When You Pass Through the Waters

Transcript

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Welcome to Beyond Sunday, and thanks for joining me for day 13 of our anchored in God's Promises series. This month, we're starting each day with one unshakable truth from God's word, something to hold onto no matter what the day holds. Today's verse is a promise for the moments when life feels like it's too much, when the waves are high, when the fire is hot, when you wonder if you're going to make it through. It's Isaiah 43, 2, and it says this when you pass through the waters. I will be with you. And when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned. The flames will not set you ablaze. Notice the first word when God doesn't say, if you face deep waters or fire. He says, when life will bring overwhelming moments, following Jesus doesn't exempt us from trials. It prepares us to walk through them with a promise in hand. The Christian life isn't about avoiding hardship. It's about never facing it alone. The first image that he gives us is water, floods, and rivers that threaten to sweep us away. For Israel, this imagery was personal. They had crossed the Red Sea, they had crossed the Jordan River. Both were impossible moments until God made a way. When the verse says, I will be with you, it's not poetic fluff. It's a literal reminder. God steps into the deep with us. He doesn't shout instructions from the shore. He wades into the current and holds us steady. If you feel like you're barely keeping your head above water today, remember this, God is not watching you drown. He's holding you fast. Then Isaiah switches to the image of fire. Fire is consuming. It burns everything in its path, but here God promises that you will not be burned. The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and ab Bindigo in Daniel three comes to mind. They refused to bow down to the King's Idol. They were thrown into a furnace, and yet they didn't burn. Not even the smell of smoke was on them, and why? Because there was another in the fire with them. God doesn't promise to remove every flame, but he does promise to keep the flames from destroying you. A friend once told me about a season where his business collapsed, his marriage was struggling, and his health took a turn all in the same year. He said it felt like I was drowning and burning at the same time. But as he looked back later, he realized he had never felt God's presence more clearly than it was in that seasons. Friends showed up, unexpected provision came, peace that made no sense, filled his nights. Sometimes the miracle isn't that God pulls you out instantly. It's that he holds you together in the middle of it. So here's your challenge for today. Think about the water or fire that you're facing right now. Maybe it's stress or grief. Uncertainty. Maybe it's conflict. Name it. Then speak this promise over it. I will not be swept away. I will not be burned. God is with me. Say it until it sinks into your soul. Let's pray. Father, thank you that no matter how high the waters rise and how hot the fires burns, you are with us. You are a protector. Our keeper and our refuge strengthen our hearts today to trust you. Not just to deliver us from the trial, but to hold us steady through it. In Jesus' name, amen. Thanks again for joining me today on Beyond Sunday. If today's verse encouraged you, text that verse to someone who's facing their own waters or fire. They might just need the reminder that they're not alone. I'll see you back here tomorrow.