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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
In America we’ve been suffering many things in these months, and one of them is the absence of live sporting events. We lost the NCAA Basketball tournament and all College spring sports. We lost much of the NBA season, the first 1/2 of the Major League Baseball season, and several major Golf Tournaments like the Masters and others.
In most all sporting events there’s a period of time to ‘RENEW‘ focus, perspective, energy, game plan etc. In basketball and football and soccer it’s “halftime”. In ice hockey it’s between the three periods. In some sports it’s an ongoing process with regular built in moments like the time between green & tee in golf or time between innings in baseball. But how do you and I, PEOPLE ‘renew’ ourselves, our focus, our perspective, our depleted energy, our vision in life, when running at such a fast pace, and in such tumultuous times?
God spoke to His people through His prophet Isaiah in times such as ours. Listen to Isaiah 40:25 “To whom will you compare Me? Or who is My equal?’ says the Holy One. ‘Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing’.” In times of chaos and power struggles between nations and leaders, God invites us to RENEW our perspective by looking up, day or night, into the sky and see the evidence of God’s power in creation of sun, moon, stars, clouds and planet orbits. And as human led things around us seem out of control, God invites us to consider the exact location of all these solar miracles, and their perfect rotation, which gives us our daily time and our seasons. And as we just stand in awe of God’s handiwork, now allow our gaze to look at some of the things going on all around us. And listen to some of the voices of those who claim they have such power. Oh my, thank you God for RENEWING my perspective. Thank you for your Omnipotence and Your perfect control over Your grand creation, our universe!
Listen to God’s next statement of RENEW. . .“Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD, my cause is disregarded by my God?” (Is. 40:27) Oh my, that’s us isn’t it my friends? When life hurts, so quickly we complain that God isn’t paying attention to our situation, or God is too busy with others, or God is punishing us. That is NEVER true, none of it my friends. Listen closely: “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.”
Do large crowds amaze you? When in a very large crowd do you feel insignificant, lost, maybe even claustrophobic? Have you ever lost contact with family or close friends when you’ve been together at a place with thousands of other people? Remember the feeling of despair? I was almost trampled to death as a young boy at a large soccer stadium. My father put me up on his shoulders and I believe may have saved my life that day.
Isaiah wants to assure us that even with 7.7 Billion human beings on this planet, God knows each one, has created each one, is sustaining the life of each one, is watching each person at all times in all places. Psalm 139 tells us there is NO PLACE we could ever go, or be, that is out of God’s sight, away from His understanding! And here Isaiah assures us that God will never grow tired of looking after us, humans He lovingly created in His image. He especially delights in watching over His children, listen: “The eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His unfailing love.” (Psalm 33:18)
Do you also notice God has NO shortage of understanding of ALL that is going on in our universe, our turbulent world, each of the great cities of our world and even in each life among 7.7 Billion people! That means God not only understands the medical functioning of our bodies and the complex relationships we are in, God even knows what we are thinking…and He can see each of our lives in a time-warp, so He can see our past, present and our future all at the same moment! Take great encouragement from that friends, God understands every thing about you and me, especially the things we don’t know or understand about ourselves.
Therefore, as you and I contemplate the issues facing us,these days. As we face the choices and opportunities before us. As we try to make plans for our long distant future in such a tumultuous, confusing time… can you see the foolishness of doing so WITHOUT God’s help? And this my friends is the main reason so many marriages end up in divorce, so many people live in addictions, so much violence and discord in our cities and nations. When we rush forward pursuing our hopes, dreams, plans, and good ideas… and we disregard God, we are left only with our very limited, selfish perspective, and almost always we will make wrong decisions! Isaiah urges us to hunger for God’s help, God’s guidance, God’s wisdom at all times.
Finally, look at God’s promises to us in these last three verses: “God gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youth grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will RENEW their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31) Does that sound like God given RENEW? Do you see it is confident hope in God and His character, His promises, His Word, His Presence that brings renewal to your body, mind, heart and spirit? It is in the very real, vivacious, dynamic relationship you and your heavenly Father; you and your Savior Jesus; you and the Holy Spirit of God alive in you, have! It is in this vital relationship with Almighty God that you will find RENEW every time you need it!
And one last thing. Isn’t it wonderful to know that when you reach to God for such renewal His response will always be loving, always accepting of you, always a very personal response, through His Spirit living in You and through His personal words to you in His Scriptures. That’s why I always take you to His Scripture and invite you to listen to HEAR the Spirit speaking to you and RENEWING your spirit. That’s the promise of Hebrews 4:12 “The Word of God is living and active…”
Now my friends, the last question is. . . how often, where and how do you take time to RENEW with God? Remember last week we looked at Mark 1:35 and Jesus going out very early in the morning before daylight to meet with His Father and RENEW. How about you? May I ask you. . . what issues are you facing right now that cause you to feel a need for spiritual renewal?
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Click to read today’s chapter: Isaiah 40:25-31. (At the top you can choose a different translation.)
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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