Remembering September 11th

My dear Friends:
I am a great believer in the Word of God, and the comfort and peace it brings to our broken hearts. When our oldest son died I bought a new Bible and searched for every verse that helped to heal my shattered heart, and when September 11th, 2001, happened, I did the same thing. Below are the gems from His Word that gave me peace of mind and heart (The Book of Isaiah became especially precious):

GOD IS OUR FRIEND:

Isaiah 61:1-3: He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release for the prisoners...to comfort all who mourn...to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
Isaiah 53:4: Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows.
Isaiah 40:11: He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart...
Hebrews 13:5c: Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.
Philippians 4:19: And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 46:1: God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble.
Psalm 34:18: The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Psalm 94:17: Unless the Lord had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.
Isaiah 65:24: Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.
2 Samuel 22:29: You are my lamp, O Lord; the Lord turns my darkness into light.
Psalm 107:29: He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.

GOD'S LOVE:

Job 36:26: How great is our God--beyond our understanding!
John 3:16: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish...
1 John 3:16: This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.
Jeremiah 31:3,4: I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. I will build you up again and you will be rebuilt.

AFFLICTION:

John 19:25: Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother...
Isaiah 48:10: See, I have refined you, though not with silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
John 14:1: Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.
2 Corinthians 4:8,9: We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
John 16:33: In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Isaiah 40:2 TLB: Speak tenderly...and tell her that her sad days are gone.

DAILY BATTLE:

Psalm 27:14: Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Luke 13:33: In any case, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day...
Deuteronomy 33:25,27: ...Your strength will equal your days...
2 Corinthians 4:16: Therefore we do not lose heart...inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
Jeremiah 17:17: You are my refuge in the day of disaster.
Psalm 68:19: Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

GOD'S JUSTICE:

Genesis 18:25c: Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?
Revelation 19:2: For true and just are his judgments.

PRAYER:

Psalm 102:17: He will respond to the prayer of the destitute; he will not despise their plea.
Matthew 14:30: ...Beginning to sink, [he] cried out, `Lord, save me!'

FAITH:

John 13:7: You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.
Luke 22:32: But I have prayed for you, [], that your faith may not fail.
1 Peter 1:7: These [trials] have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold...--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Romans 10:17: Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message [of comfort and hope] is heard through the word of Christ.
James 1:6: But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt...
Matthew 9:28: ...The blind men came to him, and he asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
Jeremiah 33:3: (God's telephone #) Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
Job 13:15: Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him...
Psalm 27:13: I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD:

Genesis 18:14: Is anything too hard for the Lord?
Jeremiah 32:17: Nothing is too hard for You.
Isaiah 59:1: Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.
Luke 18:27: Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God."

PEACE:

1 Corinthians 14:33: God is not a God of disorder but of peace.
John 14:27: Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Ephesians 2:14: For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.
Philippians 4:7: And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 29:11: The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.
Isaiah 26:3: You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

GOD PROMISES STRENGTH AND POWER:

2 Timothy 4:17: But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength...
2 Timothy 1:7: For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
Isaiah 40:29: He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.
Isaiah 41:10: So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Philippians 4:13: I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
2 Samuel 22:33,40: It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect...You armed me with strength for battle...
2 Corinthians 12:9: But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Isaiah 30:15: In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.

HOPE:

Hebrews 6:19: We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf.
Romans 15:4: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Psalm 39:7: But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you.
2 Chron. 20:12: We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.
Romans 15:13: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

BLESSED PROMISES:

Psalm 23:2,3: He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul.
Isaiah 42:3: A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
Romans 4:18,21: Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed...being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.
2 Peter 1:4: ...He has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature...
Deuteronomy 33:27: Underneath are the everlasting arms.
John 6:37: Whoever comes to me I will never drive away.
Isaiah 65:19b: ...The sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in [the new heavens and new earth] no more.
Isaiah 60:20: ...Your days of sorrow will end.
Ezekiel 34:12: As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.
Revelation 7:17: For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Isaiah 65:16,17: For the past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my eyes. The former things will not be remembered...
Deuteronomy 23:5: However, the Lord your God...turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

COMPASSION:

John 11:35: Jesus wept.
Isaiah 54:7- 8: For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back...with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you...
Matthew 14:14: ...He had compassion on them and healed their sick.
Psalm 56:8: List my tears on your scroll (put my tears in your wineskin)--are they not in your record?
1 Peter 5:7: Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Psalm 147:3: He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
Deuteronomy 1:7: Bring me any case too hard for you, and I will hear it.
John 14:18: I will not leave you as orphans (comfortless); I will come to you.
Lamentations 3:22,23: His compassions never fail. They are new every morning...
Psalm 86:15: But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
Isaiah 49:16: See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.
Jeremiah 31:25: I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.
1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
Matthew 5:4: Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Psalm 4:8: (Psalm 3:5, also) I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
Isaiah 43:2: When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.

OUR NEED:

Psalm 109:22: For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
Psalm 102:4: My heart is blighted and withered like grass; I forget to eat my food.
Job 30:17: Night pierces my bones...
Psalm 60:3 KJV: Thou hast made us to drink the wine of astonishment.
Isaiah 22:5 KJV: For it is a day of trouble... ...and perplexity...of crying to the mountains.
Psalm 57:6: I was bowed down in distress...

OUR NAME:

John 20:16: Jesus said to her, "Mary."
Isaiah 45:4;43:1: I call you by name and bestow on you a title of honor...Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.
Exodus 33:17: And the Lord said to Moses, "I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.

FORGETTING:

Isaiah 5:4: What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it?
Isaiah 43:18: Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!
Job 11:16: You will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by.
Philippians 3:13: But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.
Luke 9:52: Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."
Genesis 19:17: Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere on the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!
Revelation 21:4,5: He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"

THE WILLS OF GOD ARE HIS PROMISES:

Ex.33:19: And the Lord said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you..."
Joshua 1:5: As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you or forsake you.
Ps. 27:10: Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.
Ps. 29:11: The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace. (KJV)
Ps. 32:8: I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.
Ps. 50:15: ...Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.
Ps. 91:15: He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.
Ps. 138:8: The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me...
Is. 30:19: How gracious he will be when you cry for help. As soon as he hears, he will answer you.
Is. 40:28c: He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
Is. 40:31: Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they shall walk and not be faint.
Is. 41:17-19: But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will make rivers flow in the barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together...
Is. 42:6: I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand.
Is. 42:16: I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
Is. 49:13: Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; burst into song, O mountains! For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.
Is. 57:18,19: "I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will guide him and restore comfort to him, creating praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel. Peace, peace, to those far and near," says the Lord. "And I will heal them."
Jer. 30:17: "But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds," declares the Lord...
Zech. 2:10: "Shout and be glad...for I am coming, and I will live among you," declares the Lord.
Matthew 11:28,29: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls...
1 Thess. 5:24: The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.
Rev. 2:10: Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer...Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Rev. 3:20: Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

THANKSGIVING:

1 Thessalonians 5:18: Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 50:14: Sacrifice thank offerings to God...
Ephesians 5:20: Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Patricia Erwin Nordman