Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” - Isaiah 35:4
It’s not fair.
How many times do we think this when we muddle along, trying to do the right thing and living according to God’s standards, while those around us who seem to do whatever they want - they seem to flourish. The ‘wicked’? They’re wildly successful. Fame and fortune seem to be theirs. From afar, what they have seems to be a shiny castle made of gold.
But look a little closer, and the castle has cracks, the gold might actually be fool’s gold, and the foundation seems to be shifting. They grasp onto what they have with greedy hands and live in fear of losing it. Drama and strife circles around them, following wherever they go. Yes, from afar it looks like a fairytale life, but in reality it’s just moments from falling apart.
I think God asks us to see with his eyes, not just so we don’t covet what appears to be a shiny lifestyle, but also so we can see the hurting person behind it. For us, Isaiah’s message is one of comfort: God will reward each according to what is deserved. For them, it’s likely a message that makes them nervous. They only know how to rely on themselves and live in fear of it all disappearing. They don’t know the deep peace that comes from reliance on God and his power and protection.
There’s a peace that comes from not living for self, from living in harmony with those around us, from living with open hands and an abundance mindset. From knowing that God is the giver of all good things, and that as we give away, we will be continually filled.
So what’s really not fair? The fact that we aren’t reaching out to people with lives that only look shiny and offering them a chance to know a peace that surpasses all understanding, to learn that life isn’t all about a scarcity mindset, to introduce them to our God.
So as we journey ever closer to Bethlehem, are we inviting others to journey with us, to meet the babe who will soon prove to be the Messiah? Are we looking around us to see others as God sees them, looking for an opportunity to extend peace and love?
O Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
the clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend;
even so, it is well with my soul.