Detecting Christmas December 5 Devotional
by David Joynt on December 05, 2023
Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
ISAIAH 64:1-2 | 1 O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence—2 as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil—to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!
One of the great challenges to trusting in the sovereignty of God is waiting during what can feel like an interminable delay. Isaiah wrote these words during the exile which began in 587 BC. Cyrus the Great gave the Jews in Babylon permission to return in 538 BC, roughly fifty years later. This two and a half generation period seemed like forever.
Between the last prophetic voice in the Old Testament, Malachi, and the appearance of John the Baptist, there were more than 20 generations without a “word from the Lord.” Waiting, however, is not just delay. Israel grew while waiting to enter the Promised Land, and the Exile was a time of great theological creativity.
Have you grown while waiting for something or someone?
Gracious God,
Grant us passion and patience, drive, and that peace that passes understanding, as we wait. Amen.
