We cannot choose to worship and follow God while clinging to detestable idols. There is only room in your heart for God or room for idols. It is impossible to live life as a pagan Christian. Once we are under the grace of God the idols have no hold, God takes preeminence over all parts of your life, and hope is secured even in your frailty. ”If you return, O Israel, declares the LORD, to me you should return. If you remove your detestable things from my presence, and do not waver, and if you swear, ‘As the LORD lives,’ in truth, in justice, and in righteousness, then nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.’” Jeremiah 4:1,2  Will you choose the life of devotion to God? Will you trust in the sufficiency of the cross of Jesus Christ? Will you return to wholeness in Jesus Christ? We were made to fellowship with God.

The life that we lead expresses the choice we’ve made. Will the wrath of God be satiated or will you be the  object of wrath, the only avenue of deliverance is found in Jesus Christ. Will you hope in Jesus? Will you hope? Will you live? ”A lion has gone up from his thicket, a destroyer of nations has set out; he has gone out from his place to make your land a waste; your cities will be ruins without inhabitant.” Jeremiah 4:7 As you look at the ways the people of Israel ebbed and flowed in devotion to God you will glimpse how your soul ever changes. It is the propitiation of Jesus Christ that brings rest to our souls. Stop striving and rest. Stop binding your soul to idols. Trust in Jesus.

If your faith has become a race in which you have lost sight of God what can you do. What hope is there for those who have become so entangled in their self-built religion? What if you feel that you have strayed from God? “Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.” Isaiah 58:9-11 Will you cry out to God? Will you desire that your heart be burdened for Him? Will the hungry of the world burden you? Do the aching hearts of the people of the world cause your heart to ache? Ask God to burden your heart to reach out to a hurting world to be His light in the darkness.

Have you placed your hope in God? Is the dilemma that you face one of trust and dependence? “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,’ declares the LORD. ‘And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD: ‘My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from this time forth and forevermore.’” Isaiah 59:20,21  A redeemer came through Israel to the world. Jesus Christ lives today so that you may live tomorrow. The first step toward being a light in the dark world is for you to see the light yourself. Will you trust that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty of sin for you?

“Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.” Isaiah 46:8-11  God is actively working all around us. We cannot and should not presume to think that we have any impact on the events of life. We only endure because God enables us to endure. “Listen to me, you stubborn of heart, you who are far from righteousness: I bring near my righteousness; it is not far off, and my salvation will not delay; I will put salvation in Zion, for Israel my glory.” Isaiah 46:12,13 Will you trust in God for your hope and salvation?

Can you see the hope that is found in the promised salvation of God? We can live, move, and breathe because this life is not the summation of life. We have so much more in store for us as we hope in God’s salvation. The beauty of God’s salvation is that is does not depend upon us. God grants us eternal life because He desires us to have it. Take delight and pleasure in the promise of God. Do not become weighted down by the ways of life but rise above worry as you cling to the truth that God is in control.

“And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.” Isaiah 25:7,8 The reality of our salvation is that God has enabled us to trust wholly and fully in Jesus Christ and through that trust the bonds to our old fears and failure are abolished.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock. For he has humbled the inhabitants of the height, the lofty city. He lays it low, lays it low to the ground, casts it to the dust.” Isaiah 26:3-5  Will you trust in God? An inexplicable peace is present in the lives of all who keep their minds fixed upon God. The trust we express in God is grounded in eternity. Do not seek to see with your eyes but choose to see by faith alone.

The blessing of God was removed from the people of Israel. When the people faced an insurmountable foe they chose to run to their prowess and luck instead of trusting in God. “He has taken away the covering of Judah. In that day you looked to the weapons of the House of the Forest, and you saw that the breaches of the city of David were many. You collected the waters of the lower pool, and you counted the houses of Jerusalem, and you broke down the houses to fortify the wall. You made a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the old pool. But you did not look to him who did it, or see him who planned it long ago. In that day the Lord GOD of hosts called for weeping and mourning, for baldness and wearing sackcloth; and behold, joy and gladness, killing oxen and slaughtering sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine. ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’” Isaiah 22:8-13

Isaiah 22 continues to tell of the events that were set in motion because of the peoples unfaithfulness to God. “The LORD of hosts has revealed himself in my ears: ‘Surely this iniquity will not be atoned for you until you die,’ says the Lord GOD of hosts.” Isaiah 22:14 The disobedience of the people caused God’s anger to be kindled and the leaders of the city were cast down. “In that day, declares the LORD of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a secure place will give way, and it will be cut down and fall, and the load that was on it will be cut off, for the LORD has spoken.” Isaiah 22:25 Is there a lesson that we can apply to our lives today from this story of God’s anger being kindled? The lesson of Isaiah 22 is one of great hope to all mankind. The will of God cannot be stopped or thwarted by the schemings of man. We cannot change the will of God. What He purposes to accomplish will be brought to completion. The journey of faith we travel on will be completed by God because He is always faithful. The doubt and fear can have no hold on us because it is God who has set this journey of life in motion. Rest in the unstoppable will of God.

Why does God allow calamity to impact peoples lives so greatly? What purpose is there to the events of life? “In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and tremble with fear before the hand that the LORD of hosts shakes over them. And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will fear because of the purpose that the LORD of hosts has purposed against them.” Isaiah 19:16,17 God used the example of Egypt to bring Himself glory. The world saw the hand of God was against Egypt. Can knowing what God is purposing bring comfort, hope and understanding in the midst of the moment?

In the midst of a disrupted life with no hope or comfort what, can be done? How do we press on? “In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border. It will be a sign and a witness to the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry to the LORD because of oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them. And the LORD will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the LORD in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering, and they will make vows to the LORD and perform them. And the LORD will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the LORD, and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them.” Isaiah 19:19-25 When we find ourselves in the middle of disheveled lives that have no purpose or hope we must remember God. We must turn to God who is our only hope and help. Will you be of the remnant that God strikes healing upon? Do not limit the power and grace of God by using only your limited, flawed, human understanding. Faith is the evidence of things unseen and we must look upon our life circumstances through the lens of faith that will birth a great hope.

Find hope in Isaiah 19:24,15, “In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, ‘Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance.’” The things we often perceive as hopelessly lost like Egypt will play a great role in God’s story for mankind. Do you think that your life is hopeless? Is there little hope for tomorrow? Will you turn and trust in God? Turn away from the ways of the world. Just turn and start the journey of faith that will bring renewed hope and vitality to your broken life.

The Moabites were a prideful nation that believed that they were the definitive example of prowess and strength. It didn’t matter how much wealth they had, the strength of their army, or the cunning of their leaders when the hand of God was extended against them. ”‘Give counsel; grant justice; make your shade like night at the height of noon; shelter the outcasts; do not reveal the fugitive; let the outcasts of Moab sojourn among you; be a shelter to them from the destroyer. When the oppressor is no more, and destruction has ceased, and he who tramples underfoot has vanished from the land, then a throne will be established in steadfast love, and on it will sit in faithfulness in the tent of David one who judges and seeks justice and is swift to do righteousness.’ We have heard of the pride of Moab- how proud he is!- of his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence; in his idle boasting he is not right. Therefore let Moab wail for Moab, let everyone wail. Mourn, utterly stricken, for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth.” Isaiah 16:3-7

The might of the Moabites could not endure the will of God. Look at your life, are you living our a pride saturated life where you are your own god? How long will you endure before the hand of God stretches out against you? I implore you to fall upon the grace of God. Will you admit your inadequacy and God’s sufficiency? Will you cease boasting in the work of your hands. If you must boast, choose to boast in the amazing sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. The work of God in the lives of mankind is the only cause worthy of boasting.Will you boast in the grace of God? Will you?

“A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding than a hundred blows into a fool.” Proverbs 17:10  We need to fathom the ferocity of God’s redemptive activity that has fallen upon humanity. God has attacked the very nature of men’s hearts when He perfectly fulfilled and offered the deepest desire of every heart when Jesus Christ died to restore the fellowship that separated the sin cursed descendants of Adam from fellowship with Him. Once we have been impacted by the shed blood of Jesus Christ we are consistently refined as the understanding offered by the indwelling Holy Spirit penetrates to the innermost parts of our soul.

“Wisdom is in the presence of the one who has understanding, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.” Proverbs 17:24  Only the foolish fix their eyes on the things that are before them. What are your eyes fixed on? What’s at the end of the earth that captivates the hearts of men? Can we lay a claim on anything that we cannot see? Faith requires us to trust and believe in the intangible, unseen, and unknowable. For some people it is too great a hurdle to overcome to truly trust in something they cannot control but to the chosen ”The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe.” Proverbs 18:10. Have you found your refuge and security in God? Will you lay your foolishness aside and embrace the wisdom of God?