Wednesday, March 20: Jessica French

Psalm 130. Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD. Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications! O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem. It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.

Sometimes, life throws us some real curve balls. Some can be fairly easy to manage, and others can feel so difficult, it’s impossible to find a way out, or a resolution of any sort. And when life truly hands us a challenging situation that’s extremely unexpected, that can really be the rub. I usually always find myself asking the question, “How am I going to get through this?” For me, it’s been a learning process. Over time, the more challenges that have appeared in my life, the more I’ve learned to accept that life isn’t perfect, and we are “dealt the cards we are dealt” as they say. That doesn’t mean though, that this makes any of these experiences easier over time. However, no matter how many times I fall, no matter how many times something very difficult happens in my life, God is always there to catch me, to help me, and to be my support. And yet, so often, I forget this, and try to manage everything on my own, without asking for His help, and His guidance. But really, I think the biggest challenge of all, is to remember this whole-heartedly. “For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.” The word “steadfast,” really spoke to me in this passage. God is unfaltering, and unfailing. And even that is a challenge to take in, to see how God is present in our times of difficulty and distress. In so many instances, when I am in a difficult situation, and I am indeed calling to God, asking “why me?” or “why could this happen to me?” — and nothing seems to be going the way I think it should be...that a resolution isn’t happening as it I think it should, I must remember, as scripture tells us, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope.” And indeed, in many a trial and tribulation, when I’ve desperately wanted things to resolve and mend themselves the way I want them to, God shows me another way...perhaps at a different time than I wanted, and perhaps in a different place or situation. And then, this always reminds me of how grateful I am, and how I can indeed be so much more trusting in God’s steadfast love, and able to remember that He is the way. After all, Jesus is our greatest mentor in the truest trust of God’s unending love and help, as he prayed to Him in the garden, “Thy will be done,” during his greatest tribulation before being crucified for our sins. Life continues to have its ups and downs, its imperfections, its difficulties, and also its beauties, celebrations, and blessings. May we all remember that God is walking beside us, down these paths of uncertainty. He is there to comfort us, to help us, to redeem us, and ultimately, to always provide us with his steadfast love.  

— Jessica French