“You have done marvelous things, things planned long ago.” Isaiah 25:1
Tis the season to be
thankful, but somehow my scripture readings are in the middle of a major prophet
and are filled with the failure and fall of many nations. Babylon will be swept with the broom of
destruction (Isaiah 14:34). Assyria will
be trampled and crushed on a mountain (Is 14:25). The Philistines will be destroyed by famine
(Is 14:30). Moab’s survivors will be few
and feeble (Is 16:14). Damascus will be
filled with disease and pain (Is 17:11).
Egypt will be dominated and desolate (Is 19:4). And Jerusalem will be battered and beaten (Is
22:5). Chapter after chapter details
doom, devastation, and death, and the repetitive rebellion against God becomes depressing. But each time I start to despair, verses of
hope, nestled between woes of war and wrath, breathe courage and faith into my
faltering heart. “Oh Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and
praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things,
things planned long ago…On this mountain you will destroy the shroud that
enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; you will swallow up
death forever. The Sovereign Lord will
wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people
from all the earth. The Lord has spoken”(Is
25:1, 7-8).
Those were good words to grab
onto in those days, and those are good words to grab onto in these days as the
current headlines repeat the harsh and horrid consequences of choosing
ourselves over God. “Five are killed in
a California rampage.” Nightclub shooter used online dating to cheat on wife.” “Parents
sentenced to 130 years for child abuse.” “Molestation accusations haunt Senate campaign.”
“Ex-major gets five years in prison for misconduct.” And today is sadly not an
anomaly. Each day, as Jesus said, has
enough trouble of its own.
So why should we be thankful
when we feel like those in Isaiah’s time who
“will look toward earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom”(Is
8:22)? Because the story didn’t stop
in the dark. What God told His prophet would
happen has happened. “The people walking in darkness have seen a
great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has
dawned. For unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And his name will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”(Is 6:1-2,6). Those verses are most often reserved as Christmas
prose—printed on cards or sung in cantatas, but don’t save them for the next
season. Savor them during this one, for true thanksgiving begins with gratitude
for grace. We were dark. We were dirty. We were desolate. We were doomed. But our God, who does marvelous things
planned long, long ago, “made his light
shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Christ”(2 Cor 4:6).
As we begin these days of
heightened appreciation and notice a bit more the blessings which abound in our
lives, let’s make sure our gratitude starts with our greatest need. We are thankful for much, but we are thankful
for Jesus the most.
