“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” Isaiah 30:18
Do you ever feel like just running away? In the whimsical children’s book, Alexander and the Horrible, Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst and Ray Cruz, Alexander wants to run away to Australia. My husband and I sometimes say to each other, “Let’s run away to Australia”, but we know that it is not the solution to our problems.
Israel was having a “bad day”. Their enemies were threatening them, and they were fearful. Rather than being willing to wait for God to act on their behalf, they wanted to take off. They were turning to their swift horses to save them, not to their sovereign Lord. He tries to reassure them in verse 15, “In repentance and rest is your salvation; in quietness and trust is your strength”.
Repentance, Rest, Quiet, Trust. There is something about these words that appeals to me. They are contrary to human nature, but calming when I am stressed or fearful. In order to repent, rest, be quiet and trust, I need to be willing to submit myself to God and His will, whatever it holds for me.
This is really hard, but there is a reward when I do wait for God. Through waiting, I experience His grace, compassion and justice. Are these things worth waiting for? I think so!
Do you need to repent of any sin so you can deliberately choose to rest in who God is right now, trusting quietly in His will?
Sovereign Lord, help me to wait for you to act in the challenges that I face in life today. I choose not to run away, but I need your grace, compassion and justice in a big way today. Amen.
By Karen Woodard
Used by Permission
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