5 Righteousness will be his belt
and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
6 The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling a]">[a] together;
and a little child will lead them.
7 The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra,
and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest.
9 They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea. -Isaiah 11:5-9
When you talk about "expecting," it's quite hard to do it without mention of the Jews waiting for their Messiah. They had the beautiful scriptures from Isaiah that promised them a Prince of Peace, filled with righteousness and faithfulness... and the earth would be filled with the knowledge of God. I really hope sometime I can study Isaiah more in depth.
But today it strikes me that some didn't believe... despite all of the promises, all of the scriptures that pointed to Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah. Were they really expecting these promises to be fulfilled? I question myself about that sometimes... God's promises for us are so great and He is so faithful... but we are 'of little faith' and we doubt whether it can really be. But we need to wait in faithful expectance, or when His promises come true, we might not even see them. Lord, help me to have faith in the completion of Your promises in my life.
If you . . . know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! —Matthew 7:11
And we should expect such good things from the Lord. Now, I think the key here is that it doesn't say which good things. We don't tell our Father... ok... I'd like to order good thing #1- health, good thing #2- a beautiful home, good thing #3- job security, good thing #4- a handsome guy (well, that one's already taken care of anyway). I think some people think that, and so they become disheartened that God doesn't really "give good things to those who ask Him."
But perhaps it's more general. We ask God for blessings and protection, and He decides what gifts are good. Like a Father, he "knows best." Lord, thank You for all the good things that You have given to me... even when I was on the verge of giving up hope. I really was starting to doubt that I would meet someone like Brad. And I thank You for the many many good things that You have given to me- an education, the opportunity to travel and serve You, and the many good things to come. Further more, I thank You for Your wisdom. You know what is good, oh God. Help me to expect and appreciate the good things that You give to me... so that I may use them all for Your glory.
What God Expects from Us
1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. -Ephesians 4:1-3
Wow... what a powerful verse, especially the first one strikes me this morning. "I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." Imagine a world where all Christians were so on fire for Christ that they sought to live a life worthy of the calling they have received! It would be amazing! We are all called to certain things- humility, gentleness, patience, unity, etc. We also each have a calling.
Reading through Luke this week, what stood out to me was how different groups of people (soldiers, tax collectors, 'the crowd') all asked, "What shall we do?" It was good and right to ask this question, and they all received a very specific answer about what was required of them. So, I this morning ask this question, "What shall I do, Lord? What is your specific calling for me? What is required of me? I want to live a life worthy of the calling I have received." Thank You for the blessing of using me to complete Your work... fill me with your humility, gentleness, patience, so that I may honor You, always 'on fire' for my Lord, always living life for You.
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