Verse of the Day 9/3

Isaiah 48:17  This is what the Lord says—
    your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
"I am the Lord your God,
    who teaches you what is best for you,
    who directs you in the way you should go.

 

My wife and I have a walking route that we take through the neighborhood.  At one point  you can see a panorama of one portion of the neighborhood which looks up to the high point of the walk.  To get to this high point you must go down before you can go back up and make it to the top.  As I walked that route yesterday morning while pushing our son Jeff in his wheelchair, I was on may way out of the "valley" and approached the summit, the Third Day song "Mountain of God".  Here are a few of the lines.

 

As I travel on the road
That You have lead me down
You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I have need for nothing more
Oh, now that I have found
That You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me

 

I confess from time to time
I lose my way
But You are always there
To bring me back again

 

Even though the journey's long
And I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand upon the mountain of God

There are times in our lives where things are going well but news or a diagnosis comes where we realize that a rough road lies ahead and that we must go down, go through the treatments, the job search, or go through therapy before we can come out of it again.  Often times, as it is in pushing up that final hill, the road out of the valley can be just as hard or more difficult than the road down.  But we can, we must press on, knowing the One who has gone before us before, will do so again.  We are on an "upward way" that doesn't reach the end here on earth.

 

So if you are on that road, whether it is looking down into into a valley and the road you must travel, or at the bottom looking up, or pressing on during the climb out, let the Lord lead you and teach you at whichever point you find yourself along the way.

 

In Christ,

Mike

 

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Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

Isaiah 48:16-18 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

16 Approach Me and listen to this.
From the beginning I have not spoken in secret;
from the time anything existed, I was there."
And now the Lord God
has sent me and His Spirit.
17 This is what the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says:

 

I am Yahweh your God,
who teaches you for your benefit,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention to My commands.
Then your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.