Tagged: God’s promises

This popular devotion originally appeared on audreyfrank.org in February 2021. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 It came in strange gift wrap, not at all what I expected. But the gift was right there inside. I turned it over in my hands, joyously held it to my heart, and wondered at the mad methods of my Lover. It is exactly what I asked for, really. The wishing began slowly, like a tingling thrill that rises up quietly from the deep spaces of our souls, growing in intensity as it climbs, until it bursts out all over us, covering us in hope. I wanted a life change. I asked Him to rearrange me on the… Read More

Look as far as you can see in every direction—north and south, east and west. I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession. And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted! Go and walk through the land in every direction, for I am giving it to you.  Genesis 13:14-17 Visionaries are impossible thinkers. They see and imagine things outside the bounds of circumstances, resources, and time. Visionaries get a God-glimpse of what’s possible beyond limits. Visionaries have the gift of seeing. Blessing, generation-changing, history-making visions originate with God. Abram was the first visionary. His vision began with God’s invitation. Look. Look… Read More

In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious. Isaiah 11:10 Our secretary thought it was a joke. Head down, busy with work, she was annoyed with the interruption when a man entered the office demanding everyone’s attention and announced with a flourish the arrival of a gentleman just outside the door. When no one responded, he repeated his lavish introduction of the crown prince of a nearby country in the Middle East. Suddenly everyone was scrambling to show the honor due to their unexpected guest, a man who would one day be king. My husband spent the rest of the day (in a proper suit… Read More

For my little sister. Thank you. By faith Moses refused…choosing rather to suffer. Hebrews 11:24, 25 I am tucked away in a beautiful place as I write today. Gracious homes with wrap-around porches, along streets lined with palm trees, face the inlet where seagrass blows in the gentle spring breeze. The sun sets right in front of my sister’s beautiful house. The rhythms of family life thrum around me each day as children go to school and return, parents walk fussy babies along gravel paths by the water, and toddlers squeal at the sight of ducks bathing in the storm drain. My family and I are in the space in between. The place between refusing the comforts of our old life and embracing the joy… Read More

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”John 8:12 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.Matthew 27:45 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.  The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that… Read More

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.  Matthew 16:18 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”  Luke 22:61 Lent is an opportunity to discover who God says we are as opposed to who we think we are. The contrast can be crushing.  If we are honest, we all know the weight of disappointment in who we really seem to be compared to who God says we are meant to be. Maybe we don’t even know who He says we are in the first… Read More

@audreycfrank He sent from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, And from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.  They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay. He brought me forth also into a broad place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me.  Psalm 18:16-19, a thanksgiving psalm of David after God delivered him from all his enemies. I once watched someone drowning. I was a little girl, standing on the lake shore. A woman paddled out to the deep and began to bob up and down. I did not understand at first that she was sinking, until she began… Read More

@audreycfrank “Mommy, come see this! Look at this!”  In her excitement, my young daughter forgets I am driving as she pores over her doll magazine in the backseat, wishing to share everything with me.  “This doll has her own spaceship, Mommy!” she exclaims. “Look! Look!” I peek in the rearview mirror while trying to keep my car safely between the lines on the road. Her enthusiasm is contagious and I find it very difficult to say no to the sweet invitation to join in her delight as she discovers new things. She is a teacher, my beautiful, growing girl. She teaches me about God. In her delight, I behold His. I will protect those who know my name. When they call to me, I will answer… Read More