How To Make Salvation Blossom

From today’s reading…

In verse 18 today Isaiah reminds us that Yahweh did not create the world to be filled with chaos, yet here we are, trying to get by in a world that seems overflowing with it.

How we conduct ourselves in difficult times, when we feel as though we have our backs up against the wall, determines how we’ll participate in the “blossoms” and “salvation” that God wants for us.

“But Wes, since God made everything, He made the chaos, the pain, the suffering, which shows He doesn’t really want us to have blossoming salvation or justice. He’s mean. He’s spiteful. He’s not any kind of loving know-it-all I want any part of.”

To those who only make a superficial review of the Bible, it’s understandable that one might come to this conclusion: “God is all-powerful, all-knowing, creator of all things, which means He created the good and the bad, so everything is His fault.”

But there is a flaw in that thinking.

A good friend of mine who attended my graduation from USAFA, was in my wedding, had me in his wedding, and is the godfather of my firstborn is in prison for embezzlement as I write this. His parents created him 51 years ago. Are they responsible for the actions he took in his 40’s that led to his imprisonment?

You’ve heard the saying “If you love someone, set them free” and it’s true. God proves this by loving us so much, He gave us free will. He doesn’t smother us. He’s not a “helicopter dad.” But he’s not an absentee or deadbeat dad, either.

He knows how to keep His distance and give us room to spread our wings, but He’s always calling, texting, sending us letters, commenting on our posts, and doing everything He can to let us know He has left a light on for us, the key is still under the mat, and a pot of fresh coffee is always on for us, and all we have to do is…

Stay the course. Keep the faith. Endure.

Now go sell something.