Devotionals Daily: A Year with Jesus – January 24

Devotionals Daily: A Year with Jesus

From The Heavens Devotional, by Kevin Hartnett

Have you ever stumbled in the dark? Perhaps you've tripped coming into the house when the front light is off or fallen over a slipper when the bedroom is black. Tripping and slipping are seldom pleasurable and can cause significant hurt! Our contemplation today is taken fromIsaiah 26: "The path of the righteous is level" (v. 7). God's promise to us is that by following Him, our feet will miss many of the problems in life that trip others up. Dishonesty, unfaithfulness, unchecked bitterness . . . these all lead to broken, painful relationships that make life hard. But these actions should not characterize the life of God's redeemed. That is not to say that everything in our lives will go smoothly. On the contrary, we can predict that it won't. God sends trials into our lives to reveal to us the genuineness of our faith; to show us again His power and purpose to deliver us; to collect praise on the day Christ returns- both from believers and unbelievers (1 Peter 1:7).

"In the path of your judgments, O Lord, we wait for you" (Isaiah 26:8). Waiting honors God. We wait in His paths, not off them. We yearn for Him "in the night" (v. 9). While night implies spiritual and emotional darkness, perhaps Isaiah simply means it literally. Maybe tonight-as we've long promised ourselves-we will actually go for a walk beneath the stars and spend time with the Lord. In that hour, we can contemplate His amazing universe and think again on His power and promises. Perhaps tonight we will even hear His voice, for His Word says: "When I thought, ‘My foot slips,' your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul" (Psalms 94:18-19 ESV). Thank You, Lord, for Your faithfulness and promises. Thank You for leading me on a level path. I know You will bring back the light of day though all right now is dark. You are my hope; I trust You, amen.

The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous. In the path of your judgments, O LORD, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul. My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. – Isaiah 26:7 ESV

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