The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says, "Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it."
Isaiah 30:15
Oh did I learn something reading this chapter in Isaiah! Not only am I a woman who will try and fix the situations I am in, I will also play over and over in my mind scenarios of how my situations could turn out and the little ways in which I can "adjust" my situation. I can envision that the people of Judah were just like me and they began looking at the facts in front of them. The fixers in them decided they couldn't fight alone. They did not trust their own strength and they decided to call on the help of Pharaoh. In fact, they were desperate and willing to call on anyone except God. They saw a crisis in front of them and began to take matters into their own hands without seeking the help of God. Worry brought on panic which led to over planning and analyzing, and that led them to punishment from God.
In the midst of crisis, pain, or fear many of us will make quick judgments. We will try and figure out the answers to our problems, and analyze ways to make sure the outcome of our circumstance turns out in our favor. For me, my problem lies in playing out every scenario possible until I have myself tied up in knots. I then start to panic and think of ways to fix or rearrange things so that I can make sure I get my way. Unfortunately I don't have good luck when it comes to fixing my own problems. My great ideas never seem to fall into God's grand design. Continue reading this chapter and you will find that God punishes Judah because they did not trust in Him to handle their problems and we too punish ourselves when we waste our time worrying and planning without first going to God. Instead of racing to quick judgment and panic and fixing we should be going to God and sitting in His quietness. In the place of planning and worry we should trust God and have confidence in our strength that comes from Him. When we get those initial thoughts of fear that lead to fixing we need to hand over our feelings and ask God for help.........waiting on Him to act or lead us to our next step. Don't feel bad when you have to return to God several times in one day!
Dear God, today I will return to You that which I am stressing to fix, and worrying about. I promise to wait on You to help me. Give me moments in which I can sit in Your quiet presence and give me the confidence to stay there. Amen
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