Plea for Grace February 22, 2022

Isaiah 40:18-20 ESV – 18 To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? 19 An idol! A craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains. 20 He who is too impoverished for an offering chooses wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skillful craftsman to set up an idol that will not move.

Lord, this is just as useless and fruitless as the psalmist who muzzles his mouth or speaks out to the wicked — and it seems to make no difference. Why am I even here? What good am I doing? Is following You a waste of a very short life?

Isaiah 40:21-24 ESV – 21 Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; 23 who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. 24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

When I get into that frustrating muddle . . .I forget that who I am is not the point. God, You are the source; You are the Sovereign. If You ask me to speak to people who will not listen, my response is to obey. Whether they listen or not, whether circumstances seem to change or not, is not in my power.

Isaiah 40:25-28 ESV – 25 To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might and because he is strong in power, not one is missing. 27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God”? 28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.

Lord, You know every star by name, and You know where every one of them is at all times. I am not invisible to You; You know every one of my needs, wants and desires. My life is not inconsequential. Even if I am merely a touch of color in this masterpiece of Your creation, it’s the color that You have chosen in Your world, for Your purpose.

Isaiah 40:29-31 ESV – 29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Father, not only am I not invisible to You, but You supply the strength to do what You have called me to do. You know that I grow tired and want to give up. But I am not the source of my strength. I am not the designer of this masterpiece. You are the everlasting God. Your understanding is unsearchable. You are my Father. I trust You for all of my life.

Pray for the Persecuted Church — OpenDoorsUSA

Day 2: Pray for any believers in Pakistan who are accused of
blasphemy.