Between the diet and all the OT needs of my son, I had forgotten the path of personal growth I was traveling on with the Lord. In true mommy fashion, all else paled in comparison to the crisis we faced at home and at school. God is faithful, however, and did not let me go. So as I faced some hard truths last night, He led me to this passage and it was like a balm to my soul. Praise God for the hope that only he can give and the promise we can hold on to! I hope this passage in Isaiah 35 is as much of a blessing to you as it was to me. The last two lines of promise are especially soothing.
The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, It will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
They will see the glory of the Lord
the splendor of our God.
Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
say to those with fearful hearts,
“Be strong and do not fear,
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with Divine retribution
he will come to save you.”
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the tears of the deaf unstopped.
Then the lame will leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the hauts where the jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
And a highway will be there;
it will be called the Way of Holiness.
The unclean will not journey on it;
it will be for those who walk in that Way;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
No Lion will be there,
nor will any ferocious beast get up on it;
nor will they be found there.
But only the redeemed of the Lord will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 35
NIV translation
