God Wants You Restored!

The great prophet Jeremiah wept as he saw his city Jerusalem captured by King Nebuchadnezzar. Why would God allow His people to experience such defeat? Jeremiah knew it was because they had rebelled against the Lord and disobeyed His Word.

As we face personal trials and witness our nation’s tragic departure from God, it’s easy to become discouraged and lose hope. But Jeremiah saw hope during his difficult circumstances:

This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope.
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not
consumed, because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I hope in Him!”
(Lamentations 3:21-24)

We need to remember these encouraging words today. As the world around us is being shaken, we need to keep our eyes on the Lord, “because His compassions fail not.”

He Has Overcome

Jesus reminded us in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (NIV).

Let that verse sink into your spirit. Even as our jobs, retirement accounts, pensions, marriages, children, health, and savings are shaken at times, our faith must rest on that which cannot be shaken … the truth of God and His promises to us.

Jesus, our Savior, has overcome the world. When we seek His Kingdom first and build our lives upon Him as our solid Rock, we have nothing to fear when shockwaves cause things around us to crumble:

A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.
Because you have made the Lord,
who is my refuge, even the Most High,
your dwelling place
(Psalm 91:7-9).

God wants to be our dwelling place and refuge during life’s storms and shakings, but this means looking to Him as our hope – not to the world’s resources or news headlines.

When we put our hope and trust in Him, we can be certain He will see us through. We don’t need to fear, for our foundation can stand firm even when everything around us is seemingly in turmoil (Matthew 7:24-27)!

Hope Renewed!

You may be saying, “But, David, you don’t understand. I’ve lost so much. My finances have been hit hard … my health has suffered … and my relationships are frayed.”

My friend, God wants you to know He can restore everything the enemy has stolen from you.

In 1 Samuel 30, David and his men returned to their homes in Ziklag and found that the Amalekites had looted the town and taken their wives and children captive. This was such a horrible situation that the men “lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep” (v. 4). Perhaps this is how you’re feeling about your circumstances today, but David’s story doesn’t end here – and neither will yours!

Rather than being overcome by despair, “David inquired of the Lord” (v. 8) and sought God’s strategy for a counterattack. After he prayed and received God’s encouragement, David immediately went on the offensive against the enemy – the same thing we must do to overcome the schemes of the devil in our lives.

God restored everything David and his men had lost:

So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away … and nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all (vs. 18-19).

Just as He did for David, the Lord wants to help you recover all that the enemy has stolen! Instead of accepting defeat, it’s time to go on the offensive!

In fact, I believe God wants to give you even MORE than you had before any loss you’ve experienced. Proverbs 6:30-31 says when a thief is found, he must repay the victim sevenfold what was stolen! So if the devil has stolen something precious from your life, I encourage you to boldly declare God’s Word and expect a sevenfold return!

Famine to Abundance

Did you know your personal economy doesn’t have to be shaped by the world’s economy? In Scripture, God faithfully met the needs of His people even in times of famine or pestilence.

In Genesis 26, there was a severe famine, and most people were bound by fear. Yet we read that Isaac trusted God to bless Him with a great harvest even while others were panicking:

Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him. The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous (vs. 12-13).

What a great picture of the abundance God wants to give us today! A hundredfold return in a time of famine! Isaac “began to prosper … continued prospering … and became VERY prosperous”!

It’s time to cast aside our unbelief and trust God with our lives and our resources. Like Isaac, we need to sow generous financial seeds even in times of fear and famine.

God tells us to TEST Him! How? With our finances: “‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put me to the test now in this,’ says the Lord of armies” (Malachi 3:10 NASB).

If you obey Him “in this,” the Lord goes on to promise that He will “open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.” Do you want a life marked by overflowing abundance? I know I do!

God says, “I will rebuke the devourer for you” (v. 11 NASB). Then He promises to restore even greater blessings than you lost!

I am grateful for your faithful partnership to win souls through Inspiration Ministries, and we’re praying for God to give you a mighty breakthrough – from famine to abundance! We believe great things are ahead for you and for this ministry we share together.

Your friend and partner,

David Cerullo