This post is part of a 40-Day Prayer Journey through the season of Lent. Click here to learn more and read other posts in the series.
“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. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (Isaiah 40:27-29).
Does God care about me? Does he even know what’s going on in my life?
That seems to be some of the sentiment in the verses above, as the people of Israel voiced their complaints. But the prophet Isaiah shuts that line of questioning down, bluntly calling on the people to remember who their God is: the Lord, the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not, will not, cannot grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
So the questions of “Does God care about me?” and “Does he even know what’s going on in my life?” are swiftly answered with a resounding “Yes!” The God of Israel is the covenant God who keeps all of his promises, who loves his people with an everlasting love, even though they do not deserve it.
But digging a little deeper into the reasoning behind the complaints, might it have been that the Israelites weren’t seeing God do what they thought he should be doing? Might it have been that they weren’t seeing God act in the way they wanted him to? Because of that, might they have thought God didn’t care about them, that he didn’t know what was going on in their lives?
When God doesn’t act the way we want him to, and when he doesn’t do what we want him to do, dear Christian, remember these words from Isaiah: “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.”
God doesn’t always tell us why he allows certain things to happen in our lives, but he does tell us who he is and what he has done to save us from our sins.
He is the God who keeps his promises, from everlasting to everlasting. He created all things, including you and me, and loves us with an amazing love that we can’t begin to understand. As for his understanding and why he does things the way he does, that we can’t even begin to fathom. But what we need to know, that he shares openly and plainly in his Word.
God cares so much about you and me. He sent Jesus to rescue us from sin. He knows what’s going on in our lives. He knows when we are weary and powerless. And he does what only he can do: He gives strength to the weary and power to the weak through his Word and sacraments. He gives us what we need to get through life in this sin-darkened world until we see him face-to-face. Until then, focus on who God is and what he has done for you.
We’re God’s dearly loved children. Forgiveness is ours. Heaven is ours. All because of Jesus.
Today as you pray, ask that God would give strength to the weary and sustain the powerless. Ask that God would fix our eyes on him and what he has done for us.
Did you enjoy this post? Subscribe for free devotional content every week!
Alex Brown is the marketing and content copywriter at Northwestern Publishing House. He has his Master of Divinity degree from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and enjoys reading, writing, and spending time in God’s creation.
Leave a Reply