I'm A Freak......

or so my sister and two cousins decided sometime in the recent past. Why? Because my 19th century wardrobe may soon become larger than my 21st century wardrobe. That's right, more dress making. But this time I'm moving up in the world, and a few decades, for that matter.
This July, I will be spending three days at Genesee Country Museum's Civil War re-enactment. But not just as a visitor......nope, I'll be in the action, a real re-enactor. Thus, my next project: a Civil War dress.

This is the pattern, but the finished dress is going to look a little different. We're changing a few things here and there to accomadate my preferences.

I realized when I got to the store that buttons were one thing I had never researched. What I mean is, I could tell you what pattern, fabric, or trim was period correct, but not which buttons. So, we just went with what seemed to fit.
I may be a freak, but I'm happy being one. I've always loved the dresses of the Civil War, and the war itself. So being able to reenact it is a dream come true!

A Staggering Promise

I was reading in Romans 4 earlier this week, and these verses caught my attention:

"Who against hope believed in hope, that he [Abraham] might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he [the Lord] had promised, he was able also to perform." Romans 4: 18-21

This is talking about when God promised Abraham to become the father of many nations by having a son. If you read the account in Genesis 17, you'll see that Abraham does have some momentary doubts; in fact, he laughs and says in his heart, "Shall [a child] be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?"
But, even though he did doubt for a bit, he quickly moved on and believed and obeyed God. It says in Romans that he didn't even think about the fact that he was a hundred years old, or that Sarah's womb was barren. If God promised it, it must be true.
It says, "he staggered not". Stagger is a strong word. It brings to mind either an injured man who is limping along and can barely shuffle to a place of rest, or someone who is hit head on with a strong force and stumbles backwards. Either way, that's what doubts do. They make us stagger and waver in our faith. It's basically impossible to walk quickly and confidently when you are staggering.
Abraham also believed in hope against hope. Even when everything and everyone around him would have told him it was fruitless to believe that he would have a son, he stilled hoped in God. My favorite is the very last verse. Abraham was fully persuaded that whatever God had promised, God could do. 
What is my point in all of this? Don't be staggered. So often when we are given a promise of God's, even something so elementary and basic as "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.", we don't believe Him. We say, "You can't be serious, God. There is no way you could really mean this." Or something like Abraham's promise, something that seems impossible, we say "Oh, it's never going to happen." But all we are doing is telling God that He's not powerful enough.
So, don't be staggered. As soon as we allow doubts about God's promises to take up residence in our hearts and minds, we begin to stumble. The longer they stay there, the worse we get, and the harder it is to recover.
I know, I've been there. Last June, there was something in my life which I hoped would happen in the future; I didn't really have a promise about it, and I didn't really believe it would ever happen. Yet, looking back now, it is incredible to see how quickly God started working, and how He is still working now. But even though I could see what He has done, I just recently allowed some doubts to creep back in, and I was pretty miserable. I had to focus on what I know to be true about God before I could see the truth about my circumstance.
So, all that to say, next time you begin to doubt God's words, remember Abraham and Sarah. Don't be staggered. Be fully persuaded that if God has promised it, He will do it!