13 Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted.
14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”
15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child,
that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget,
yet I will not forget you. 16 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before me. 17 Your builders make haste;
your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you. 18 Lift up your eyes around and see;
they all gather, they come to you.
As I live, declares the Lord,
you shall put them all on as an ornament;
you shall bind them on as a bride does.
What is the word or phrase that touches you today as you read and meditate on this passage? What is your emotion as you read this word or phrase?
Can you think of a specific moment when you were forgotten – either intentionally or unintentionally? How did that make you feel? Why?
What times in your life do you most desire to be remembered? Be specific. How does it feel for you to know that there is a God who will never forget you under any circumstance?
Thank God for always remembering you.
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
17 Thus says the Lord,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you to profit,
who leads you in the way you should go. 18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea; 19 your offspring would have been like the sand,
and your descendants like its grains;
their name would never be cut off
or destroyed from before me.”
20 Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea,
declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it,
send it out to the end of the earth;
say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!” 21 They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow for them from the rock;
he split the rock and the water gushed out.
22 “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
What is the word or phrase that touches you today as you read and meditate on this passage? What is your emotion as you read this word or phrase?
The person who fails to trust God’s word completely forfeits more than comfort. He or she forfeits peace (v18). The person who abandons confidence in the Word of God will soon abandon God’s commands as well. He will soon discover that he has no peace.
What is your present situation? Do you have peace? Is God calling you to repent and trust in God? Do you feel capable of releasing all of your burdens to God or do you hold back because you’re not sure if He will be there for you?
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
8 Now therefore hear this, you lover of pleasures,
who sit securely,
who say in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me;
I shall not sit as a widow
or know the loss of children”: 9 These two things shall come to you
in a moment, in one day;
the loss of children and widowhood
shall come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries
and the great power of your enchantments.
10 You felt secure in your wickedness;
you said, “No one sees me”;
your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray,
and you said in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me.” 11 But evil shall come upon you,
which you will not know how to charm away;
disaster shall fall upon you,
for which you will not be able to atone;
and ruin shall come upon you suddenly,
of which you know nothing.
12 Stand fast in your enchantments
and your many sorceries,
with which you have labored from your youth;
perhaps you may be able to succeed;
perhaps you may inspire terror. 13 You are wearied with your many counsels;
let them stand forth and save you,
those who divide the heavens,
who gaze at the stars,
who at the new moons make known
what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, they are like stubble;
the fire consumes them;
they cannot deliver themselves
from the power of the flame.
No coal for warming oneself is this,
no fire to sit before! 15 Such to you are those with whom you have labored,
who have done business with you from your youth;
they wander about, each in his own direction;
there is no one to save you.
What is the word or phrase that touches you today as you read and meditate on this passage? What is your emotion as you read this word or phrase?
In our sophisticated and cynical age, why do you think most major newspapers faithfully carry astrological information day after day? Have you ever been drawn to astrology or any other occult practices? Do you think it is appropriate for Christians to be involved in these things? Why or why not?
What does this passage relate to your current situation? What does God tell you to do?
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
