What God Has Promised
LORD, you hear the yearning of the afflicted; You will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more (Psalm 10:17–18).
Justice is promised, but it is almost always deferred. It’s a given that we will suffer for a while. But one promise is never deferred: God will strengthen your heart.
God hath not promised skies always blue
Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;
God hath not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.
God hath not promised we shall not know
Toil and temptation, trouble and woe;
He hath not told us we shall not bear
Many a burden, many a care.
God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,
Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;
Never a mountain rocky and steep,
Never a river turbid and deep.
But God hath promised strength for the day
Rest for the labor, light for the way;
Grace for the trials, help from above;
Unfailing sympathy, undying love.
—Annie Flint Johnson
David Roper
7.14.18
