Isaiah 55:6-9 - Seek the LORD while he may be
found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way
and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to
the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he
will freely pardon. "For my thoughts are not
your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the
LORD. "As the heavens are higher
than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my
thoughts than your thoughts.
The chosen people of God had just come through a long hard
storm. The freedom from captivity they had just received gave their soul a
reason to shout and proclaim God’s goodness. God used Isaiah to remind them
that this was a great time to draw as near to him as possible….because their
limited human understanding of him would be heightened by the joy they felt in
their souls.
The sadness they had just experienced put most of them in
withdraw mode. It was harder to find God and his peace because depression
dulled their hearing….even clouded their vision of what God could do. The fear
of how long they might suffer…the constant reality of oppression had caused
them to focus too heavily on the problem.
God’s thoughts included a season of freedom and growth. But
their own thoughts of fear and depression limited their vision of what God had
in store for their future. God always has a better vision for our lives than we
do….because his thoughts are higher than our own. Jeremiah 29:11 says…. “For I
know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans to prosper you, not to harm
you. They are plans to give you hope and
a future.”
One of the best cures for the depression major storm in your
life causes…. is to begin to thank God in advance for the storm you are going
through. We need to put on our best headphones...those new kind that block out
all the noise from the world telling you that you are suffering too much. We
need to put on some new glasses….with a little stronger prescription than we
thought we needed….so that we can look a little further than the pain we are in…to
the shore on the others side that is clear and focused.
After we block out the world and increase our vision we need
to use them to focus on God. We need to
open that Bible and pray….so that God can begin to reveal the secrets that will
move us forward from the storm. We need to focus on his thoughts for us….and
the future of hope that is waiting at the end of the storm he is using to teach
us. Bible study and prayer are the fresh drops of rain that water our thirsty
soul….and begin to grow what God wanted there all along.
Father… thank you for the reminder that I am nearest you
when I seek you actively. Forgive me for the times that I skim and speed read
your word because I am tired….or just too lazy.
Forgive me for thinking that my few prayers at church…or quick requests before
I lay my head down at night are enough to feed my soul. Help me…not just say it
this time Lord. For you know how many times I have asked you to help me to
better my prayer life with you. Give me
a new passion to really learn to pray…to let you give me the words that will
increase my faith and ability to lift others up to you. Amen.
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