April 7, 2021
Good afternoon,
” Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom. Isaiah 40:28
I am tired. We have had four active members of our church die this year. There is another man who passed away, and we have his burial this Saturday at Poole. And we are not able to grieve in the way that we are used to doing. It is difficult. Then my mother-in-law dies in the United States. My wife has to go there alone because of my underlying conditions ( what a great euphemism for being sick ).
I am tired. The pandemic has been and is a long journey. Lockdowns, opening up, being in red or orange or yellow, and drive-by funeral visitations will always have new meanings for us. ICUs, stay-at-home orders, long haulers, and COVID death counts bring no relief.
Isaiah is tired. Isaiah gets weary of yelling and screaming at Israel and Judah of not following the ways of God. He says God is going to blow them off of the face of the earth. He loves them , but this is his message.
Isaiah is tired, but… In Isaiah 40:1, God says “Comfort, comfort , O my people”, and then in verse 28, he says that he will never be weary or tired of connecting with God’s people. God will give strength to the weary, and will increase the power of the weak.
PRAYER
Give us the strength that we need O God.
We are weary of the virus,
Renew our hearts
Reshape our minds
Reinvigorate our souls.
Restore us to a better place.
AMEN
Fred
Soaring like Vultures
lifted up by unseen Hands
Trust, silent enters my fears
Monica Pieper Landoni 2021
  | |||