I've Got Peace Like a River

Isaiah 48:18 If you pay attention to God’s commands, your peace will be like a river and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

 A river and the waves of the sea have several features that tell me more about the peace and righteousness I will have in my life as I obey God.

1. They flow endlessly.  One of the things I love most about visiting the beach is watching the constant and continuous breaking of waves. Even on calm weather days that perpetual motion is there. No matter how long you wait, the waves keep coming. The same is true of a river. The movement of the water is never-ending, even if it is difficult to see. The peace God gives me as His obedient child is always there for me to rely on, even if at times I have to look carefully for it.

2. Only drought can ebb their flow or stop them. The only time a river stops moving is when the source has dried up for some reason. I have been watching that happen in Africa where there has been a drought. I enjoy watching live streaming of African animals (on explore.org) and the rivers have been slowly drying up for some time now because of the drought. God's peace dries up like that when I am spiritually dry because I have not been staying focused on God in my life. The great news is that every time I have lost that peace, when I get back on track and back in touch with God, the river of peace starts flowing again ... the drought ends.

3. They are comforting and restful.  The people who watch them have a relaxed, restful sense even if it is a noisy atmosphere. When I have an opportunity to visit the beach and watch the waves, I always feel relaxed. It does not really make sense, does it? All that noise and movement should have the opposite affect, but it doesn't. And so it is with the peace of God to the obedient child of God ... it enables one to rest in the comfort of knowing that God is in control. 

According to this verse, this kind of peace - God's peace - is only mine if I pay attention to God's commands. My obedience is key. May God help me to keep obeying.

 

My Purpose

Isaiah 43:7, 10 Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made … “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen; that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he.”

 I find this declaration of God through Isaiah to be affirming to me as an individual believer, follower of Christ, trying to live a life pleasing to God in my own era of history. As a Christ-follower, I am among those called by God’s name, so when I read in these verses that I was created for God’s glory, I am reassured of my value in God’s sight. 

God chose me to be who I am, to look like I do, and to have the unique qualities that I have as a person. I was formed and made in a certain way because God wanted me for His glory; that is my planned value and purpose. I can glorify God no matter what I look like, no matter how polished I am socially, or how educated I may be. I can still fill the slot God intended for me in this life.

God wants me to know Him, to believe Him, and to recognize Him as Creator of the universe, and as the only Savior. Verse 11 makes that clear: “I, I am the Lord, and besides me there is no savior.” That is exciting but cautiously so because the implication in God’s declaration of His purpose for me in these verses is that it is possible for me to not “get it” and to not live my life in His purposeful way. 

I want to fulfill my purpose as God planned it. That is where true happiness will lie, and indeed, I am finding happiness in doing just that.

 

 

Fearful Words

 

Isaiah 37:6 Do not be afraid because of the words you have heard…

 I have always felt afraid of bad news, but then again, who does not fear that?  

 I remember well the day the doctor said to me, “Your father is dying.”  Even though it was almost 30 years ago now, and more recently (some 10 years ago) when the hospice nurse said, “Your mother has just  a few more hours,”  the memories of both events stays vivid in my memory. Both were fearful words to have to hear and yet, as the prophet Isaiah told King Hezekiah in this verse, I was not afraid of those words when I heard them.  I knew that God was going to take care of them and of me and our family and that my father's and later my mother's “fate” was already a secure one. Their faith in the work of Christ on their behalf was an accomplished fact; their salvation and future in heaven was secure. So, when my father took his last breath, I felt a blanket of peace fall over me, and when my mother breathed her last some 20 years later that same comfort arrived in the room.  I did not have to be afraid because of any mere words.  God had all in control.  They were just words and words cannot do any permanent harm. I did not have to be afraid of the fearful words.