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| DECEMBER |
15 |
MONDAY |
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God Will Do It!
I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass. —Isaiah 46:11
READ: Isaiah 46:8-13
REFLECT: One of the memorable moments from the Cosby Show years ago involves Bill confronting his son, Theo. Theo is acting a bit rebellious and raises Bill’s dander. Bill firmly says, “Remember, son, I brought you into this world, and I can take you out!” Theo cowers quickly in the face of such a strong statement of authority, and the audience laughs.
Isaiah begins this section of Scripture with God urging God’s people to “remember, . . . consider, recall.” In a statement of undeniable authority, God names the rebellion of the Israelites, rejects the power of the Babylonian idols (see vv. 1-7), tells the people to remember the past, and calls on them to use that memory as a basis for trust in the future. In essence, Isaiah says that words of intention from the mouth of God are enough to bring God’s purposes to pass: “I have spoken, . . . and I will do it” (v. 11).
When I was depleted of patience with my children and they resisted what I told them to do, I recall taking a stance similar to Cosby’s: “Why? Because I said so!” I always felt sorry later that I hadn’t taken the time for a heart-to-heart chat to explain my reasons. But in the end, what I had said was true; as children, they needed to act on my authority—just as the Israelites needed to trust and act on God’s.
—Helen Tellez
RESPOND: God, when I am “stubborn of heart,” speak to me. Help me act on your words so I can be delivered from my pride and my idols. |
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