Advent Devotional for Thursday, 15 December 2011
Week 3: JOY
Joy of the Redeemed
1 The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, 2 it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the LORD,
the splendor of our God.
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, 2 it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the LORD,
the splendor of our God.
3 Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
4 say to those with fearful hearts,
“Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you.”
steady the knees that give way;
4 say to those with fearful hearts,
“Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you.”
5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
6 Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
7 The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
6 Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
7 The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
8 And a highway will be there;
it will be called the Way of Holiness;
it will be for those who walk on that Way.
The unclean will not journey on it;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
9 No lion will be there,
nor any ravenous beast;
they will not be found there.
But only the redeemed will walk there,
10 and those the LORD has rescued will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
it will be called the Way of Holiness;
it will be for those who walk on that Way.
The unclean will not journey on it;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
9 No lion will be there,
nor any ravenous beast;
they will not be found there.
But only the redeemed will walk there,
10 and those the LORD has rescued will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 35:1-10
When has God not been there for you? God is always there no matter what. You could be going through some tought times, and yet He is still there. You could even hate Him or dislike Him, but you know what, He is there. Everything and everyone has a purpose, God has everything under control. Sometimes I ask God, "Who am I? Why am I here? Why am I in this school?" And you know what I do, I wait for Him to answer me, and that is not the right thing to do. That is my mistake that I have to learn from. That is a mistake everyone makes, but we must stop making that mistake. God wants to use us, but if we are not willing, if we are not putting our effort and our action into the situation, then don't blame Him for not answering, blame yourself for not acting.
I have dedicated my life to God. God is the number 1 thing in my life. Nothing and no one can ever surpass Him. He gave me life. He saved me. He was there when I was born, and you know what, He is still here. We all must dedicate our time to God. We must dedicate everything to Him. We must not act like any other human, but we must act like God. We must live the way Jesus did. God gave his only son Jesus for us, and He saved us, so Let's live like He did, and lets open our eyes so we can see the path ahead of us. Let's unplug our ears and let's hear what God has to say. Let's stop being lame and jump and feel the Holy Spirit. Let's open our mouths and scream praises to God. It says in Isaiah, "And when He comes, He will open the eyes of the blind and unplug the ears of the deaf. The lame will leap like a deer, and those who cannot speak will sing for joy!" (Isaiah 55:5-6) We have no excuses; God is here. So if He is here then we should let Him heal our lameness so we can leap. We should let Him open our mouths so we can sing to Him. On this day let's dedicate our lives to God and let's accept Him into our lives. If you want there is this Spanish song that is beautiful: "Promesas" by Felsy Jones. It means Promises in English.
God has many promises He has made us and He will always keep them.
Written by: Victor Rosa, Class of 2014
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