9.18.2021 – An invitation for the “more” that He has in store…
I love mornings when it’s kind of like a “seek and find adventure” through the living, breathing Word of God…
You know,
when the Lord gives us tiny glimpses into something that is surrounded and hidden in mystery,
but He invites us into this place
of “seeking and finding”
with Him…
There is so much that I do not understand,
but I feel like the Lord is teaching me to listen
and to dig in,
to “look to see”
what He is showing me. 💡
And usually, I don’t put a lot of these kinds of things on here…
I like to practice listening within the private pages of my journal. 😊💖
And perhaps,
that is the way it is supposed to be…
To seek to hear,
to write it down,
and then
to pray,
to watch and wait
to see
what He will do.
But this morning, I am sensing there may be a piece that I am to share on here…
Do you know the place between sleeping and waking?
They call it “twilight”…
This morning I heard something very clearly while in that place,
and so I’ve been sitting with the Lord this morning,
asking Him about what I heard.
As I sat asking Him about this that I heard while between sleeping and waking,
I began to hear a verse from Joel 2 flow into my mind…
“And afterward I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.” (Joel 2:28)
And then I felt like I heard, “Isaiah 55” and so I went to look into that passage of scripture because I honestly forget what chapter says what most of the time…
The Free Offer of Mercy
55 “Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have no money come, buy grain and eat.
Come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without cost [simply accept it as a gift from God].
2 “Why do you spend money for that which is not bread,
And your earnings for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight in abundance.
3 “Incline your ear [to listen] and come to Me;
Hear, so that your soul may live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
According to the faithful mercies [promised and] shown to David.
4 “Listen carefully, I have appointed him [David, representing the Messiah] to be a witness to the nations [regarding salvation],
A leader and commander to the peoples.
5 “In fact, you [Israel] will call a nation that you do not know,
And a nation that does not know you will run to you,
Because of the Lord your God, even the Holy One of Israel;
For He has glorified you.”6 Seek the Lord while He may be found;
Call on Him [for salvation] while He is near.
7 Let the wicked leave (behind) his way
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord,
And He will have compassion (mercy) on him,
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts higher than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain and snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth,
Making it bear and sprout,
And providing seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 So will My word be which goes out of My mouth;
It will not return to Me void (useless, without result),
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.
12 “For you will go out [from exile] with joy
And be led forth [by the Lord Himself] with peace;
The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
13 “Instead of the thorn bush the cypress tree will grow,
And instead of the nettle the myrtle tree will grow;
And it will be a memorial to the Lord,
For an everlasting sign [of His mercy] which will not be cut off.”
I also love to read this passage (Isaiah 55) in The Passion Translation:
Invitation to an Abundant Life
55 “Listen! Are you thirsty for more?
Come to the refreshing waters and drink.
Even if you have no money,
come, buy, and eat.
Yes, come and buy all the wine and milk you desire—
it won’t cost a thing.
2 Why spend your hard-earned money
on something that can’t nourish you
or work so hard for something that can’t satisfy?
So listen carefully to me
and you’ll enjoy a sumptuous feast,
delighting in the finest of food.
3 Pay attention and come closer to me,
and hear, that your total being may flourish.
I will enter into an everlasting covenant with you,
and I will show you the same faithful love
that I showed David.
4 See! I made him a witness to the nations,
an example of leadership,
as prince and commander of peoples.”
5 Look! You will summon nations you’ve never heard of.
Nations who have never heard of you
will come running to follow you
because Yahweh, your God, the Holy One of Israel,
has glorified you!
God’s Mercy Greater than Man’s
6 Seek the Lord Yahweh when he makes himself approachable;
call upon him when you sense he is near.
7 The wicked need to abandon their ways,
and sinful ones need to banish every evil thought.
Let them return to Yahweh,
and they will experience his compassionate mercy.
Yes, let them return to God,
for he will lavish forgiveness upon them.
8 “For my thoughts about mercy are not like your thoughts,
and my ways are different from yours.
9 As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so my ways and my thoughts are higher than yours.
10 “As the snow and rain that fall from heaven
do not return until they have accomplished their purpose,
soaking the earth and causing it to sprout with new life,
providing seed to sow and bread to eat.
11 So also will be the word that I speak;
it does not return to me unfulfilled.
My word performs my purpose
and fulfills the mission I sent it out to accomplish.”
12 For you will leave your exile with joy
and be led home wrapped in peace.
The mountains and hills in front of you will burst into singing
and the trees of the field will applaud!
13 Cypress trees will flourish where there were only thorns
and myrtle trees instead of nettles.
These will stand as a testimony to Yahweh’s renown,
everlasting signs that will not be cut off.”
THIS is God’s heart.
THIS is His desire.
THIS is what He desires to do within His people, and within the earth.
He desires to drench us in His forgiveness,
to saturate us in His Spirit
in a glorious way,
that we might radiate HIS glory
within this day.
But He wants us to be prepared
with pure hearts
that are able to RECEIVE Him,
that we may have eyes
that are able to SEE Him
when His Spirit comes flooding in.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”—Matthew 5:8
It’s a beautiful invitation,
but it comes with an urgent plea…
and I sense that Isaiah 55 is key.
“Pay attention and come closer to me,
and hear, that your total being may flourish.” (v3)
“Seek the Lord while He may be found.
Call upon Him while He is near.” (v6)
“Yes, let them return to God,
for he will lavish forgiveness upon them.” (v7)
May we prepare…
as we pray, and watch,
and wait.
May we have hearts that are
prepared and purified…
that
we
may be
ready
to experience, joyfully…
as we
see
God
do
what He has planned in His heart to do. 💝🌊⛲️✨
“But as it has been written: “What no eye has seen, and no ear has heard, and has not entered into heart of man, what God has prepared for those loving Him. But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God…”—1 Corinthians 2:9-10
Thank You, Father. 💝 Your will and Your way, God. May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
-Heather 🌺
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