“It is for those with a journey to make, and on it, the redeemed will walk.” After the summer’s drought and the winter’s wilt, I often feel that during the winter months, I am waiting with my breath held silently until the spring arrives. Isaiah 35:1-10 describes Israel’s deliverance from the arid desert to a lush, fruitful, glorious land where the Lord strengthens hands, makes knees firm, makes hearts brave, and heals the blind and deaf. This lush and spring-like land will be open to all with a journey. In this way, we recognize that we are all sinners but do not need to wait for the spring to live in God’s kingdom. Spring is here now, if we allow ourselves to hear the Lord’s Word and be healed.
And just as we realize that we all have a journey to be redeemed by God, we must have faith that it is possible through God. In Luke, we are reminded of The Healing of the Paralytic. You may remember there was a crowd gathered around Jesus, and the people carrying their friend with paralysis on the stretcher could not come close enough to Jesus, so they climbed to the roof of the building and lowered their friend through the roof. This was quite risky, but the friends of the paralytic had great faith.
Jesus knows our hearts and through his death on the cross, has the authority to forgive our sins. Allow Jesus to work in your life and be delivered to the lush, spring-like land described in Isaiah 35:1-10. Don’t wait. Accept Jesus’ forgiveness and spend this winter in the fruitful glorious land of God’s love. Let your faith in God move you to be brave on your journey.
Kathy Robinson is a wife, mother, clinician, and educator. She has a journey to make and seeks to turn her face toward the Son.