Isaiah 63:7
Do you every sit back
and just recall all the lovingkindness that God has shown you…? When you truly
examine your life you will come to the conclusion that you are beyond blessed…
You should always approach the Lord with thanksgiving because even to have
breath in your body is a blessing… Despite the different things that you may be
going through or the various storms that you have encountered; Isaiah reminds
us today that we need to meditate on the things that God had done in our lives,
the paths that He has made and the doors that He has opened… When you feel like
you are at the edge of the cliff remind yourself of God’s “great goodness
toward the house of Israel…” Substitute the house of Israel with your
name and rehash all the wonderful blessings that have been bestowed in your
life… Israelites had been delivered from the hand of Pharaoh, feed manna from
heaven and entered the Promise Land under the leadership of Joshua… Despite all
there nagging and complaints, God still gave them water from a rock and
defeated all their adversaries… It is in the days of Isaiah that the children
of God have rekindled their rebellious nature and are finding themselves in the
midst of coming bondage… It is very easy for us to focus on the problems in our
lives instead of the solution… Nobody wants to endure discipline and
correction; however, we can embrace these times in our life when we know that
God is in the midst and His lovingkindness is still present… This focus chapter
of Isaiah starts of speaking of God’s vengeance and redemption; but it ends
with verses dealing with prayer and praise… You may be experiencing the first
part of this chapter in your life today… You may be feeling God’s vengeance in
the storms that are pouring down on you; however, you can rest assured that
storm is serving a purpose and you will be redeemed back to the Father… When
redemption takes place, your prayers of heartache turn to prayers of praise…
The message for today is to see the silver lining in the storm… You’ve been battling
for a long time and sometimes your battle has been against the very will of
God; wherever you are, whatever you are going through, see Jesus and not the
task at hand… God is trying to get you refocused, He is trying to get you back
on the right path and He needs for you to stop blaming Him and start praising
Him… This is why Isaiah speaks of the lovingkindness and praises that are due
to our God… He has looked beyond your faults and blessed you with what you
need (even if that is a storm)… His plan for you is to prosper; so when you
face a challenge, when you endure an obstacle, know that God is with you and
has led you this far… The Lord hasn’t brought you this far to leave you, He’s
brought you this far to show you the things that you can overcome and
accomplish when you put your trust in Him… When you want to complain, think
about His goodness, when you want to be ungrateful, think about all the things
He has bestowed upon you; when you feel all alone, think about the
lovingkindness that has been deposited in your life… Even when I am going
through a tough time I can’t do anything but praise God because of the things
He had done… He has done so much in our lives that we don’t have room to
complain… The enemy wants you to believe that storms are signs that God is not
present; however, Isaiah wants you to remember the storms that you have already
been through so that you can praise God in advance knowing that this storm will
not overtake you… This is Isaiah says “I will mention the lovingkindnesses
of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord…” I am a firm believer that the
true character of an individual is shown in times of adversity and this is so
critical to our lives a Christians… When you open your mouth during the storm;
what is it that people hear? When you are going through a tough time do you
mention God’s goodness or complain about His perceived absence…? Whatever
you do in the crunch is either winning souls to Christ or pushing your own soul
away from Him… In this passage, Isaiah is speaking of the coming storm and the
sunshine that can be seen through the clouds of rain… We all face storms in
our lives; however, when we remember what God has already done we can begin to
look beyond the clouds to the shining of the sun… Your life may not be
where you want it to be; however, you should be thankful that your life isn’t
as bad as if truly could be… Can you remember when you weren’t doing what God
wanted you to? Can you think back to the point in time when church was an
afterthought? If you can, answer this question, has God shown mercy to you
in you undeserving state? Let the world know of His lovingkindness, of
the grace and mercy bestowed upon you. Understand today that your shoes may
not be comfortable for you, but there is always someone who is walking bare
foot and would love to try yours on; that’s why Isaiah tells us to THANK GOD!
BE BLESSED!!!
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