The Feast Has Been Prepared

Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk, without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good., and you will delight in the richest of fare. Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David...Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them return to the Lord and he will have mercy on them. -Isaiah 55:1-4, 6-7 (NIV)

For today's devotional, I share with you some notes from Homiletics Magazine, a preaching resource that I often use when preparing for sermons. It expresses far better than me the beautiful promise of today's suggested scripture reading.

* "Come" (v. 1). God sets the table, but we have to pull up the chair. The disciple has to respond to God's faithfulness by taking action of her own.

* "Buy" (v. 1). Or buy into. Commit. Take the step, the leap, the plunge.

* "Eat" (v. 1). Partake. Experience. Taste. Savor the goodness of God.

* "Listen" (v. 2). Pay attention. Discriminate. Be attuned to the voice of God, and tune out competing voices - whether cultural, secular or the voice of entertainment and peers.

* "Hear me" (v. 3). Fix the spiritual physiognomy so that the voice of God can be heard. Get rid of the noise and interference that can drown out the voice of God. Dig out the spiritual earwax that reduces the voice of God to a muffle.

* "Seek the LORD while he may be found" (v. 6). Pursue single-mindedly, search diligently for. Make the presence of God a priority. Take advantage of the opportunities to walk with God while you still have them.

* "Forsake" (v. 7). Abandon whatever doesn't work for your relationship with God. Decide what is holding you back, and let these things go.

* "Return to" (v. 7). After letting go of the bad, grab the good. Turn to what is right, good and positive. Turn to God for forgiveness and mercy.

May God grant you the grace to come, buy, eat, listen, hear, seek, forsake, and return today. The feast has been prepared.

If you're interested in reading through the Bible in a year, tomorrow's suggested readings are Isaiah 57-59, Psalm 103, and 2 Peter 3. Sunday's readings are Isaiah 60-62 and John 1. I'll be back on Monday with a devotional thought from Isaiah 63-64, Psalm 107, and/or John 2.