This word is submitted by Teresa Seputis [ts@godspeak.net]

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                     Things Are Not What They Seem


Child of Mine, things are not always what they seem. I am eternal and
I have the full perspective of what is going on; but you are limited. 
You don't see everything that I see, and you do not know everything 
that I know. And dear one, the partial information that you do possess 
can lead you to misevaluate and to make wrong conclusions. 

Things can look alarming and out of control from your perspective. But 
I am never caught off guard and there is nothing that I cannot handle. 

At times, when you look at your future, it may seem bleak and full of 
despair. In those times, you need to remind yourself that I am the God 
of all hope; I do not disappoint those who put their trust in Me.

There will be times when you may feel alone and abandoned, but I will 
never leave you--indeed I have placed My Spirit within you, and He will 
reside in you for all of the days of your life. I will not abandon you; 
indeed I cannot, for I have taken up residence with you. No matter where 
you go, I am there with you.

There are times when it seems like I am allowing a lot of attack and 
hardship to come upon you. It may feel as though I've lifted My hand of 
protection off of you--but I have not. You see only those attacks or 
difficulties that I allow to come your way. But you don't see the many 
other ones that I have shielded you from. Yes, I am actively at work on
your behalf, and I am protecting you from greater harm. So in those
times of hardship, remind yourself that I will never allow more to come 
upon you than you can handle, and that I am with you in all things.

Little one, even in your bleakest hour, things are not what they seem.
There is nothing that the enemy can throw at you that I am not prepared
for. He cannot surprise Me, nor can he overwhelm Me, nor can he persuade 
Me to stop loving you. The devil cannot change the fact that
My plans for you are good, and that I have a hope and a future for you.
He will do his best to convince you that is not true...but he cannot 
convince Me, nor can he deceive Me. 

He may tell you that you have fallen short and disqualified yourself 
from My covering, but that is not true either. I already know every 
single thing that you are going to do, every wrong choice and every 
mistake that you are going to make--and I will not stop loving you 
because of them. I will not push you away, I will not abandon you, I 
will not condemn you and I will not stop taking care of you.

In those times when it seems like I have forsaken you, I have not nor
will I ever do so. Indeed, when if "feels" like I have turned My back 
on you, remind yourself that things are not what they seem.