“Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink— even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of
wine or milk— it’s all free! Isaiah 55:1 (NLT)
Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish
the very thought of doing wrong. Let
them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive
generously.
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could
imagine. For just as the heavens
are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts
higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:6 - 9 (NLT)
It’s hard to believe.
People make promises they
don’t keep. Those who promise to stay –
leave. And there are those
outright lies.
It’s hard to have faith.
A church-based ministry
near where I live has just two words on their message board outside: Free Lunch. These folk actually keep this promise. Each day at noon the doors open wide to
anyone who is hungry. No ID necessary;
no proof of need….just come and dine.
Now, an offer of “free
lunch” sounds like an invitation to get hurt again, doesn’t it? But filling the hole inside you – that
spiritual hole in your heart – is just what Isaiah said God means when He
invites us to come and be filled.
Isaiah goes on to report
that God says His ways and thoughts are way-above our pay grade. God’s offer to come to him without any
reservations – like taking a faith-leap across the Grand Canyon – will not result in a crash; God
promises forgiveness and a life with Him.
It’s still hard to believe.
That’s the bottom
line! No matter what any other person
says, believing in God is still a personal leap of faith which nobody else can
take for you.
Look at the picture at the
top of the page….where is the “I”? Right in the middle of
the leap!
If you’re waiting for God
to somehow prove himself to you – open up the skies and let down a billboard or
a Macbook Air™ with all the guarantees of the “good life” – you’re going to
have a long wait. His ways are way above
that.
It’s still hard to believe.
Why?
Because the one, irrefutable,
undeniable, overwhelmingly-certain proof of God’s faithfulness and willingness to
forgive us and bless our lives has already been offered to anyone who will trust:
the cross and an empty tomb. It’s too simple?
Well….watch closely….notice
the difference between “trust” and “believe”.
“Believing” is what comes from
“Trusting”. Believe is a strong, settled
conviction that something is true. Trust
is Faith-Leap
territory. And that’s not simple; it’s profound.
Believing in God started before
you were born – God designed (hard-wired) you with a hunger for Him in your heart.
He’s what you’ve been looking for all your
life.
Believing in God begins with
trusting (faith-leaping into) what Jesus Christ did for you on the cross.
Believing in God grows in
you when you trust God enough to change your ways and live according to what pleases
Him.
So…trust Him; believing starts
right there.
Ready? (to jump?)
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