I admire organized women who keep a first aid kit at home, ready for any emergency. Then there are women like me who have a hard time keeping Band-Aids in the house.
I once had to walk my bleeding self to the corner pharmacy for first aid supplies after a kitchen accident involving broken glass, cake, and syrup all over the floor. (You don’t want to know.) I ran into my neighbor and hoped she wouldn’t notice blood dripping from the napkin wrapped around my thumb. Band-Aids come in handy when you actually have some on hand.
Sometimes we need a spiritual emergency kit because life crises can go far beyond broken glass on a sticky kitchen floor.
Real life emergencies can challenge what we know about God.
We know God is good. He showed his love for us clearly at the cross. He sacrificed His son for our sins, so we could become His children. God watches over and cares for us. He can do more than we ask or imagine. He has the answer to every problem. He’s the God of second and third chances. He’s a resurrection God who brings life to our dead places.
But sometimes our circumstances seem to contradict what we believe. God knew we’d encounter obstacles like a house that won’t sell or a boss that won’t budge. He knew some of us would experience the heartbreak of a string of negative pregnancy tests or a divorce.
That’s why His Word is full of promises:
- “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:19
- “I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.” (Romans 8:38, NLT)
- “My God will meet all your needs…” Philippians 4:19
- “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us…” (1 John 1:19)
No matter what situation we’re in, we always have hope:
Recent life challenges made me realize I needed more hope and faith. I prayed and asked God to remind me of scriptures that spoke to my situation. I wrote out 10 promises in my journal. Now I start each day by reading and praying through my promises. I wrote a few of them on notecards, so I can get them out easily during the day.
A blogging friend of mine calls this an “emergency kit.” I like the idea of a stash of scriptures ready to have on hand during life’s emergencies. Each time I get out my emergency kit and read God’s promises, my faith grows.
God’s promises point us to hope. No need is too great for Him. No obstacle is too hard. We always have hope because we always have God. He will never leave us.
I want to share a good resource for your spiritual emergency kit if you or anyone you know is experiencing depression. My friend Michelle Bengston has written a book called Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey Through Depression. Michelle is a neuropsychologist with years of counselling experience, but she writes in a warm, conversational tone I found easy to read. Her personal stories will help you see you’re not alone if you’re going through depression.
Hope Prevails explores the spiritual roots of depression and helps us recognize the enemy’s tactics in our lives. It offers practical tools for learning how to find healing from depression and rediscover God’s peace and joy. Follow this link for more info about the book.
This book encourages us to combat the enemy’s lies with God’s empowering truth. Each chapter ends with a “doctor’s prescription” section which includes questions to ask yourself, practical steps to take, and a playlist of songs.
This book is meaningful to me because I have the privilege of knowing Michelle. She’s walked through some hard times, yet manages to remain a joyful, hopeful person. That’s because the message of her book is true: with God, hope always prevails!
Now it’s your turn. What else would you include in a spiritual emergency kit?
Linking up today with Holly Barrett’s #TestimonyTuesday, Kelly Balarie’s #RaRaLinkup, Jennifer Dukes Lee’s #TellHisStory, and Lyli Dunbar’s Thought-Provoking Thursday.
Betsy- I love this. Yes, I have a full-on first aid kit at home, but I’ve overlooked my spiritual first aid kit. I guess I figure I have the Bible, but I’ve gone through some tough seasons where I just looked blankly at my Bible not knowing where to even begin. Where do I find what I need when my mind is in crisis?
Going to check out Hope Prevails also!
Your #TestimonyTuesday friend,
Julie
Yes, I know what you mean about staring blankly at your Bible. It’s happened to me too, friend. I often just go back to Psalm 23 when I’m at that point!
Love this and I realize that I just hope and pray I have band aids on hand when I need them. I like this idea of having a spiritual emergency kit. Scriptures are a must have but as someone who loves to worship with music, a good playlist would come in handy too.
Oh yes, a good playlist is a great idea, Mary! Love that.
I love the idea of an emergency kit! And I will definitely keep Michelle’s book in mine. I’ve found it full of practical information on how to have hope. Great stuff!
I’m finding it really practical too. I don’t have a tendency toward depression, but this book is definitely helping me to keep a more positive, truth-centered outlook.
Love this whole emergency kit idea, Betsy. It’s so easy to deplete it unknowingly … and then find it empty when we need it most. May this be a daily refilling in our lives … til it overflows enough to share with others.
Amen to daily refilling, Linda. You’re right about depleting it without realizing it. Your words are waking me up today!
Betsy,
I, too, have an “emergency kit” of scripture that I turn to. My problem is that if things are going smoothly, I can get lazy in my scripture reading. Oh how the enemy rejoices when I think I am self-sufficient. I love your idea of reading and praying through 10 promises everyday. What a great way to transfer life giving scripture from cards to brain cells (I need all the help I can get here). I would love if you would share the 10 scriptures you are currently praying through (I love the 4 you have listed). Could you post them on your blog or email me and I will pray them along with you 🙂 bevduncan103@yahoo.com
With blessings and thanks,
Bev
Yes, Bev. I’ll send them. I almost made a printable, but I didn’t want to detract from the feature about Michelle’s book, which is such a good resource.
Hope and joy, I’ve often wished they were tangible items I could store and save. I love the idea of an emergency kit–verses we store in our hearts. Blessings today.
Right? I wish we could save up hope and joy too. The most tangible way I can think of are my verses and passages.
Smiling because with four boys, I have a first aid kit in each vehicle, bandaids in my purse, and the boys have grown up to keep bandaids in their wallets.
Now, Betsy, you are telling me that the verses I’ve memorized and the portions of Scripture I read each day work in the same way, and I LOVE that image.
And this is a beautiful review and reminder about Michelle’s book! I just finished reading it too!
Band-Aids in their wallets! Wow, I’m so impressed. What a great idea. I’m glad you also read Michelle’s book. I’ve missed your blog this week. Been so busy. Look forward to the refreshment I always find there.
I’d have a few of my rocks of remembrance in my kit….stones that represent stories about what God has done in my life. Tangible reminders of His love, grace, and mercy for when I face challenging situations! XO
Oh yes, Liz. What a wonderful idea, friend. Rocks of Remembrance. Those can get us through hard times. We see that continually in Psalms: the writers call to mind what God did in the past.
Love your idea of memorial stones in your emergency kit, Liz!
What a wonderful blog post. I plan to share it with those in my Facebook circle. May God’s words of hope, as written through you, touch hearts.
Thank you, Judy, for sharing this. I pray that if someone in your Facebook circle needs this, they’ll read it! Blessings.
Betsy, I loved meeting you at the retreat and praying for you. I have an emergency kit of index cards of verses. I grab a card stick it in my pocket and carry it with me at work. Some days the index card is for me and some days it is for a patient who needs hope a hope that prevails. I love Michelle and her message. I love the book. Band aids are definitely a must item in the emergency kit. Kinda like the Holy Spirit. Blessing Diana
Oh Diana, it makes my day to see that you stopped by and read this and are leaving me such wonderful words. I love that index card idea. My verses are in a little booklet, but the index card idea is practical and portable. I loved meeting you too! May the Lord use you on the job with patients needing care.
Betsy, I also have a stash of verses. I’ve never thought of them as an emergency kit, though … I love that image. And it definitely applies this week as the kids go back to school and I am referring to certain verses from my pack quite often! (I’m sorry about the kitchen accident too … we recently had one involving a blender jar full of fruit smoothie ingredients! No blood, but a huge mess nonetheless!)
Yes, Bev at Walking Well with God called it an emergency kit last week in a comment. I didn’t quote her because it wasn’t a blog post, but she originated the term. Yes, I need to get my pack back out today!
Betsy! What a joy it was to read this post! I loved the analogy of you walking into the pharmacy for a band-aid to real life emergencies and keeping a spiritual emergency kit! This painted a lovely and encouraging image in my mind. I keep a scripture journal for blogging/ministry, but reading this makes me want to start a separate journal for real-life emergencies. Because, you are right, when emergencies or tragedies strike, the emotion of the moment can take over our minds making it difficult to remember those scriptures. Blessings to you! And, a big thank you for this post – it really spoke to me!
Hi, Betsy. Such a great word picture to keep in mind. We feast on the God’s truth all the time, but when the emergencies of faith threaten to dehydrate us, we can have an easy access treatment plan. Excellent.
I challenged my Sunday School girls to memorize scriptures at the beginning of the summer and I started doing it with them… it had been a while, but I treasure my colored index cards and now know what to call them– my spiritual emergency kit ♥ Blessing on you Betsy!
Such an inspiring and thought provoking post Betsy! I have a list of 7 of my favorite life verses on my refrigerator door, verses of hope on the pantry door, and some more favorite verses in the front of my bible. Worship music is always gives me joy and I know I can always call my mother for some words of encouragement and prayer. I always feel hopeful after time in prayer with her! I must admit I keep my closet stocked with band-aids and Neosporin because I do’t ever want to be caught without. Thank you for the reminder to keep God close. He is the best of Healers in any emergency! I hope you have a wonderful weekend and blessings to you and yours!
Yes, God is our best Healer. The refrigerator door is a great place for verses! And more power to you for keeping those band-aids and Neosporin!
I love this idea of a faith emergency kit. What a great idea. Printing these 10 or so scripture on pretty cards would make a nice “faith first aid” gift.
Yes, you’re right, Cathy! In fact I just gave a gift like that to someone!
Love this post, Betsy! So practical, and, well, full of hope!
Thanks, Ellen!