Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us…Ephesians 3:20 NIV

Has it ever happened to you that God uses a particular verse to give you immediate relief? Even though those particular words from God might not SEEM to connect to the actual worrisome situation, you receive supernatural power through them. And God lifts off that worry.

The first time I experienced this particular aspect of God’s kindness was when we were shelling out money for two mortgages.  We had bought a new house a few years prior and had rented out the former dwelling to a reliable tenant.  When they chose to move out we listed it with our agent because we did not enjoy managing a rental property.

As time passed without a solid nibble on the empty house, I began to panic, worrying day in and day out. A month passed and we paid two mortgages. The old house remained empty.

When the second round of double mortgage payments approached, my anxious imagination went into overdrive.

By God’s good grace, during these fear-filled months I was part of Bible Study Fellowship where we were learning to take God at his word.  What does that mean?  That we were being encouraged to actually believe what God says in the Bible, to ‘take him at his word.’

That year we were studying the book of Genesis.  God’s timing couldn’t have been better, for when I felt most pressure in God’s refining crucible of waiting on him to sell the house, he gave me Genesis 15:1

After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” ESV

I must have repeated that promise God made to Abram 10 to 12 times a day.  Each time I remembered the words, God would give me immediate relief in the form of peace. Not only was I able to stop imagining fear scenarios of running out of money, before another month had passed, the house was under contract. Soon it sold.

Whew!  Lesson learned. God’s word IS powerful and is mightier than worldly understanding and how things look on the surface.

That gift has been repeated over the years.  Two nights ago, the Lord gave me a new Word Weapon, the verse in Ephesians at the top of this blog. 

As I wrote last week, my sleep quality goes up and down. Sometimes leg cramps wake me up, but more often than not, I’m working out the details of a future scenario when I should be sleeping.  I KNOW I have got to stop this ‘future-casting’. I even reminded myself of that when I went to bed.  But…..yes, I started to think about packing for an upcoming trip, wondering just when I’d be able to find time in the day or two before departure.

“Oh, no! I thought.  Here I go again.”  I don’t think I even prayed for help.  But suddenly there it was, that snippet of peace-giving truth from God written by Paul.  Here’s how my mind used it.

“Oh! I don’t need to be thinking this through right now.  These hours are for restoration and body repair.  Besides, God has a way for me to get ready that is beyond what I would even know how to put into words or picture!”

And with that assurance I immediately nodded off and slept without further ridiculous rumination.

Then to put a bow on that package, the Lord gave me a Bonus reminder the next morning as I was journaling my thanks to him for the sleep and the power of that verse. It was this: ‘Oh, today might be the day when Jesus returns!’ (i.e., the Second Coming). His appearance would certainly supersede the need to pack.  Now, two weeks before the actual trip, is NOT for making a plan.  I can leave the matter in God’s hands until two days before the trip.

What a relief.  I don’t want to keep forgetting this lesson and suffer the burden of worrying about all those future, “What am I going to do about THIS”-scenarios.