Monday, December 21st
Isaiah 42:14-21
“For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. 15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools. 16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. 17 But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame. 18 “Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! 19 Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one in covenant with me, blind like the servant of the Lord? 20 You have seen many things, but you pay no attention; your ears are open, but you do not listen.” 21 It pleased the Lord for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious.
This passage is both comforting and terrifying. God is capable of laying waste to mountains, destroying vegetation, and drying up the water. And yet, God says, “I will not forsake them.” God will lead the blind in new directions, making the rough places smooth. If we are the blind, this is comforting. But who is to say we are not those who trust in idols? Those who will be turned away in utter shame? I know I have plenty of idols in my life—those things on which I place higher value, but are they idol enough to displease God? Will God turn me away in utter shame because of them? Do I put them higher than God in my life? If so, then the answer may be yes. We need to keep God in the center, the highest priority. It is not an easy thing to do. And yet, it is just what we are called to do. Advent is a time to examine our priorities—a great time considering that most of us are consumed with things this time of year—and make sure that the stuff of our lives is not above God.
Prayer: Dear God, we want to keep you first, but it is so hard. The things in our lives are right here, tangible and pleasing to us. But you can seem so far away. Help us to examine our lives and rearrange our priorities so that you are on top. Our love and service for you should be first—help us to make that happen. Amen.