October 11

Read: Isaiah 65:I-2 (R.S.V.).

I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here am I, here am I, to a nation that did not call on my name. I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices (Isaiah 65:1-2, R.S.V.).

The Seeking Spirit Of God

In this scripture is laid bare the yearning heart of God as He seeks to lay hold upon the lives of men for their own highest welfare. In its historical setting this is God’s call to the people of Israel — His own chosen people. In Ks universal application this call is the yearning of the eternally contemporary God who is always seeking men. Within this broader framework is there not a permissible application to God’s call to the higher life of holiness?

The people of Israel stood in a special relationship to God. They were His people, though they did not walk close to Him. They were content in their limited contact and did not ask to know Him better. He was ready to reveal himself to them but they did not seek Him. He called to them repeatedly, “Here am I; here am I,” but they did not turn to listen. There was not an hour in the day that God was not seeking to reach the unresponsive. They were rebellious because they did not want to listen to God’s call. They walked in a way that was not good — not good because it was the way of their own devices.

Prayer For Today

Search my heart, O God. Are You ready to give me what I have not asked? Are You eager to share a fullness of yourself that I have not sought? I confess that the way of my own devices is not good. I hear Your call. I pause to listen more intently. I turn from my own devices to Your design for my life. I ask for Your way. I ask for You. And wonder of wonders — You give yourself to met.