Abraham Archives - Sherry Stahl

Abraham

Who Doesn’t Love A Good Chick Flick?
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She became his wife,
and he loved her
~Genesis 24:67 NIV
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God’s timing for our lives is very interesting to me.

You see, this weekend; the weekend before Valentine’s Day, I had to prepare a promo video for a retreat I’m speaking at where I’ve been asked to share my talk on The BEST Cinderella Story.

To get into the Cinderella mindset I decided to watch Drew Barrymore’s movie, Ever After. I love how strong and stubborn Drew shows this fairy tale girl to be, she’s not some pushover princess. In this version, Cinder girl Danielle frees herself from an evil captor and still lands the prince! It’s a really great story that I’m sure you’d love because girls,

who doesn’t love a good chick flick?

When I watched the movie, a line struck me when Prince Henry was talking to Leonardo about the age-old question:

“Do you really think there is only one perfect mate?”

In the course of their discussion, Prince Henry asks,

“Is everything just chance or are some things meant to be?”

MY FAVORITE ROMANCE STORY IN THE BIBLE

I couldn’t help but think about my most favorite romantic love story in the Bible. Genesis 24 tells how intimately involved God was in the connecting of Isaac and Rebekah. This story is what great chick flicks are made of!

Isaac is a wealthy, strong, rugged man who worked the land and lived in the desert. Saddened by the death of his mother, Father Abraham sends his servant on a mission to find Isaac a wife. Not really common in our culture, but this servant loved his boss, so he had Isaac’s best interest at heart. When I reread the story, I could see how God was able to direct Abraham’s servant to the girl of Isaac’s dreams. The Bible says of their relationship that

“she became his wife, and he loved her.”

Girls, if you’re wanting that match-made-in-heaven marriage you’d be wise to follow the same process of the servant to help find Isaac a wife, to help you find your Mr. Right. (You can find my breakdown of his steps in the download below.)

If you’re in a marriage that is leaving you feeling anything but loved, I encourage you to take the first step the servant followed. Invite God into your decision-making process.

[tweetthis twitter_handles=”@sherry_stahl”]Ask God to help you discern if there are any steps you could take to help build a stronger, healthier, more loving, #chick-flick of a #marriage![/tweetthis]

But above all else girls, KNOW… our Daddy loves you and not just on Valentine’s Day!

Prayer

Father…I thank-you because You always have my best interest at heart. Trusting You and Your timing, I choose to place my heart in Your hands because I know it’s safe with You. You know my longing to be loved in marriage. Please fill the empty places of my soul with your love and help me surrender every desire of my heart to You, so You can fill me to OVERflowing. In Jesus Name…Amen

[tweetthis twitter_handles=”@sherry_stahl”]Want to learn How To Find Mr. Right For You? #love #valentinesday #FREE Download [/tweetthis]

If you liked the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion, you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women.
1. Genesis 24:67
2. A Quick Study of Genesis 24 with tips on How To Find Mr. Right For You can be downloaded from above.
WHERE YOU CAN OFTEN FIND ME LINKING UP MY BLOG WITH OR PLACES WHERE MY WRITING HAS BEEN FEATURED

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Make God Shine

“In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.”
Romans 4:20 NLT

Do you know that YOU can make God shine brighter to this world?

Months ago, I wrote to you about my friend Holly in a devotion called BE STILL. Many of you wrote to me and let me know you were praying for her. I’m so thankful for this growing community of believers within Soul H2O. Holly has been battling cancer again for months and her faith is one that is continually making God shine brighter as her life brings glory to Him!

When I read this verse I couldn’t help but see the connection between Abraham and Holly.

Paul teaches in his letter to the Romans how Abraham’s faith grew stronger when in the natural “there was no reason for hope.”¹ Abraham brought glory to God because of his faith, and old Abe didn’t have faith because he saw God do what He said He would do. On the contrary, Abe brought God glory because he kept believing in the promise God gave him, even when it had been a VERY long time since the promise was given. It says, “Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb.”²

The longer it took…the harder it took to believe…the stronger Abe’s faith grew.

The harder life gets for my friend Holly, the stronger her faith grows. In the last few months she’s gone through chemo, made it out of a house fire, lived through a tough surgery and keeps on believin’. She inspires me so much! A few weeks ago I wrote a devotion, WHEN YOU’RE REALLY DOWN that talks about how I write scripture cards to help bolster my faith. Holly wrote me and shared a few verses she’s standing on in faith. She sent the message as I was writing this devotion. She shared with me how she desires to bring God glory through all she’s going through.³ She’s accomplishing her goal.

Abe wasn’t applauded for how he took care of his family, became one of the richest men of his time, was a victorious battle warrior or even for becoming the father of many nations. It wasn’t because of what Abe did at all.

Abe and Holly are bringing God glory because they believe God and trust Him, even when things don’t look good. You too can make God shine brighter to the world when you keep on believing!

Prayer

Father…Today I put my faith in you. I choose to believe in your Word and promises for my life. I reject the lies of the enemy and the perspective of my circumstances. Let my faith make You shine brighter to people in my world! In Jesus Name…Amen

#Dare2Share
Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!

[tweetthis]You too can make God shine brighter to the world when you keep on believing![/tweetthis]

DRAWING FROM THE WELL
- Romans 4:18
- Romans 4:19
- Psalm 40:3
- Luke 8:50
YOU CAN OFTEN FIND ME LINKING UP WITH:
MONDAY Monday Meditations – Laura J. Davis,
TUESDAY Cheerleaders of Faith #RARaLinkup – Kelly Balarie,
WEDNESDAY Coffee For Your Heart – Holley Gerth, Word Nerd Wednesdays — Liz Giertz
THURSDAY Heart Encouragement Thursday – Crystal Storms, Chasing Community – Brenda Bradford Ottinger
FRIDAY Dance With Jesus Linkup – Susan B. Mead, Grace and Truth Linkup – Arabah Joy, Counting My Blessings – Deb Wolf, Fresh Market Friday – Crystal Twaddell

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Against All Hope

“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Romans 4:18 NIV

Have you ever gotten frustrated watching a love story? The movie starts out with a couple falling hopelessly in love. They’re perfect for each other…and then everything starts to fall apart. It looks like they’re never going to end up together and you start to get upset, maybe even worried…but then you remember, it’s a movie and you know it will all work out. I know the normal plot process for any story, yet I can be caught up in the drama. It always starts with Character Introduction, then moves into a Crisis Situation where the suspense builds and builds until the Climax where you think it’s never going to work out. There’s just too many issues and it seems there’s not hope, but alas it’s a movie and against all hope the Conclusion ends with everything working out.

I think we get this familiar plot process from the Bible. The life of Abraham and Sarah sure follow the format. We’re told that the fatherless Abe was to become the father of many nations, but his wife couldn’t have kids. They kept trying to make God’s promise happen and every choice seemed to make the dream more impossible. God waited till Sarah was passed menopause; when it was no longer possible in the physical realm to fulfill the promise He made to Abraham to have a child. Scripture records that against all hope Abraham believed in the promise. And that’s when the promise was fulfilled.

So, if everything is going wrong, your resources are almost depleted and hope doesn’t make sense at all; know your miracle is just around the corner.

[tweetthis]God is faithful to His promises. Choose to believe in Him, against all hope! #hope[/tweetthis]

Prayer

Father…Thank-You for Your promises. Help me to not lose hope when the drama of my life is screaming that You won’t pull through. Please give me the gift of faith to believe in what you say, to believe in You and Your Word, against all hope! In Jesus Name…Amen

#Dare2Share
Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!

Have you ever had “against all hope” faith?

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Change

“I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sara your wife will have a son.”
Genesis 18:10 NIV

Todd and I went to Florida for a relaxing vacation.   We stayed in the same resort we had stayed in with two of our kids about a year ago. The amount of new construction was shocking! The property next to our resort that had for a long time been “greenspace”, was now a small city of about 15 half-way completed high rise time-share villas. The Disney Boardwalk was in the midst of a major overhaul with crews working on new buildings, bridges, an overhead tram-system and a massive parking garage! Only Disney can make that kind of structural CHANGE in about a year. It’s amazing to see how quickly your life can CHANGE in about a year!
Sometimes, you feel that life is never going to CHANGE. Your situation is permanent and without possibility of transformation. That just isn’t so! God is in the CHANGE business. He loves to take a difficult situation and turn it around.   As my pastor says, “God often takes a long time to act suddenly!” Sara laughed when God sent angels to her and Abraham proclaiming they would have a child in about a year. She couldn’t accept that at 89 God could fulfill His promise made so long ago that she would have a child. Post-menopausal women just don’t get pregnant or have babies! True to His Promises, Scripture confirms in Genesis 21:2 that Sara did have a baby “at the very time God had promised him” They even named the boy Isaac which means, “he laughs” because sometimes God finds humor in showing us what He can do!
So what situation or person have you given up on? Don’t be like Sara and laugh at God’s promises. Trust God with your life and believe that He can bring about CHANGE!
Prayer
Father, I’m thankful that you never CHANGE, but that you never stop changing me!   You never CHANGE your mind on the promises you’ve given and fulfill them in your perfect timing. Help me to not doubt and work with you to see real CHANGE in my life this coming year. In Jesus name…Amen.

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