SCRIPTURE: Therefore the Lord waits [expectantly] and longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed (happy, fortunate) are all those who long for Him [since He will never fail them]. Isaiah 30:18 AMP

THOUGHT: I wrote on Friday about swift horses and swift pursuers – about cultures and nations racing off to ask for help from their enemies rather than going to the God who created and loves them. Here, just a few verses later in Isaiah 30, we find God waiting expectantly and longing to be gracious to and have compassion on us. Typically, we are being asked to wait, but here, we learn God is willing to do what he asks of us. And because God is a God of compassion and a God of justice, our confidence can grow even further. He will not err on the side of one or the other as humans are so apt to do.

Isaiah prophesied some very dark times for the people of God running away into their own misguided solutions, but he was also faithful to deliver God’s words about grace and compassion, remnants, seeds, and blessings for those who would stop their running.

Among the good words is this promise: Blessed (happy, fortunate) are all those who long for Him [since He will never fail them].

May you and I be among those who long for him, who seek him with our whole hearts, who run to him and not away, and find our longings fulfilled (Jer. 29:13).

SONG: Run to the Father https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATeEX1RLHP8

PRAYER: Oh God, we long to find you. Not someday, but today. We long for you to come and speak your words to us and over us. Words that will never fail. Words of perfect compassion and perfect justice. Words that bring hope alive as we walk the journey you’ve set before us. Thank you for waiting for us!