:-)

Isaiah 43

Captivated

"Captivate Us" -Watermark-

Your face is beautiful
And Your eyes are like the stars
Your gentle hands have healing
There inside the scars
Your loving arms they draw me near
And Your smile it brings me peace
Draw me closer oh my Lord
Draw me closer Lord to Thee

(chorus)
Captivate us, Lord Jesus
Set our eyes on You
Devastate us with Your presence
Falling down
And rushing river, draw us nearer
Holy fountain consume us with You
Captivate us Lord Jesus, with You

Your voice is powerful
And Your words are radiant bright
In Your breath and shadow
I will come close and abide
You whisper love and life divine
And Your fellowship is free
Draw me closer O my Lord
Draw me closer Lord to Thee

(chorus)

Let everything be lost in the shadows
Of the light of Your face
Let every chain be broken from me
As I’m bound in Your grace
For Your yoke is easy, Your burden is light
You’re full of wisdom, power and might
And every eye will see You

(chorus)



I really love this song. It goes to a whole new level of how much we need Jesus. Christ gives us everything. He left so that we could receive all the power that we need in the form of the Holy Spirit. Wow. What a sacrifice. Christ has to draw us to Himself. We cannot attain Him by our own power, but only through Him calling us by our names over and over.

That's one reason why I chose to name my blog "Talitha cumi. . .and I listened." In the Gospels, Christ is asked to bring a girl back to life. He tells the people that she is only sleeping. . .then he tells her, "little girl, I say to you, rise!" That's what "Talitha, cumi" means in the original Aramaic language.

All this is to say that, yes, God calls us. Just like He calls this little girl, He called me. Sometimes, He has to call over and over, sometimes it just makes sense to some people. All in all, I am amazed that I have been chosen to be an object of God's affection. Not everyone gets this; not everyone will see His scarred hands; not everyone will be in His presence.

God freely gives us compassion, love, and forgiveness. Oh, the comfort of being a child of God! The only difference between my sin and a non-Christian's sin is that mine is FORGIVEN already. That's what separates us; that's where I came from. Out of the depths of the miry pit, God called to me, He pursued me, He changed me, He sanctifies me daily, and I will be with Him one day (soon, please, right?).

Psalm 40 was the very first thing I read after I became a Christian. I don't suggest always relying on the old "I will randomly open my Bible and God will lead me to what I need" deal, but in this case, it was certainly an amazing thing. This is what Christ did for me. . .

Psalm 40:1-5:
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.

4 Blessed is the man
who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods. ^[a]

5 Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us
no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them,
they would be too many to declare.

I mean, I was in a slimy place and I didn't even know it. Whatever you do, don't fool yourself into thinking that you can succeed in this life without Christ. Without Him, well, I don't even want to go there. Happiness is fleeting without Christ. With Christ, joy is forever. As David Crowder Band writes. . . .

"Forever and Ever, Etc." -David Crowder Band-
Love so incredible to know
It's never gonna go, never gonna go
Love too impossible and true
For anyone but You, for anyone but You

I think I'm on the brink of something large
Maybe like the breaking of the dawn
Maybe like a match being lit
Or the sinking of a ship, letting go gives a better grip

I'm finding everything I'll ever need
By giving up gaining everything
Falling for You for eternity
Right here at Your feet
Where I wanna be
I am Yours

Love so indelible to know
You're never gonna go, you're never gonna go
Love too unthinkable and true
For anyone but You, for anyone but You

Maybe like a match being lit
Or the sinking of a ship, letting go gives a better grip

I'm finding everything I'll ever need
By giving up gaining everything
Falling for You for eternity
Right here at Your feet
Where I wanna be

I'm finding everything I'll ever need
By giving up gaining everything
Falling for You for eternity
Right here at Your feet
Where I wanna be

I am yours
I'm finding everything I'll ever need
By giving up gaining everything
Falling for You for eternity
Right here at Your feet
Where I wanna be

I'm finding everything I'll ever need
By giving up gaining everything
Falling for You for eternity
Right here at Your feet
Where I wanna be

I am Yours

Forever and ever and ever and ever Forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever Forever and ever and ever and ever Forever and ever and ever and ever Forever and ever and ever and ever Forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever

Give it up, folks, give it up to Jesus. I'm pretty excited about this "forever" stuff!

Isaiah 30

Isaiah 30:9-18

9 These are rebellious people, deceitful children,
children unwilling to listen to the LORD's instruction.

10 They say to the seers,
"See no more visions!"
and to the prophets,
"Give us no more visions of what is right!
Tell us pleasant things,
prophesy illusions.

11 Leave this way,
get off this path,
and stop confronting us
with the Holy One of Israel!"

12 Therefore, this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
"Because you have rejected this message,
relied on oppression
and depended on deceit,

13 this sin will become for you
like a high wall, cracked and bulging,
that collapses suddenly, in an instant.

14 It will break in pieces like pottery,
shattered so mercilessly
that among its pieces not a fragment will be found
for taking coals from a hearth
or scooping water out of a cistern."

15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says:
"In repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
but you would have none of it.

16 You said, 'No, we will flee on horses.'
Therefore you will flee!
You said, 'We will ride off on swift horses.'
Therefore your pursuers will be swift!

17 A thousand will flee
at the threat of one;
at the threat of five
you will all flee away,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on a mountaintop,
like a banner on a hill."

18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
he rises to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!

I love these verses. I know that as a Christian, I can't get rid of all of my sin. However, the Lord longs to show me compassion despite all that I do. Wow. I love this passage! It's also encouraging because we're called to be witnesses to others no matter where we are. Not everyone will accept God the first time they hear about Him, but I know that if others are of the Lord's elect, He longs to show them compassion. My Father is a compassionate Daddy, One who desires to give us all of the good things He sees fit.

I pray that I will wait for the Lord; that I will depend on His strength to get me through the good days and the bad.

So I can be a little crazy at times. :-) The other day when I was spending time reading this in Isaiah, I had the most overwhelming need to go and share this passage with someone because it is just so typical of people in general. 

I walked down stairs and announced to my best friend that I had "a biblically-based announcement." 

As I started reading aloud to her, I was reminded once again of how important it is for us to proclaim God's Word and make it come to life for ourselves. Because of the way I learn, it's important for me to say lots of things aloud. . .not just in my head. It helps me seize God's promises. 

I think that's true for all of us as well. Sometimes when you're driving in your car, give a little shout to Jesus. I always feel so good when I can repeat to God the things He has promised me. . .not because I want to be all spiffy a have things memorized, but simply because it's the only way to keep myself on a path of thankfulness. 

The more I try to keep things "in my head" (so to speak), the more thankless I find myself becoming. If I thank God aloud for a few things, then it's like a waterfall of memories coming back to me. "Well, I just thanked God for coffee. . .but where would I be without my coffee maker?" 

No, I'm really not kidding. My focus is best kept when I am talking aloud to the Lord. Thanking Him, praising Him, sharing a joke or problem with Him. 

So back to the passage at hand. 

After reading that, I drew several conclusions about what this should tell us.

1) ALL of us are rebellious sometimes. We're just like the "deceitful children" mentioned above. We don't want to follow God because "our way looks prettier" or because "I'm good, why should I suffer?" What is encouraging is that once the scales have fallen from your eyes, you are forgiven despite this rebellion. As verse 18 says, the Lord is longing to show us compassion!

2) When we share Jesus with others, this is not always going to be met with ears willing to listen. In verse 10, the people have no desire to hear more about Jesus, more about the truth, more about what else was to come, etc. In addition, when we are struggling with sin and the Lord uses others to confront us, sometimes we do the same thing. "Stop being a holy roller! I don't want to hear more about the right thing to do!" In other words, we constantly need to check ourselves and our motives. If something hurts, there is a good chance it is the truth. Following the Lord and being obedient to Him is NEVER easy. It's always a battle. Some days, we feel like the truth is too much. We want to stay in our comfort zone, relying on self. Fortunately for us, the Lord STILL longs to show us compassion, even when we're being stubborn, feisty, and ungrateful. 

3) You can't get away from God. I mean, clearly, you probably know this. . .but it doesn't hurt to be reminded of this simple fact every once in awhile. Seriously. I think to myself. . .I can totally conceal this little thing over here. . .oh wait, no, I can't! God is everywhere, He's holding me (and His other babies) ever so tightly. I can't get away. Nothing. . .no height nor depth. . .can keep me from God's love. The same goes for God's protection. When I think that I can conceal some small sin, I am extremely wrong. God will not allow that for my own protection. He knows me better than I know myself. . .and that's a wee bit scary. 

4) Waiting on God isn't easy, but it is worth it. Keep running that race, keep reminding yourself of the end--glorification. After this very rough, very painful life of sanctification, we WILL be glorified with Christ. We WILL be hand in hand with Jesus. He WILL cut in on every dance.