My Life Verses

Some blossoms outside my bedroom window :)

Today I'd like to share with you my 'life verses' and why they're my life verses.

You know what life verses are, right? They're Bible verses that you've sort of 'claimed' over your life and that you keep going back to. They are verses that are very special and dear to you for whatever reason they are very special and dear to you. Lots of people have a life verse. I, my friends, have three of them.
(There are so many wonderful verses!! I love them all!)

The first 'life verse' is the one I'd pick if I had to pick just one favourite verse. It's my all-time favourite, I guess you could say.

Psalm 16:11.
You will show me the path that leads to life, in your presence is fullness of joy.

I've always thought that it's difficult to be completely filled with joy until we get to Heaven. I know that in Heaven is complete and whole joy (there will be no tears or sadness there etc) but can we ever have complete joy on earth? We can be happy and can rejoice in the Lord and be joyful, but I don't think we can actually be completely happy and completely joy-filled until we come into the Lord's presence. Do you see the difference between joy-filled and joyful?

So yeah, basically I love it so much because my middle name is Joy. It seems to me that the verse is saying (to me personally, anyway) that in His presence is Fullness of Joy. Where I am made complete. Because my name is Joy. So on earth I can never be complete because we can't have fullness of joy, but in Heaven we can. :)
My second life verse is one I absolutely love.

Psalm 139:5
You hem me in behind and before, you have laid your hand upon me.

You have laid your hand upon me.

Wow! Every time I read that I get funny shivers of delight down my spine! That God, the Lord of the universe, the King of all Kings, has laid his hand upon me. He hems me in, behind and before. That's not scary. That's not creepy. That's safety. That's security.

That's why we can trust, and rest, in our never-changing God. Because his hand is lovingly upon us, and he hems us in, behind and before.

I don't know about you, but that makes me feel humbled. Awestruck.
That our great God would put his hand on little me.... Wow!

Here's my third verse.

Isaiah 43:1-3

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 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. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior....

Well actually the excerpt (and the one I class as my life verse) is Isaiah 43:1b-3a but that's a bit too complicated!

I love this passage. It reminds me that no matter what I'm going through, God is always going to be there. He has summoned me by name, I am his. No matter how many times I read that I still get a thrill. He is always with me no matter what happens. And that is incredibly comforting.

Of course, there are gazoodles (is that a word? it is now!) of fantabulous (this is also a new word) verses in the Bible. Verses such as Jeremiah 29:11 etc are wonderful and I love them too.

What are your favourite verses? Do you have one 'life verse'?