Trust in the Lord

Isaiah 26:1–4 (ESV)

26 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks. ² Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in. ³You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. ⁴ Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

We so often look for happiness and comfort in all the wrong places or at least in all the wrong starting places. Isaiah here is speaking to the people who were facing a daunting enemy yet God’s prophet calls them not to trust in their own strength and ability or the strength and ability of others to rescue them.  He simply says trust in the Lord God who is an everlasting rock.  God is the solid foundation and never shifting being who will never let his people down.  Life is full of things that bring us anything but peace and happiness.  Though we may not be facing large armies who are bearing down on our gates, we no doubt have struggles that we are in the midst of battling or that we can see on the horizon of life.  God was speaking to a very specific issue in the book of Isaiah and we can learn a lot about God as we look at how he dealt with his people of the Old Testament.  God simply called his people to trust in him.

In the midst of trouble, one of the hardest things to do is trust.  When we are struck with sickness it can be difficult to trust.  When we are dealing with broken relationships in our lives it can be very difficult to trust.  When we are feeling exhausted and burnt out from life trusting can seem like an insurmountable hurdle.  Yet the call is to trust as God has promised never to leave you nor forsake you even when that trust seems very weak and feeble.  He calls us by his gospel and again and renews our faith in the promises that are found in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  By God’s grace in Jesus, he will give you all you need even the trust and faith that clings to God’s promises 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.

If your trust/faith in God is weak today I invite you to pray a prayer that I say on a regular basis.  The words are found in the Gospel of Mark.  Mark 9:23–25 (ESV) ²³ And Jesus said to him, “ ‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” It is because of God’s strength that we have faith and trust in him.  Let us look to Jesus the author and perfector of our faith. When we fix our eyes on Jesus we will find true peace and happiness.

“God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.” C.S. Lewis