promise keeper

Photographed by Garrett Randolph

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.”

-Romans 8:28

Lately I have found myself in situations that reveal my need to be anchored in the promises of God. When I feel hopeless. When the end results of something longed for seem bleak and devastating. When I am overwhelmed with sadness, heaviness, or anxiety. I know in my heart and mind that I must dig into the Word, remain focused on Jesus, and allow the voice of His Promises be greater than the messes of life. However, the Lord pointed out to me a simple, yet huge detail that I have somehow forgotten.

When the Lord promises something it is HE who sees it through. His promises are not directions for us to execute in our own strength. His promises are wells of faithfulness that He has committed to filling by His Spirit and through Himself. All we do is drink from the fulfillment of His Promises. We get to rest and receive from who He is as a good Father. This morning He showed me that lately my interpretation of the scripture that says He would ‘work all things together for those who love Him’, has somehow become in my mind: ‘He has good plans and I am tasked to put it all together’. Even though I never consciously thought, “His promise is my responsibility to fulfill”, somehow inside I have taken on the responsibility of being the Promise Keeper, that can only truly be Him.

When someone promises something to you, whose responsibilty is it to follow through? The promise giver or the promise reciever? Of course it’s the promise giver! Why is this so important? Because when we try to take on the role of “Promise Keeper” we not only are taking on a task that we cannot complete, but we are trying to operate from the role of Father, instead of child. By trying to taking on God’s responsibilities in our own strength, even with good intentions, we miss out on the revelation of who He is,

because the promise reveals the character of the promise keeper.

What a relief and a joy, to embrace the reality that our Father does not just give us promises to believe on, He fulfills them all entirely through Himself—revealing who He is to us! In fact, the Word tells us that the “yes” to every one of God’s promises is found within Himself (1 Corinthians 1:20)! When we come in agreement with what God said and ALSO allow Him to be the fulfillment of His Word, it brings HIM the glory (1 Corinthians 1:20)! In this truth, we get to live in the design of who He is as a loving Father and who we are as beloved children. We are brought into His rest as the Promise keeper.

It is hard to wait and resist the urge to take control when we are feeling frightened or worried. I pray that the Lord occupies our waiting with watchfulness for His Love and enjoyment in His character along the way. I want to drink from His well of Living Water and not spend my days trying to make my own earthly water be like His. Jesus is both THE promise and the FULFILLMENT of every one of God’s promises.

“God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change His mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through?”

-Numbers 23:19 NLT