my next appointment and whether it was time to refresh my salon-induced highlights. That’s when she first mentioned the “fair hairs” that were starting to show near my scalp. It took me a minute to realize what she meant. Those aren’t fair hairs, they’re gray—and they’re popping up everywhere.

I’m forty years old, which is exciting for a cancer survivor like me. But there’s no denying the unstoppable force of aging. I can cover the evidence with anti-aging face cream, hair dye, and strategic wardrobe choices, but the truth is that this body is fading.

As my body deteriorates, there’s one thing I can count on: God’s given me an inheritance in Christ that will never diminish.

According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. (1 Peter 1:3b-4)

We saw last week in verse 3 that by faith, we’ve been given a living hope: Jesus Christ, who is risen from the dead. In addition, verse 4 tells us that we’ve been given an inheritance in heaven.

Your inheritance is imperishable. It’s not like the rotting bag of lettuce in your refrigerator produce drawer that you never got around to eating.

Your inheritance is undefiled. It’s perfect and pure, and no one can taint it.

Your inheritance is unfading. It can’t be diminished in any way.

Your inheritance is kept in heaven for you—because of Christ, your living hope, you can look forward to a glorious future!

No matter what you face this week, you have an imperishable inheritance waiting for you.

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You have a Living Hope {No Matter What Monday}

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You have a living hope. Biblical encouragement, Scripture, and devotionals for women.

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to pinpoint the sin of others? Several years ago, I talked with my son about how we all struggle with idolatry. We put people, ideas, possessions, or goals on the throne of our heart, where God alone belongs. I hoped it would encourage serious soul-searching. But my little Star Wars fan replied, “Darth Vader worships an idol. He loves his light saber more than the good guys.”

Where are you tempted to place your trust? You probably aren’t tempted to trust your light saber. But anything you put your hope in besides the Lord will ultimately fail you—whether it’s “me time,” your abilities and success, financial security, comfort, the approval of others, or your perceived control over your life. These false gods are attractive, but they’re inferior to the one true, living God.

When we’re lured by these inferior gods and they disappoint us, God’s Word gives us good news. We’ve been given a better source of hope!

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)

Our hope is in a living Savior. None other is worthy of our worship and trust. The difference between the Lord Jesus and any other god is that Christ is risen. His resurrection is the guarantee that our hope is not in vain. He has conquered the toughest enemies we face—sin and death. We can face the days ahead knowing that our future is secure in Him, our living hope.

No matter what you face this week, you have been given a living hope through Christ’s resurrection.

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