What we look forward to
So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious if you ask for help. He will surely respond to the sound of your cries. Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink, he will still be with you to teach you. You will see your teacher with your own eyes. Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left. Then you will destroy all your silver idols and your precious gold images. You will throw them out like filthy rags, saying to them, “Good riddance!....The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter—like the light of seven days in one! So it will be when the Lord begins to heal his people and cure the wounds he gave them. Isaiah 30:18-26 NLT
From the text, Isaiah is telling the people that the Lord is waiting for them to come to Him. In faith, in openness, and in humility we come to Him. There is this confidence that God’s timing is right and His methods are wise. We are blessed when we come to this point of realization. “Blessed are those who wait for his help.” That mentality of trust is the way into spiritual blessedness: “Blessed are all those who wait for him.” God is gracious and patient to us; He puts up with us moment by moment. It is God’s faithfulness that we can look forward to in times of afflictions. God’s greatest gift to us is Himself; His presence and nearness. When the eyes of our hearts are enlightened and we begin to delight in His word, the course of our lives changes. Once the presence of God breaks through in our lives and the Word of God acts with authority, we finally see the truth and we will begin to “destroy all [our] your silver idols and [our] your precious gold images” (v. 22). It is Christ alone, His grace alone, faith alone, and Scripture alone that in all conditions of life, we will be better off with God. Our growing understanding and enjoyment of God are a foretaste of what is to come. “The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter—like the light of seven days in one! So it will be when the Lord begins to heal his people and cure the wounds he gave them” (v. 26). In the midst of difficulties we ask God the question, “How long, O Lord?” Then He responds with this answer, “Whenever you’re ready to trust me.”
Blessings,
