My theme verses for this year

In January, I wrote a post called Relentless God in it, I shared some verses that I thought would be a theme for me this year.  Well, it is six months later, and I'm still processing them in and through my life:)!  So here are the verses:

Isaiah 9:1-11

But suddenly there will be no more gloom for the land that suffered. In the past God made the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali hang their heads in shame, but in the future those lands will be made great. They will stretch from the road along the Mediterranean Sea to the land beyond the Jordan River and north to Galilee, the land of people who are not Israelites.

2 Before those people lived in darkness,

but now they have seen a great light.

They lived in a dark land,

but a light has shined on them.

3 God, you have caused the nation to grow

and made the people happy.

And they have shown their happiness to you,

like the joy during harvest time,

like the joy of people

taking what they have won in war.

4 Like the time you defeated Midian,

you have taken away their heavy load

and the heavy pole from their backs

and the rod the enemy used to punish them.

5 Every boot that marched in battle

and every uniform stained with blood

has been thrown into the fire.

6 A child has been born to us;

God has given a son to us.

He will be responsible for leading the people.

His name will be Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God,

Father Who Lives Forever, Prince of Peace.

7 Power and peace will be in his kingdom

and will continue to grow forever.

He will rule as king on David's throne

and over David's kingdom.

He will make it strong

by ruling with justice and goodness

from now on and forever.

The Lord All-Powerful will do this

because of his strong love for his people.

Below are some additional thoughts that I've had about them since January:

• Verse 2: In the past God made the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali hang their heads in shame, but in the future those lands will be made great.   They will stretch from the road along the Mediterranean Sea to the land beyond the Jordan River and north to Galilee, the land of people who are not Israelites.  2 Before those people lived in darkness, but now they have seen a great light. They lived in a dark land, but a light has shined on them.  Thanks to preparing for the next school year with Sonlight, I ran across these verses again but in the New Testament. Sonlight pointed out that in Mathew 4:12-16 Jesus fulfills this prophecy.  It was a great reminder to me that what we are reading about here has been fulfilled and we can apply these truths to our lives today.  God wants to take people out of the darkness and their shame and make them great!!  The verses that follow show us how He does this.
• Verse 6 God has given a son to us. He will be responsible for leading the people. This very sentence has been foundational to me in the past 9 months.  I've been waking up to the idea that God is our leader and we need to follow Him.  In the past, my prayers have been full of begging God - to move, asking Him if He truly sees, does He understand, why doesn't He move...  But recently, God has been confirming the facts that yes, He does see, yes He does know, and yes He will lead if I am willing to follow.  In the past, I have tried to get God to "move" and my efforts were often rooted in a mistrust of His heart towards me and towards others.  It has truly been freeing and life-giving to realize that He wants to lead me and that He knows how.  It isn't always easy to stop and listen to what He has to say, nor is it easy to admit that I don't always trust God's heart towards me or His ability to lead.  But the verses that follow have truly helped in this process of trust...
• Wonderful Counselor: Attribute 1 reminds us again that we are invited to listen to Him.  He is not just a counselor He is a WONDERFUL one.
• Powerful God: Is this something that I truly believe?  Yes, He is powerful but I'm also learning that His power comes in many different ways, shapes and forms.  Instead of attempting to force God to prove His power to me I'm learning to ask Him to open my eyes to Him and the ways He is currently moving whether big or small.
• Father who lives forever:  Over the last 2 years God has taken me on a journey to love, rest and understand His Father heart towards me.  It was a beautiful season and I love how God sealed theses truths by intertwining Scripture and books with the reality of events happening in my everyday life.  If the Father heart of God means nothing to you or it scares you, I'd highly recommend that you read The Birthright by John Sheasby to learn more.
• Prince of Peace: Isn't peace what we all long for?  At least, I do.  Learning to have peace in the everyday ups and downs of life has only come through following the Prince of Peace.  Knowing that it is on His heart to bring this into the reality of my life has allowed me to continue desiring to listen to what He has to say.
• Verse 7: Power and peace will be in his kingdom and will continue to grow forever.  God's kingdom is growing and the attributes it grows with are power and peace.  Many times it is easy to seek God's kingdom in visible ways but Jesus reminds us in Luke 17:20-21 that "God's kingdom is coming, but not in a way that you will be able to see with your eyes. People will not say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' because God's kingdom is within you."
• The Lord All-Powerful will do this because of his strong love for his people.  Do you see the underlying cause of God's operation? It isn't the "depth of our faith," our efforts or anything that we do rather it is His strong love! 

I would like to finish this post off with The Message's version of Matthew 11:28-30:

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

In Christ,

 

Photo courtesy Melanie Guest Photography

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