Isaiah 49:13-26
Reflect
This passage comes flying out of the gates with an uplifting proclamation to sing for joy, and then stays closely aligned with the horrors of the experiences that people are living through. This, and all of Scripture, is written to the oppressed, the afflicted (v13). Perhaps you are deep in that place right now. The past months have shaken the foundation of so many. As people of the covenant, we must intentionally reject the lie that God has forgotten us (v14). Pause and consider who the most vulnerable are right now whose experience proclaims not joy, but abandonment. Could it be the child in the womb that will never be allowed to be born and have the experience of being a nursing child (v15)? Could it be one of the 4 million sex slaves in the world (each a child of someone) that have generated 99 billion dollars in the past year to their oppressors? Could it be one of the over 900 opiod deaths in Edmonton in the past year – each of whom is someone’s daughter or son? God promises that “even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued. I will contend with those that contend with you, and I will save your children”. When God saves the afflicted, He most frequently does so through the person who responds to His call to “Follow Me”. To which of the afflicted is God calling you? I’d love to discern this with you.
Pastor Dan
Pray
- Pray for the Prime Minister, Premier Kenney, Mayor Iveson, your MP, your MLA, and any other government officials God brings to your mind.
- Pray for Dave Schneider, our Youth Ministry Pastor as he is on sabbatical, and his intern Monica Rosvall.
- Pray for Karen Alksne, our Congregational Life Ministry Assistant.
- Pray for our Senior Lead Team Pastor, Lyle Buyer, his family and his ministry.