When the Words Fade, the Truth Remains

Even when God’s promises feel hard to see, they are still holding you.

We went to the thrift store looking for tea cups. Amidst the shelves of long-forgotten, mismatched dishes, I spotted this mug. Nothing fancy, just a simple mug with a bold statement:

“Good Morning, This Is God: I will be handling all your problems today.”

Only… it wasn’t bold anymore. In fact it was almost illegible. The letters were worn, almost slipping away. I think you have to squint to try and read the message at all. Even so, I wasn’t positive I had the saying right.

Kind of funny that someone chose to donate this mess of a mug, message illegible, perhaps unintelligible. Who donates a mug that no one would ever pay for or purchase?

Oh, yeah… that no one was a someone: me.

Maybe it was the way the words faded and the message obscured, but something about this mug spoke deeply to me.

A Message That’s Been Held Onto

I daydreamed of this mug’s life story. Had it been used countless mornings? Was it custom printed for someone in particular? What happened to the long since forgotten mug and its missing message?

But here’s the thing: what if the letters slipped not because they were forgotten but what if they faded because they had been held onto?

Held every morning in reminder, washed again and again to remember… to hold on to God’s promises.

And isn’t that how life is sometimes? We know God’s promises. We know that He is faithful, that He will carry our burdens, that He invites us to hand Him the weight we were never meant to bear. But after a while — after enough worry, disappointment, unanswered prayers, and unexpected detours — those truths can start to fade from view. They’re still there, but we don’t see them as clearly as we once did.

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” — Isaiah 40:8

Faded Doesn’t Mean Forgotten

Those faded, worn down, slipping off words reminded me: God’s promises don’t wear out, even if our faith does.

Sometimes we’re so used to carrying everything ourselves that we forget we don’t have to. Sometimes the world’s noise drowns out the still, small voice that says, “I’ve got this.” And sometimes, we need to lean in closer — to squint if we have to — to see again what has always been true:

God is handling it. Today. Tomorrow. Always.

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” — 1 Peter 5:7

The fading doesn’t mean the promise is gone — it just means it’s time to remember it again. To speak it aloud. To trace the letters with our hearts.

Rewriting the Truth on Our Hearts

And maybe, just maybe, that’s the invitation this worn little mug is offering me… maybe to you too:

Start the day not by gathering up all your worries, but by handing them over.
Whisper the words each morning, or evening, or every one of the hundreds of moments in between:

“Good morning, God. I know you’re with me. You’re handling my problems today.”

Write that promise on a sticky note. Speak it over your heart. Pray it in the quiet moments. Because the more we repeat God’s truth, the more clearly we see it again — not just on a mug, but written across our lives.

“I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” — Psalm 119:11

The Mug and the Message

That day in the thrift store I laughed at this mug… what lesson was in these faded words? Nearly a year and a half later I can finally see what’s been right in front of me, staring at my from my kitchen window, truth so powerful I almost missed it: maybe the mug wasn’t defective, maybe the letters weren’t a flaw but a testimony.

a testimony… a sign that this truth has been clung to, day after day, by someone who needed it. Maybe I’ve needed that message all along too!

Because even when my trust feels thin, even when the promises are hard to see, even when life tries to wear down what I believe: God remains unchanged. His love does not chip away. His faithfulness does not fade.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” — Hebrews 13:8

So I drink my coffee and smile at the mug in my hands.
The words may be fading — but the truth has never been clearer.

So… I have to ask us both:

What burdens have you been carrying as if they were yours alone to bear?
What would it look like to truly let God handle them today — not in theory, but in practice?

Maybe today is the day to lay them down, whispering, “Good morning, God. I trust You with this.”

Oh God… I confess that some days I’m too quick to pick up the worries you’ve promised to carry. I’ve struggled to bear the problems you’ve carried away. I’ve let fear blur my view of your faithfulness.

I know I’ll have to come back to this again and again and again, but today I’ll once again come to you, placing my worries, concerns, and troubles in your faithful hands. Remind my forgetful heart that you’re always handling what I cannot. And even when the words fade, let the truth remain bright in my heart: You are God, and You are enough.
Amen.

~Jillene