Tag: daily devotional

“Wash yourselves! Become clean!
Get your evil deeds out of my sight.
Stop doing evil.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Arrest oppressors.
Defend orphans.
Plead the case of widows.”
Isaiah 1:16-17

It’s not unusual for Believers to genuinely desire to do things that will please God and help to build His Kingdom during our time on earth. Everywhere we look (if we’re really looking) there are opportunities to get involved in “ministry.” God-followers usually sincerely desire to know what they can “do” as they walk through life in relationship with Him.

Long, long ago, God spoke these words to His prophet Isaiah. The people who had come to
faith through Isaiah’s messages needed some guidance of the practical applications of their faith. Isaiah was the key “voice” for that.

Partnering with God begins with focus and work on their own lives . . . our hearts and actions. God gave these words to Isaiah to pass along to the people who were choosing to follow God. The message applies to all people who have chosen to follow God throughout the ages. Including, you and me.

● First, there’s a mess to clean up in our own lives. “Wash yourselves” is very practical.
There are obvious things we each can identify that we know we can clean up by our own
choices. If we keep going to the mud puddle and splashing in it, we’re going to keep
getting muddy! “Step away from the mud puddle.”
● Once you’ve left the Puddle, and had your bath, you probably need to clean up your
room. The traces of the dirt you’ve dragged into your room will need to be cleaned up as
well, so that it will be most useable for its true purpose.
● Then God lays out some practical priorities from His own heart . . . tasks and service that
He entrusts us to do:
●Seek justice. Actively identify injustice, and step into the wrongs with actions
that help to stop or weaken its effects on people’s lives.
●Arrest oppressors. Don’t look the other way. Look for ways that you can stop or
at least slow down or disrupt the actions that are hurting other people.
●Defend orphans. Our cities are filled with children and youth who do not have
adults in their lives who are watching out for them . . . protecting them . . .
involved and investing in their lives. They are in the schools, in government
services, in care facilities . . . Their birth parents may still be living, but the children are largely “on their own.” Maybe it’s a neighborhood child who would
love to have a safe place to go after school for a little while until their parent gets
home from work. Maybe it’s through foster care. Maybe it’s simply giving a
single parent some “pause” in their 24-hour, 7 days a week parenting role alone
in their home.
●Plead the case of widows. Widows, by their very “title” , had a husband who had
married and cared for her needs. And then he died. There are new
vulnerabilities, complications, and needs which had previously been handled by
her husband. Those needs continue. His death has created an entirely new
reality for the widow….new realities which her loved one had always handled.

Thousands of years ago, God brought these priorities to the attention and responsibility of God’s people through his prophet Isaiah… from His own Heart. He saw these earthly “special vulnerabilities” of life, and used His Prophet Isaiah to bring them to the attention and active involvement of His people. God did not give a layout of a “program” to handle these realities…He brought it to the attention of His Own people. There are the practical details of the needs of the people that He Sees….He Cares about, and He cares.

But God chose to use His people . . . His followers….to be involved as His Hands, His Heart,
and His Feet to care for the priorities of His most vulnerable created ones.

“Learn to do good” becomes a reality. Begin with the specific examples He gave.

“How beautiful on the mountain
are the feet of the messenger who announces,
‘All is well.
. . .God rules as King.’ ”
Isaiah 52:7

A “new year” . . . a new chapter in our lives . . . and we don’t know what has been written for us . We may have already written some events in our new calendars . . . events that are always marked on the same date, no matter the year. But, typically there are more blank dates, and we do not yet know what is to come.

God’s people were awaiting news of the battle in which dearly loved family members were
fighting. There were no electronics for communications of how the battle was going. All that they could do was wait, pray, and watch for the runner who would appear on the crest of the mountainous barrier beyond which their loved ones were fighting for them.

That’s a very tough situation, a reality we all face in life. Situations beyond our control come, we long to intervene and “fix” the problem. But usually, it’s not truly in our own hands.
We just have to wait in our own silence for those things we carry in our hearts and minds to
change. . . for better or worse.

Isaiah knew what that was like. His people knew that experience well. The only news they had was the appointed runner who had to experience personally the battle, gather the information, and then carry the news back to his people. Climbing up the mountainous ridge would not have been easy, but essential. He knew that his people were waiting . . . watching for him. And everybody would drop everything they were doing when he reached the top and came into view.

All eyes…all ears would be attuned to what he would say. His words would be echoed by the
voices of those who were posted at a nearer distance to him when he appeared atop the ridge.

Everything would stop, as God’s people turned their full attention to hear the Message. In
silence, they gave their full attention to hear the words. . . words of life? Or words of death?

The Runner waited for the silence, knowing that the news he would announce could spell life or death in the lives of his people. This would not be easy. . . physically, psychologically, and emotionally. . . whatever he was about to report. It is a heavy, serious matter to speak words that may be of death or life for those listening.

Isaiah’s message this time to his beloved, suffering people of God, was Good News. He was
announcing the coming of the One Who would appear . . . would lead them . . . would be with
them and protect them. His message echoes through the ages . . . even “to us.”

May our lives, and our words . . . echo to the waiting world the Message we have heard.
“All is well. God rules as King.”

John 14:9

They had been with Him for three years. Sitting at the table together, having eaten what,
unbeknownst to the 12 chosen followers, was to become their last meal with Jesus. They were listening to Words Jesus had never spoken before. . . at least not in this way. . . to the small group of men who had been with Him for the past 3 years. So much time spent around the table together in so many places as they had followed Jesus throughout their tiny country of Israel. They were back in Jerusalem now. Home. Three years of following Him, “schlepping” all over that Land. They were not the same men He had told to “Follow Me.” And they had.

But it had changed their lives and their hearts.

So, when Jesus, after the meal, looked around the table and told them that, soon, He would be “going” and that they were not coming with Him, at least not yet,. . . it grabbed their full attention.

“What? Where? Why?” This was something different. He was saying things about leaving. . .
going to His Father . . . and they would not be going with Him. He was talking about their new Assignment, but without Him physically with them. They would be staying, but He was “going.”

I am reminded of a familiar scene that plays out in every family. . . Mom or Dad start putting on their coats because they are going somewhere. They assure the children that it’s for a little while, but they’ll be back. It’s such a familiar scene for each child, yet their thoughts go into a brief panic-mode….Where are you going? Can I come with you? I don’t want to stay home!

Why? When? How long? But . . . but . . . but . . . “ The anxiety is real in the hearts of the
“little’s” staying behind. Tears . . . clinging. . . following to the door. . .Jesus’ circle of men were familiar with Jesus’ periodic short absences. But He always came back. And although they could never have imagined what was coming in just a few hours . . where He was about to go, and what He was about to go through, Jesus made it clear that this Journey He would have to make alone.

“Don’t you know Me yet?” In the Journey each of us is making as we follow Him, the Path and Steps we must take are often not easy . . . not of our own plans nor desires. . . at times
dangerous, heartbreaking, and unimagined.

But in the midst of walking…stumbling…limping…running along that Path, with our fears,
insecurities, heart-aches and joys, He leans over and says, “Don’t you know Me yet?” That’s
the “bottom line” issue as we follow Him. As He asks us to do things…go places…step into
rough waters…face unspeakable fears and sorrows along our Journey, His Voice echoes in our Hearts. . . “Don’t you know Me yet?” That is the bottom line question . . . and Answer.

“The Word became human and lived among us.
We saw his glory.
It was the glory that the Father shares with his only Son,
a glory full of kindness [a] and truth.”
John 1:1-2,14

“Being human” is the most common reality shared by every person, everyday,
everywhere in the world, throughout all of Time. From your first breath until your last,
you are a human being. You are “being human” without any script, or instruction
manual, or on/off button. It is our primary basic reality.

As I hold my newest little grandchild, look into her little dark eyes, see her facial
expressions, the movements of her tiny body, and the incredibly powerful little voice that
comes out of that tiny Being, I have no explanation nor operating manual other than to
begin discovering this little Creation who has entered our family.

Although I can hold her in my arms, I have no real control of her life. All that I can do is
to love her, try to meet her needs, and be present in her life.

In this season of focus on the Birth of Jesus into human life, our newest baby can give
me the most realistic picture of what His Coming physically entailed. Complete
vulnerability, with no possibility of controlling how He was treated, cared for, held, or
taught. From His birth, his survival was at great risk due to circumstances far beyond
his nor his earthly parents control. They could model qualities like kindness and truth,
but they could never be the source of those qualities. Living out those qualities would
have to be His choice.

How do you teach a child “glory”? We cannot, as human parents. That comes only from
God Himself. What we can do is live lives that are full of kindness and truth. It involves
our words and our actions. Jesus’ life on earth was marked by those practical qualities.
. . qualities that can be seen, felt, and experienced by the people around us.

The identification marker for the “Glory” of God Himself in the Life of Jesus throughout
His time on earth was in the tangible form of kindness and truth. And that is something
that God longs to weave into our lives here. . . so do-able that even our children can
bring it to this world as they learn from our examples.

“Those who want to save their lives will lose them.
But those who lose their lives for Me,
will find them.”
Matthew 16:25

What would it require to save your own life? Wouldn’t it require a total focus on yourself?
Your circumstances, your risks, your possibilities to save yourself, and anyone or anything that might give you a chance to survive would likely capture your entire focus. Panic would set in as you frantically look for anything that might save you from being swallowed up by the danger. Even using another person to be able to save yourself from death would become a very real consideration in order to survive.

Most of us battle with thoughts of not being enough, doing enough, not knowing enough. And looming before us is the thing that gives us faith to take the next step of the Journey We don’t want to die in our wilderness! So we may grab onto the “hope-giver” on our path. . . and hang on for dear life… Even if what we’re clinging to for survival is another human being who is also frantic to survive.

Jesus knew the dangers for human beings on this earth. Desperation to live can mean
grabbing onto anything that floats by . . . even if it’s another human being.

Our desire to survive is deeply ingrained in us. We look for any means of escape from our peril. We hate being afraid. We hate suffering. We hate facing our own death. Jesus understood that about us. He had temptations to save His own life from the death He knew was ahead forHim. He struggled . . . even to the point of sweating blood.

Jesus calls us to follow Him. Wherever that might lead. Whatever it costs us personally. It’s
serious business. It’s scary. It may cost us everything.

But to walk that Path with Him, and to know His nearness as we walk together, is worth all of the unknown’s along the way.

“Sing to God; make music to praise his name.
Make a highway for him to ride through the deserts.
The Lord is His name. Celebrate in His presence.
The God who is in His holy dwelling place is
the Father of the fatherless
and the Defender of widows.”

Psalm 68:4-5

I will never forget the “thunder” I heard in the desert. It was the thunder of a camel race. I
heard it long before I saw where the “thunder” was coming from. The camel riders in their
flowing white robes and ornate headdresses were heard before they were seen. Clouds of sand dust filled the air. The race eminated power, both of camel and rider. In the unbroken desert sands, the powerful camels and the billowing robes of the riders were nothing less than a jaw-dropping drama that seemed to come right out of a movie. Crowds of people lining the sandy raceway were going wild in the excitement. The thunderous power created a deafening sound that caused all of the spectators to move far back from the path of the ground-shaking racers.

The Psalmist captures a glimpse of such a scene. . . but the race is not one of human nor
beastly power.

The Rider is God Himself. All-powerful, all-mighty, focused, fully present, and thundering
through Time.

We become aware of His Presence through a strange, distant sound , , , before we see the
cloud surrounding Him as He comes our way. When we realize Who is in the Cloud, we
instinctively step back, because there is awesome Power in the middle of that moving cloud of sand dust.

In the most desolate, desert places and times of our lives, we feel alone, unprotected, and
have experienced great losses, like the “fatherless” and “widows” in this verse, Then, we hear something… a Sound grabs our attention, and we begin to see the Cloud moving our direction. The Rider comes into our sight . . . into our lives. He chooses to come.

He is not focusing on a trophy for winning a race. He has come, not for the praises of the
powerful. He comes to those who are unprotected . . . unloved . . . alone in this world, no matter how that Reality became theirs . . . His coming into our worlds is not for trophies, or accolades of the rich and famous. . . He is not focused on Himself. His Focus is not on the spectator crowds watching Him from the sidelines. . . at a safe distance from Him.

His focus is on those who are most unseen. . . most unprotected . . . most alone. . . most
vulnerable . . . Those who feel the most unable to offer Him anything of value in this world.

He comes to those who grab onto Him in the desperation of knowing that they have nothing to offer but themselves. Those who, out of great sorrow, know that He has come for them.

“They were united with Moses by baptism in the Cloud and in the Sea.
All of them ate the same spiritual food,
And all of them drank the same spiritual drink.
They drank from the spiritual rock that went with them,
And that Rock was Christ.
Yet . . .(here’s the kicker)
God was not pleased with most of them,
So their dead bodies were scattered over the desert.”

They’d done it all . . . and they’d done it together. The dramatic deliverance from
slavery in Egypt, the Cloud of God on the mountain top, the 10 Laws written by the
finger of God that they were to follow, the 40 years of walking through the endless
desert following a Cloud and Fire, the Sea splitting to allow them to walk through safely
into their Promised Land, and then seeing that Sea wiping out the entire Egyptian army
that had been in hot pursuit of them.

The miracles that God had done for them were unprecedented in all of history. And He
had done it for them because they were truly His People.

Never before, never since, was there such a long-lasting miracle unfolding for the
people God had chosen to be His Own. Sharing such miraculous and faith-building
experiences together had helped to form them into a nation, with a great mission to the
world. God had His Plan for them.

When God does things that only He can do with a people, or a person who He has
chosen, there are lots of people who want to be part of the experience. They want to fit
in with that “Chosen” crowd through which God is moving. They want to be part of the
“fireworks” and the action. They want to be chosen.

But if they have not been chosen by God for carrying out His Plans, or if they are just
looking for a new emotional thrill, God will orchestrate events to sift out those who have
chosen themselves. God looks for people whose hearts belong to Him. They may
have blended in with those God has chosen, may have learned “the walk” and “the
talk”, but God cares about their heart. Blending in with the “faith crowd” can work for a
time, but eventually the Truth will become clear and the performers will fade away.

The ‘Next New Thing’ will come along, but God knows each heart involved. The heart
He looks for is one that has truly surrendered everything because of the love that moves
each to follow Him however He leads, regardless of who is or is not watching or doing it
with you. All that matters is what HE sees in your heart, and that you truly belong to
Him. . .no matter what. You are His.

In your heart of hearts, why are you following Him?