Look at the heavens, Come to Him and be satisfied

Have you ever felt extremely thirsty and yet you did not have access to water? What did you do when you finally found something to quench your thirst? I guess your answer is, “I drank and was satisfied.” Thirsting for water can be a daunting experience for people without access to it. Did you know that our souls can also thirst for the presence of God just like we desire to be satisfied when we are thirty? In Isaiah 55, God gives an invitation to the people to come to Him and have their spiritual emptiness filled by His provision. The clarion call is popular in evangelistic messages:
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.” (Isaiah 55:1‭-‬2)

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)

How can God satisfy our spiritual hunger? The presence of God fills our hungry souls. In fact, human beings have insatiable needs and no politician can completely satisfy our souls. The emptiness in our lives can only be filled with the presence of God. How does God do that? First, we have the responsibility to seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near (Isaiah 55:6). God has a plan to dwell in humanity. He has made a way to abide in us. Through Jesus, we have a personal relationship with God. No matter how far we have gone from Him, God is ever willing to return to us when we seek Him. God’s ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not ours. Why will God choose to forgive us our sins when we turn to Him? He loves us (John 3:16). If you are still struggling to comprehend God’s ways, look at the heavens. God says: 
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:8‭-‬11)

God’s love is so high that we cannot jump over it. He used the heavens, rain, snow, and planting to show us how His word nourishes and feeds us. Every word spoken by God will not return to God empty but will fulfill the purpose for which God sent that word. No matter how far we might have gone from God, He wants us to come to Him and He will satisfy our souls. What do we do when we return to Him? The word of God says: “Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” (Isaiah 55:7)
When we return to God, He gives us reasons to rejoice. He promised the Israelites that when they return to Him, He will do this:
“You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the Lord’s renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure forever.” (Isaiah 55:12‭-‬13)

God used nature to reveal His desire to satisfy our souls. His love for us is higher than the mountains but we can only experience it when we come to Him. It is a personal decision and we have the sole responsibility to either accept or decline. 

The sun and the rain show that the Father is gracious!

Recently, I was pondering about this, “why does God allow evil people to enjoy the same nature as us?” The rich dictators have all the money to visit the best natural habitats in the world. Their houses are built on strategic geographical locations with all the best scenery. They love to live at places where they would have the best view of nature. Some love to build on the mountain overlooking the beautiful vegetation and the rich waters. They live around lush vegetation and their environments are always well-watered. They have the best summer experiences because they have a good view of the sun and their warm pools or the water bodies around their houses give them a good swimming experience. Meanwhile, they keep oppressing the poor, the widow, the orphans and some even kill others just to remain at the top. Some are heartless, ruthless and selfish. All they desire is their self-gratification. So why does God still allow them to live to enjoy the sun, the rain and all the beauty of nature?

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matthew 5: 44-45)

God’s grace is indeed revealed through nature. God doesn’t love the sinner less. The truth is, God’s love for the sinner caused the death of His only begotten Son, and whoever turns from their sin and comes to God is saved (John 3:16). Similarly, nature is not meant for the righteous alone. Matthew 5:45 states that: “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” The Father does not hide nature from evil men but through creation, He makes known Himself to sinners (Romans 1:20). If you go to the house of the wicked, the sun is not darkened there. The rain is not hindered from falling on evil men. So whenever we see the sun shining or the rain falling, we should remember that God’s grace is being shared with all people.

The understanding that both good and evil people are recipients of God’s grace revealed through nature, should make us compassionate for the soul of the sinner. We should not rain curses on our enemies but shower them with God’s love. Jesus said that we should love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, so that we may be children of your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:44). Sin is what separates human beings from God. So we should pray for the wicked to turn away from their sin. The truth is, if we fail to pray for the sinner to turn from their wickedness, their actions could directly or indirectly affect us. If God does not stop the rain from falling on the compound of the wicked, then we shouldn’t stop praying for the wicked to turn from their sins. The sun shines brightly on the good and the bad, so must we show the love of God on all people. Maybe, our prayers, love and care will cause them to change. The Father is gracious and so must we!

Trust in the little signs of breakthrough

One man whose story in the Bible reminds me of trusting in God even when there is just a little sign of hope is Elijah. He had been zealous for God but he had to run away after he declared that there would be no rain on the land. Three years of famine ravaged the land because of the words of Elijah. “After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” (1 Kings 18:1). Elijah heeded to the word of God and ended up having a contest on Mount Carmel with the prophets of Baal (see 1 Kings 18). God showed up and devoured the sacrifice with fire, and this victory cost the lives of the prophets of Baal. The events of the day were just so perfect and everything seemed to work just well. Then, it was time for God to send the rain as promised. 

The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ ” (1 Kings 18:44)

The prophet had told king Ahab “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.” (1 Kings 18:41‭-‬42). King Ahab was told to go and eat while the prophet went on top of the mountain to pray. Elijah trusted God to cause a torrential rain to fall even if there was no sign of rain. Six times, Elijah summoned the servant to look towards the sea for a sign of rain. The servant reported that there was none. On the seventh look out, the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” Elijah told the servant, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.” Why was Elijah so hopeful if the cloud was just as big as a man’s hand? Elijah knew that the little cloud of breakthrough would definitely make way for big rains. 

1 Kings 17:45-46 reports that,  “Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain started falling and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.” Elijah trusted God for rain even when there was no sign and on the seventh time, God showed a little sign that brought about a big miracle. This story should remind us to make a ‘big deal’ out of the ‘small signs’ even as we trust in God for breakthroughs. When we pray, we should consider the small things that ultimately make the big difference. When we see a miracle as little as a finger of man, we should acknowledge it and hold on to God for fulfillment. Ecclesiastes 11:3a states that, “If clouds are full of water, they pour rain on the earth.” As we pray and trust in God, we should know that it takes a little sign to start something huge. Be in expectation of your miracle, be ready for your abundance of rain. 

Declare with me, “My expectations shall never be cut off.  I am trusting God for something huge. Even if it shows up as a finger of man, I know that my abundance is on the way.”