He Is All We Need

This was the first full week of Lent, friends. How are you doing? Are you finding it hard to make the Word of God a priority in your life? Are you seeing how easy it is to place other things above your relationship with God? Sometimes it is shockingly easy to just forget about the very One who gives us each breath we breathe.

This week, in reading through Isaiah for Lent, I was struck with the fact that I often place so many people, things, and values above God Himself. It is so easy to think that my husband, my job, my title, my socioeconomic status, my outward appearance, or my friend group define who I am. But this week, as I read through chapters in Isaiah that talk of rebellious people and warring nations, it was easy to see that so often, we get it so wrong.

Isaiah 9:2-7 is often a passage we read at Christmastime to remind us of the prophecy of Christ's birth foretold. It reads:

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, 
on them light has shone.
You have multiplied the nation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you 
as with joy at the harvest,
as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden,
and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of his oppressor, 
you have broken as on the day of Midian.
For every boot of the trampling warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood 
will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace 
there will be no end, 
on the throne of David, and over his kingdom, 
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. 

In the midst of great sorrow and wickedness and rebellion, God breaks through with a promise. He tells His children of a man who will come and change the world, not through His power and His desire to reign as the ultimate authority, but through love, peace, and grace- authority in its purest and most beautiful form.

In Isaiah 13-17, there is a jarring description of God's judgement on various nations who have completely turned away from Him and are living in utter darkness. It is a strange juxtaposition after reading of the goodness that is to come, is it not?

Right next to the passage in Isaiah 9, I wrote this excerpt from the She Reads Truth Advent plan:

"If the future depends on whether or not I'm on my best behavior, it is bleak indeed. But the prophets foretell of Christ." 

Do you see it my friends? Every single part of the Bible points to our greatest need- Christ. We can do nothing without Him. We read the Bible and see all of these stories about people groups who turned away from Him and participated in horrendous acts, and we may think, "Man, these people were so jacked up!" But we're all jacked up messes without Christ. When we read of the people's rebellion and refusal to turn to the Father, we can be reminded of our rebellious ways- through pride, dishonesty, jealousy, strife, bitterness, and fear. We, too, are a rebellious people.

Thanks be to God for sending His Son to rewrite the narrative and give us our only hope through His Prince of Peace.

{Image via Life Lived Beautifully}

Friends, today's giveaway is a Give Me Jesus journal from Life Lived Beautifully! The Give Me Jesus journal was created by my sweet friend Gretchen to help women dig deeper into the Word of God. I have owned several and am currently using a 40-day version through Lent, and I love it! All you have to do to enter is leave a comment below. Share what God is teaching you, ask a question, or leave encouragement for others to see! Winner will be announced on Monday, so you've got all weekend. :) Have a lovely Friday, friends.