Out of grief - a call to service

May 27, 2018 0 0

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Isaiah 6: 1-8

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. 2 Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 And one called to another and said:

‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.’

4 The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. 5 And I said: ‘Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’

6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7 The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: ‘Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.’ 8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’

The secret of Isaiah’s prophetic ministry lay in his vision of the Temple: “I saw the Lord!” (verse 1), the Lord calling him, his eager confession: “I am a man of unclean lips” (verse 5), and his unconditional willingness to obedience when God commanded him, “I’ll go Lord, send me” he says. It is simply amazing to see how Isaiah is aware of the Spirit of God right in the middle of the nation’s grief over the death of their king. This relates so well to the personal experience of loss when we seldom have the strength to put one foot in front of another. Leaning on God, experiencing His presence is often just not in the picture for most of us.

Isaiah found peace in the presence of God.

Are we able to find the same peace in the middle of unspeakable grief and turmoil? 

How do we use our faith, for surely it is our faith that sustains us at times like this?  

Isaiah was a faithful servant of God and with the death of King Uzziah and the coming of an era of strife, he was called to a task. This was a trying time for Israel. So God speaks to this man of faith amidst the pain of loss, amidst the grief and the turmoil, the worry about the future. It is Isaiah’s obedience, his unwavering faith in God that sustains him and gives him courage to follow God’s call on his life.

Lord, hold my grief.
Wrap your arms around me, comfort me.
Tomorrow is a far-away destination -
too far for me to contemplate.
Be my strength!

‘My child,’ says God, ‘I have a way prepared for you; 
I will give you strength in your sorrow. 
Through your loss, through your grief and pain
your obedience and sincere faith is intact for every tomorrow.'

Amen.