Happy Monday y'all!! I hope that everyone had a great weekend. Our weekend was low key but good nevertheless. We're enjoying the last few days of having the Mr to ourselves because he's been cleared to return to work this week. I'm going to miss having him here during the day and getting to just go out as a family and do stuff together. Anyways, we started the book of Isaiah in Week 28. And in Week 29, it seems like the children of Israel still haven't gotten their acts together.
You maybe wondering why God didn't just force them to do right since they were His chosen people? I know I've asked myself that a few times. Isaiah 7:9 says, "Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm." At the end of day, they had free will just like we do today. They chose to stray from God at turn. Even when things were going well and He was delivering their enemies into their hands, the Israelites turned their backs on Him. They let their enemies talk them into worshiping their idols and cursing God.
A lot of us are like the Israelites. We're so quick to waver in our faith. But then we wonder why we're not getting blessed or our prayers aren't being answered. The truth of the matter is that when the tough gets going, sometimes we go too. We're quick to blame our problems on God instead of looking at our role in our dilemmas. We have free will and often times we bring some our misfortune on ourselves by stepping outside of the commandments that God has appointed for us.
However, at the end of the day we have to remember that God is always with us. Isaiah 8:10 says, "Call your councils of war, but they will be worthless. Develop your strategies, but they will not succeed. For God is with us." So, you see even in our time of need God is by our sides. He protects us from those weapons and people meant to harm us or break us down.
And when it comes to leadership, we have to be careful who we follow and allow to preside over us. "For the leaders of this people cause them to err, and those who are led by them are destroyed." (Isaiah 9:16) The people of Samaria allowed themselves to be led astray by their leaders. And for that they paid for their sins with their lives. When you know better, you do better. This is reminder that sometimes it's not wise to follow the crowd.
Also, in Week 29, we read about Lucifer being cast out of heaven. "...But you are cast out of your grave like an abominable branch, like the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot." (Isaiah 14:19). Lucifer dared to think that he was God. In Isaiah 27, we see that God plans to restore the Israelites once He destroys the majority who have erred from His ways.
And if you think that faithfulness is not rewarded read about Hezekiah in Isaiah 38. He's on his death bed and the Lord has sent word to him through Isaiah letting him know that he is about to die so that he can make necessary preparations. But Hezekiah humbly reminds that "I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight." (Isaiah 38:3) Therefore, God gives him gives him 15 more years to live. So, you see when we walk the walk that God has called us to walk, we will be rewarded.
If you were Hezekiah, what you have asked for? More life, money for your children, world peace?
Week 30 Readings
7/22: Isaiah 40-48
7/23: Isaiah 49-52
7/24: Isaiah 53-55
7/25: Isaiah 56-59
7/26: Isaiah 60-66
7/27: Jeremiah 1-6
No comments