September 29

Isaiah 57:15-59:21, Philippians 1:1-26, Psalm 71:1-24, Proverbs 24:9-10 

Pray: The Psalmist proclaims, “from my mother’s womb you have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising you.” Herein lies the great comfort of our prayers that we truly have a God who first cares and secondly has known us even in our mother’s womb. So when we pray we are not speaking to a stranger, nor are we sending our prayers to someone who will not take them seriously. God listens to every prayer. 

Read: Often we say privately and sometimes publicly, “why has God left me? I feel distant from God.” And, typically we blame the distance on God. We haven’t moved, right? It was God. Isaiah begins by stating the truth in love, “it is your sins that have cut you off from God.” Sin, rebellion, and selfishness put distance between us and God. Repentance closes that gap and causes beautiful reconciliation. Why not move God-ward, instead of away from the One who is life giving?

Edify: We close out our Old Testament reading today with these assuring words, “The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem to buy back Israel…” Our sin which separated us from God is now redeemed, or paid for, by the Redeemer of Israel. To redeem is to buy back, to pay a price for the restoration of the person or item. Something is only as valuable as the amount you are willing to pay for it. Your life is priceless. We know this because Jesus paid the ultimate price for your redemption. Perhaps this will give you and me a little more gratitude to face the day.

Practice: We don’t like to suffer hardships. None of us wakes up in the morning asking for an opportunity to grow through pain and difficulty. However, crisis and hardships do grow our faith when we push through and find God faithful. Proverbs states, “If you fail under pressure your strength is too small.” Life itself brings about pressure and tension. I used to think that tension was all bad. However, without tension a car could not be propelled down the road. When the tire hits the pavement and the tension of the tire catching on the asphalt causes the car to be propelled—we call this “friction”. Stress, properly applied, can build muscles over time as the stress on the barbell causes the muscle to build. How will you handle stress and tension today? Is it an opportunity for God to grow you in your faith?