It Really is a Wonderful Life

S - Isaiah 25:1, 4, 9 (NLT): "O LORD, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them. … But to the poor, O LORD, you are a refuge from the storm. To the needy in distress, you are a shelter from the rain and the heat. … In that day the people will proclaim, "This is our God. We trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!""

O - The Lord really does have a will on earth (a "rumor" Jesus confirms) and that will intentionally, specifically and practically includes the poor, the needy and those in distress. The folks this world pretty much wants to exclude are those the Lord has specifically included, made for provision for and wants to be with him. This is another of the "wonders" of him and his love - he wants us at our worst, not just at our best. One of the astonishing things in this scripture is that the source of the difficult circumstance (poor, needy, distress) is not a concern or focus. It is not even mentioned because it is not the point. Inflicted by others or self-inflicted trouble, it matters not; all are still wanted, prepared for and welcomed.

A - I am wanted, he is control. I am unsure, he doesn't flicker. I am following, he is leading. I am little and weak and he is not offended one bit! This facet of the Lord's "too wonderful to me" activity is not only to be a consolation and inspiration to me about my life but about every life. Every life is wanted. No life is merely tolerated by the Lord. Every life is to be held in the hope of transformation … even my own. Wonderful!

P - Lord who really is too wonderful for me,

It is so refreshing to think, pray and then be recalibrated to live in this wonder. Today while it's called today, I get to hold all lives, even my own, in this wonderful and undeserved reality.

Steve