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Isaiah 55:8-9

“For My counsels are not as your counsels, neither are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “But as heaven is distant from earth, so is My way distant from your ways, and your thoughts from My mind.”

Personal Challenge

No matter how educated we may become, how much wealth we may acquire, how much power we may seize, we are still temporal and unable to compare to God. We may seek the counsels of other people, especially those who agree with us, but God’s counsel far exceeds theirs. His ways are so much farther above the ways of man. We must always yield to Him and pursue Him if we desire to see Him in our lives. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 55:1-2

“You who are thirsty, go to the water, and all who have no money, go and buy wine and fat, and eat and drink without money and price. Why do you value at the price of money, and give your toil for what does not satisfy? Listen to Me and eat good things, and your soul will delight in good things.”

Personal Challenge

The affluence of our culture has made it difficult for us to value that which is really the most valuable, our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him, we do not need the stuff of this world to quench our thirst or satisfy our hunger. These temporal things quickly fade away. It is only in Jesus that our soul is truly satisfied and enriched. It is in Him that we can really appreciate the temporal gifts that He has made us stewards over. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 45:25

All the seed of the children of Israel shall be made righteous by the Lord, and glorified in God.

Encouraging Words

We put our hope, all of it, in God. To do anything less is to dilute our relationship with Him and His power in our lives. One aspect of this hope is that one day we will be made righteous by Him and through that righteousness glorified in Him. Righteousness is not something that we can achieve or acquire on our own. It is bestowed upon us in His love for us. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 43:18

“Do not remember the former things, nor reason about the things of old.”

Encouraging Words

What a perfect verse for January 1, 2021! It has been quite a year, a year to forget, and a year that we will always remember. It is so important that we learn from our past, but it does not do us any good to dwell upon it and let it control us. It is also important to not invest too much of ourselves focusing on the future, for we cannot make it happen just as we cannot change the past. Today is what we have before us and today is the day that we can glorify God and love our neighbor. Goodbye to 2020 and hello to our new day. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 43:1-2

And now, thus says the Lord God who made you, O Jacob, and who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I redeemed you. I called you by your name, for you are Mine. If you pass through water, I am with you; and the rivers shall not overflow you. If you pass through fire, you shall not be burned up, nor shall the flame consume you.”

Encouraging Words

As followers of Christ, we are members of His Church. His Bride. It is our God who formed and made us. He has called us by name because we are His. No matter what trials and tribulations we pass through, He will not let us be over­whelmed or overtaken. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 42:1-4

“Jacob is My Servant; I will help Him. Israel is My chosen; My soul accepts Him. I put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, nor cause His voice to be heard outside. A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; but He will bring forth judgment in truth. He will shine forth and not be broken until He establishes judgment in the earth; and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”

Encouraging Words

Who is this passage referring to? Who is this Jacob, that is chosen and accepted by God? Who will have the spirit of God put upon Him? Who will do, and be, all the other wonderful things that this passage calls out? It is Jesus who was fully man and fully God. As man, Jesus had God’s Spirit descend upon Him. He showed love, compassion, mercy, and grace to those around Him. He is our salvation. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 41:10

Fear not, for I am with you. Do not go astray, for I am your God who strengthens you; and I will help and secure you with My righteous right hand.

Encouraging Words

We have nothing to fear when the world around us goes awry. We have no reason to turn away from God when our lives get difficult. God is the one who gives us strength. He is the one who helps and secures us. He is our refuge and our fortress and we can fear not. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Isaiah 40:29-31

He gives strength to the hungry, and sorrow to those who do not grieve. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the elect shall be without strength. But those who wait on God shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not hunger.

Encouraging Words

This has always been one of my favorite passages. God takes care of us. He holds us in the palm of His hands. The more we do Ho’s work the more He lifts us up and restores us. The more we wait on Him the more we see Him. Glory be to God!

Isaiah 40:7-8

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God abides forever.

Encouraging Words

We have some faith practices today that believe the only true and complete word of God are those writings that have been bound between two leather covers. Some even go so far as to say that the only correct version of these writings is the one that is written in old English. How can this be when these writings themselves say that the word of God abides forever? This is because Isaiah is talking about the Word of God, Jesus Christ who is eternal with no beginning and no end. He is the only true Word of God. He is not bound between two leather covers or held to one form of language. He is the Word that we cherish and worship. He is the one who continues to write His story on the hearts of mankind and the pages of history. Glory be to God!