Broken Promises, Broken Hearts

Yesterday was a great day. The sun shone. The air was crisp and clean (well, as clean as we can get so near Houston) and Bible study was rich. So rich it's caused me to do some deep soul searching. I’ve recognized some things that I’ve ignored for awhile. Things about my character that I’d like to change and can only do so with the help of God.

I thought I’d said all I needed to say about promises, but God seems to have other plans. Someone in Bible study spoke about our dependence on promises, not just from God, but from other people. We rely on the promise from the car manufacturer that our car will work, the house builder that our house won’t fall apart around us, our employer when they say we have a job, our friends when they say they won't repeat something we've told them in confidence, our doctors when they say this medicine should help, our children when they tell us they’ll obey, and our spouses for an untold number of promises.
How many times have we endured the heartache of a broken promise?
Been the breaker of a promise?

We can easily bounce back from some breaches in trust, others leave an indelible scar on our hearts. I’ve thought a lot about broken promises these past few months as I watched friends endure the heartache of broken promises and wondered…will they recover, have I?

I’ve heard many times that during our times of greatest need is when we realize the promise we have in Christ. I want to realize that promise before I truly need it. Bask in the comfort of knowing He’ll never break His promise. I want that assurance in my heart before the pain. I also want to know that His assurance is greater than the past pains also.
His promises give me all that I want. He gives me more than I can imagine when I trust and rely on only Him for my joy.
If only trust came easily?
It’s something I have to work on daily. Make a conscious effort to do.

My hope this year is that trusting God will be instinctual, not something I have to think about or make an effort to accomplish. I pray it’s something that comes first, before even conscious thought.
Sort of like...breathing.
Impossible?
Nothing is.

Suggestion for today: Forgive yourself.