About ten years ago, I was traveling a lot for work. I was living out of hotels and eating too much fast food. My wife and I had many discussions about my role of being a spiritual leader in our home and how this possibly could happen with me being gone so much of the time. During this phase, I was also struggling with my own personal devotional time. (By this, I mean it was non-existent.) One night in a hotel room in Philadelphia, I decided I needed to get my act together. Then I realized how I could do both more effectively. I did my personal devotions for the 1st time in a long while. Then I sent out a group text to my wife and kids, sharing thoughts I had from my devotional time and a verse or two from this time with Jesus. The trend was started. Now, ten or so years later, most every morning I text my devotional thoughts of the day to them. These texts maintain my personal accountability to my Savior. (I mean who wants to tell your family you will spiritually lead them through daily devotional thoughts and then rarely show up to back up the talk??) At the same time, this accountability partnership I have created is helping me ensure every single day my wife and children are reminded there IS an Almighty God, He DOES love them, He DOES care about them, He IS dad’s best friend, and yes, Almighty God daily wants to be their best friend as well.
After years of devotional thoughts, I began sharing them with more family members and randomly with the entire Pettet Family. After one of these family shares, my brother-in-law told me I should write a book of these devotional times with Jesus and inspirations they have created in my heart and soul. I am actually not much of a writer. (You will believe me the more often you come back to this site to read my thoughts.) I somewhat laughed it off, but he replied he was serious. “I’d be the first to buy your book.” Book writing is beyond me. However, my insights come straight from my understanding of Almighty God and how He is continually changing me from the failure Satan would like me to believe I am into a child of the One True King, which I truly am. My wife (notice how she and Jesus are repeatedly the heroes of my story) said, “You should start a blog.” Now this is a process I can get behind. This is how Isaiah43Ministry was born, but how was it named you ask??
A couple of years ago my baby brother (while in his early forties just like Tim McGraw’s song says) was told based on the X-rays, the stress driven pinched nerve in his neck, causing numbness in his right arm, was actually a huge cancer mass on his spine. More rounds of testing followed and the story grew into the one you pray to never hear. The diagnosis was stage-4 Renal Cancer and it was (as stage-4 would indicate) circulating around his body pretty heavily by then. Shock and prayer were the themes for our entire family. In spite of an unwavering faith in a sovereign God, I could not keep from thinking in the quietness of the moment the feeling of unfairness and grappling with a God who is supposed to reward the spiritually strong, God fearing men. (Of course in hind sight, this is not actually a Biblically accurate position on God’s action requirements or grace). Then I was reading in my devotions….
“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.” – Isaiah 43:2
Almighty God hadn’t gone anywhere. I was allowing Satan to sow seeds of doubt in my mind. Thoughts like, “Why God?” kept creeping up on me. My outside faith was strong, but inside my head I was a mess. Then, Isaiah 43:2 happened. I realized I was letting the water sweep over me. I was allowing the fire to consume me. Almighty God had gone nowhere, but I was drifting away. I realized in a time where faith needed to be strong, I was walking away from Him. I immediately sought His forgiveness and promised to live out Isaiah 43:2. The first step in living the verse out is sharing it. That day I sent the verse to my brother with my own personal words of encouragement. The next day he called me and opened the conversation with, “You aren’t going to believe this, Jeff.” His wife had read the same verse the day I sent my text to him. He went on to say that night during his nightly devotional time with his small children, the verse for the night was,….. yes you guessed it, Isaiah43:2. He said, “Now you know me Jeff, I am not always the sharpest, but even I could see what Almighty God was telling me.” God was telling me, “I got you my son. Just trust me to carry you through. Waters will not wash over you and fires will not consume you, for your Father is watching over you.” Imagine me reading a verse and being moved enough to share these words with my brother the same day his wife reads the same verse. The same day in which a children’s devotional book written months if not years before would also have him hearing Almighty God through Isaiah 43:2. If you don’t have God bumps by now check your pulse.
Update on my brother,…. walking miracle. I spent weeks driving to his home, leaving work early, skipping out on work altogether to be with him. The experience was torturous. Everyday I literally saw him stepping closer to death. I would cry like a child the entire ride home after I left him. Then I was reminded of Isaiah 43:2 and I was not going to waiver in my faith. Then came immunology treatments and the corner started to turn. I won’t go on with his story details because this is something I could actually write a book about. Cliff notes…. Through this entire process, I am watching my baby brother live out what it means to unwaveringly stand firm in his faith. His focus is definitely on getting better. Even more so, his focus is on ensuring the world around him, especially his wife and children know Isaiah 43:2 is alive and well within him no matter what the outcome. Over two years later, doctors have stopped trying to explain how he can still be doing so well. However we can. Isaiah 43:2 promises us Almighty God will not let the waters sweep over us, the fires burn us, or the flames set us ablaze.
Now you know me and my story a little better. I hope this helps you understand my journey and my pursuit to be the spiritual leader my family desires and deserves. I am motivated by those Almighty God has entrusted me with. I am inspired by a brother, who much like Job in the old testament, refuses to curse God in spite of what life throws at him. I am an earthly father sharing his devotional thoughts, given to him from a Heavenly Father, all of which I pray can inspire you as you ride out your personal journey.
