Experiencing God's Presence #30

Experiencing God's Presence #30

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.”

Isaiah 55:8

God issues an invitation to His people in Isaiah 55—an invitation for the thirsty and hungry to come drink and eat at no cost and an invitation for those who need mercy to receive it freely. Apparently the opportunity is surprisingly generous; the Lord has to assure them that He doesn’t think like they do. And it’s true: He is often assumed to be more unyielding than He is. He is more lavish than we think.

That’s a constant discrepancy between those who see imperfectly and the God who is perfect: “People don’t understand My desires. I’m viewed through the wrong lenses, unsympathetic ones. My people have been so immersed in falsehoods and distorted perspectives that they have become sympathetic to mistaken views of Me. But I want you to see through My eyes. I want you to have My mind, and I’ve assured you that you can. You need to understand My heart for you.

“Don’t underestimate the treasure I’ve put within you and the magnificence of the new creation I’ve made you into. Yes, I know your history, and I know all the flaws in your heart right now, but why focus on that? How does looking down on yourself reflect My glory? Haven’t you realized that I’m much more glorified by turning creatures of dust into children of God than by all your talk about being ‘only human’? Your thoughts about yourself are not My thoughts about you, and neither are your thoughts about Me the same as My thoughts about Me. You haven’t even begun to grasp My extravagance. But you will. If you let Me, I will show you more of Myself and reveal more of My thoughts. They are better than you think.”

Lord, impart Your thoughts to me. Give me Your eyes so I can see how You see. I don’t want to view You through the wrong lenses. I want to know Your goodness fully.