Day 381: Isaiah 64- Longing And Waiting

Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at your presence— 2 as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil— to make your name known to your adversaries, and that the nations might tremble at your presence! 3 When you did awesome things that we did not look for, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. 4 From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him. 5 You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?
 
6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7 There is no one who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities. 8 But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. 9 Be not so terribly angry, O Lord, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all your people. 10 Your holy cities have become a wilderness; Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation. 11 Our holy and beautiful house, where our fathers praised you, has been burned by fire, and all our pleasant places have become ruins. 12 Will you restrain yourself at these things, O Lord? Will you keep silent, and afflict us so terribly?
 
Meditation
Is God sovereign, working life for the good of His people and the glory of His name? Today’s chapter frees us for deeper intimacy. God is our Father who loves us, the Potter shaping us for His service through circumstances of our lives.
 
Isaiah longs for Heaven to come to earth (1), for the presence of God to return (2). Isaiah’s petitions portray a transforming perspective to all struggling with circumstances:  God acts on behalf of those who wait for Him (3).
 
Our tendencies of immediate gratification drown out patience to wait. We look horizontally to satisfy longings rather than calling upon the name of the Lord. We turn to our worst ways, walking in the ways of the world (6-7) rather than rooting ourselves in the love of God.
 
God is Father and Potter, He is good and we can wait for Him. Those who wait for the Lord joyfully work righteousness and remember His ways (5). We find this level of faithfulness when we trust God as our “Father” and know He is using our circumstances as a “Potter,” shaping us for His service (8).
 
In every season we must trust the love of our Father. He is stretching and molding us with circumstances to sanctify and remake us to be more like Christ. We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the works He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:8-10).  We can trust Him.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What are you waiting and longing for? Do certain aspects of life feel out of control?
 
-Read 64:8 again. Which image of Divine Description stands out to you the most, Father or Potter? Why?
 
-God Himself is our Divine Destination. When we trust Him we realize He is enough, greater than anything we hope or long for. Take a moment to celebrate the satisfaction we have in Him through prayer. Allow your heart to overflow with the sufficiency of His presence and promises.
 
Key Verse
8 But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.