Scripture for the week of November 15, 2015
“Comfort, yes, comfort My people!” Says your God. “Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned… The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places s…mooth; the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” Isaiah 40:1-5 (NKJV)
Have you ever struggled with the sorrow and sadness of this life or the overwhelming grief of a great tragedy with longing for comfort? Sometimes the agony of loss and the pain of injustice we experience in this world can be hard to bear as we search for our lost hope in the puddles of our tears. The prophet Isaiah twice declares to the people of God “comfort, comfort” (meaning a double portion) along with the end of warfare and mercy for their sinfulness. He exhorts them to prepare a way for the Lord; with the promise that the extreme highs and lows will be made right, the crooked and rough will be made straight and smooth, and that all would see the glory of the goodness of the Lord in their land. Oh, Lord, comfort the wounded hearts of your people once again and may Jesus, the Prince of Peace, be revealed for the healing of the nations that your glory and goodness will shine in all the earth. Amen.