Great Compassion

On August 1, 2022   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 49: 10

They will not hunger or thirst, neither will the scorching heat or sun strike them down; for He who has compassion on them will lead them and will guide them to springs of water.

There is another verse that says that God waits to have compassion on you (Isaiah 30: 18). He is just awaiting the opportunity to show His great grace to you. What prevents Him? We do. Isn’t that something? We don’t mean to, of course. But we often times don’t let him in. We don’t always give Him permission to work and move in our lives.

His desire is to show you great compassion. His compassion leads Him to show you His grace and His mercy. Of course, His grace covers every aspect of human existence. He longs to have compassion on you. But you have got to invite Him into those aspects of your life where you need grace and mercy. His Spirit is like living waters refreshing all the parched regions of your life. When you thirst, He is refreshing waters. If you hunger, He will fill you. You no longer have to suffer lack.

Here is what I want you to appreciate. His desire to show you His compassion is great. He wants to lead you to the springs of water. There is so much He wants to do for you. He is just awaiting your invitation. Open the doors that have been barred before Him. Throw yourself wide open and invite Him in. Ask Him to inhabit all of the rooms of your life. And lastly, give Him permission to pour Himself into you. He is waiting and longs to show you His great compassion.

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Longing

On February 10, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 30: 18

Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; how blessed are all those who long for Him.

We have talked about seeking the Lord. I actually began the seeking series by saying that this is the message the Lord has given us for 2021, that we might seek Him in new ways or just seek Him anew. It isn’t only the message for 2021, it is an everyday message. Isaiah, speaking for God, goes a step further today. He encourages us to “long” for God. What would that be like?

I guess a reasonable analogy might be that of young lovers. Do you remember how it was when you first met your love? You wanted to be together every minute and when you were not together, it pained you. You call them several times a day when you’re apart. You just can’t get enough of each other. You want to talk about everything under the sun and everything they say is fascinating. How wonderful to be in love.

Imagine longing for our Father like that. Can you imagine it? Blessed is the person who longs for the Lord. God longs to be gracious to and show you His great compassion. His grace and compassion are things we do long for, don’t we? All we want and need, the acceptance, love, compassion, grace, mercy, and forgiveness is there, in His embrace. As you continue to seek more of Him, talk with Him about this verse. Ask Him to increase your longing if you want. The more you want, the more you find. And the more you find, the more you long for. Seek more, have more – of Yahweh.

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Musings

On August 8, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 30: 18

Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; how blessed are all those who long for Him.

One of the jobs of any minister is to bring you the Word of God. I also share with you what God is telling me, but in delivering passages of scripture, there is an impartation of the Word to you. What I write will, hopefully, bring enlightenment to the scripture and inspire you. The most important part of this, or any devotional, though, is what comes to you through your meditation on the Word.

Today’s verse seems very powerful to me. I wonder, though, what you hear as you read and reread it. Why does the Lord long to be gracious to you? He is waiting to show you the depth of His compassion. Why does He long to show you His compassion and upon what, or whom, is He waiting.

Isaiah seems to suggest that our longing for God is a key to unlocking these blessings and perhaps even others. Is God awaiting us? What does He need from you and from me in order to rain down His love, compassion and blessings upon us.

While you are pondering today, let me give you one more question to consider. If God longs to be gracious to us, what is stopping Him? If He awaits on high to show His compassion, for what is He waiting? If God can do anything, at anytime, then what is restricting Him from showering us with His graciousness and compassion? This passage makes it clear that God is limited in this realm. How can that be, except that He limited Himself? For those who stand on God’s absolute sovereignty this verse should give pause.

I hope you will take a walk with Jesus today and talk with him about all these musings.

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