O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
Isaiah 25:1 KJV
It takes personal encounter to speak in the way the prophet Isaiah speaks here. You do not call God the Lord if He is not first so in your life. It is quite easy to speak the language of church, make the right noises in the public place and generally give off good vibes; the truth of your convictions are laid bare when no one else is looking at you or holding you directly to account for your private choices. This is the same Isaiah who had seen the glory of God in the temple, had experienced a deep cleansing that ordinary water and soap could never achieve, and who had received a commission to declare God's counsel to people. For a man like this, who else could be more important to him than this God?
As it was for Isaiah, so it has to be for me. Is this Lord my own God, or is He one of the many options I consider when there is trouble? Say what you want; the truth of your convictions are made obvious in the face of tough times. For Isaiah, it was a settled matter: no matter what comes, this Lord is my God. I note that being God means authority and total surrender. There is no negotiation with the person you claim to be God over your life. You don't accept some parts of his authority and reject the rest; He is either your Lord or someone over whom you have control. You can't have it both ways.
This surrender always demands a reaction; for Isaiah, it was to exalt and praise the name of this Lord. What is it for me? When I consider who this God is, have I met him? Do I really know Him? Have I sat down to consider all his mighty acts, wonders and miracles? What is the decision: praise or pout? Lift him up or reject his authority? It bears repeating again that a very personal encounter is the best way to get it right. If you have met God, you will know how best to relate with him. Maybe the reason why we are lackadaisical about our commitment to this God is because we have not really known or met Him. All the men and women of old who did know Him personally held on to that experience for the rest of their lives. It kept them focused, no matter what was going on in and around them.
Read Isaiah's personal testimony here: for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. God can be trusted to be true to his nature and word. He can never lie, because it is not in his nature to. What he called sin to Adam is still a sin today, no matter the sophistication of the world. I must seek to know this God and not settle for another man's view of Him. He wants me to know Him; my life's purpose, direction and impact are all tied to my personal knowledge and experience of Him. He wants to show Himself strong and mighty in me. Would I let Him have his way? Would I surrender my life to be the altar from which He can reach out and change the world? God's time of favour is here.
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