Thursday, August 18, 2016

Discernment based on Isaiah 45: 4

The prophet Isaiah says to us in chapter 45:4: It is for the sake of my servant Jacob and of Israel my chosen one, that I have called you by your name, have given you a title though you do not know me.

You are called, not for your own sake, but for the sake of God's servants, patriarchal leaders--in this day and age we would include matriarchal leaders, as well--persons very precious and loyal to the Lord their God.  Who, in your past, are models of faithfulness to the Lord God and for whose sake you, too, aim to be true to what God is asking of you?

Isaiah says to you that God has called you by name. Think of a time, when among many others, the teacher or your parents or your employer called you by name to be the one to accomplish an important task.  The mission was given to you, not to a brother or sister, not to another student or another employer. The "title" was yours, so to speak. This is God doing the choosing, not a parent, not a teacher, not an employer.

Isaiah says that God is the one choosing you, calling you by name, bestowing a title upon you "though you do not [even] know" God.  Is that title "Christian," "Sister," "Brother," "Father," "Mother," "Aunt," "Uncle," "Grandmother," "Grandfather"?

I invite you to ponder these thoughts. Take time to reflect upon Isaiah 45:4!

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