My Epic Journey

I am a passionate person.  Very little people see it, but I am definitely a passionate person.  When I am happy, I am passionately happy.  When I am contemplative, I am passionately contemplative.  When I am generous, I am passionately generous.  When I am angry, I am passionately angry.  It is that last part I get most nervous about.  When I get angry, I have this passion come over me to right the wrong.  As a result, I have often said something I regret and didn’t mean or did something that was selfish and inappropriate.

Then I read Isaiah 34.  I see that God gets angry as well.  And though, for a second I may feel justified with my anger, I notice some differences between God’s anger and my own anger.

1.  God’s anger is a righteous anger.  God is angry about a lack of respect for Him and His people.  My anger is mostly centered on my own pride and how I feel hurt.

2.  God’s anger is just.  He is angry only toward those who deserve His anger.  He doesn’t just “fly off the handle.”  He is calculated and fair.  I, on the other hand, take it out on everyone, if they deserve it or not.

3.  God’s anger is complete.  After reading Isaiah 34 I sit in silence at how extravagant God’s anger is.  He says in verse 10 that it will span generations.  Sounds extreme, but God’s anger is complete.

After reading Isaiah 34, in anticipation I look forward to reading the next chapter and see that in the end, it is with that vengeance that He comes to save those He loves (35.4).

I must remind myself that my anger is is never appropriate if it isn’t a righteous anger, an anger directed at direct disobedience of God.  I must also remind myself that vengeance is never mind to give.

I am the kind of person that loves to hear only the good things about life and really don’t enjoy hearing any thing negative and yet I am reminded that a loving parent will discipline their child.  God, who is a more loving parent than I am, will therefore show His love sometimes by disciplining me when I step out of line.  My reaction?  Well my reaction is normally to push away, much like a child who pushes away from their parent during discipline.  Isaiah 30.9-11, records God’s frustration when we only accept that which is pleasing and ignore that which is needed:

Isaiah 30:9-11 (NIV)
⁹ These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the LORD’s instruction.
¹⁰ They say to the seers, “See no more visions!” and to the prophets, “Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions.
¹¹ Leave this way, get off this path, and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!”

May I not be afraid to be confronted by a loving Heavenly Father, knowing that His love will often bring discipline to this often wayward child!

I had the wonderful privilege of meeting with 3 middle school girls last night that had a ton of questions concerning God.  One of the questions that was asked was, “What does God do all day?”  I shared with them the verse from 2 Chronicles 16.9, “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”

This morning, as I was reading in Isaiah, I came across to poignant verses concerning God’s ever watchful eye:

1.  God sees past our words and peers into our heart (Isaiah 29.13)

The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.

2.  There is NOTHING we can hide from God (Isaiah 29.15-16)

Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the LORD, who do their work in darkness and think, “Who sees us? Who will know?”
You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, “He did not make me”? Can the pot say of the potter, “He knows nothing”?

God, may I be reminded that I can never fool you are hide anything from you.  May I be reminded that though I may look and sound good to others on the outside, You KNOW my heart.  Cleanse me O Lord.  May what you find in me be pleasing in your sight!!!!!