Friday, December 31, 2021
Happy New Year’s Eve, Dear Friends!
As we prepare to cross the threshold into a new year, I pray you sense the Lord’s nearness, presence, love, and peace. What is done, is done. I pray that we are each able to release that which is old or former, and stand with outstretched hands to embrace the new . . . . a time and purpose for us to begin again.
Recorded by the prophet Jeremiah are these words (Jer. 29:10):
“For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place” (KJV).
Many of you might have opened the door of your home to family and friends during this holiday season. While being cautious due the ongoing pandemic and omicron surges, you anticipated your visitors’ arrival. You prepared favorite foods, readied bedrooms for those staying overnight, and made sure everything was in order (well, maybe, almost everything!). While some ‘colorful’ visitors might have been unwanted, the arrival of others made your heart happy! It might have been a double-blessing to welcome them especially if you did not gather together last year because of COVID-19.
When your visitors arrived, you welcomed them with open arms and loving hearts! Seeing them made you happy, and you rejoiced to have the opportunity to connect once more!!! You expected them, and they came!!!
When we have to wait for a long time for the arrival of a special visitor, we are much more appreciative of their presence when they come. The Jewish people had been in Babylon—living life in a strange country with traditions, cultural practices, worship, and life that was contrary to their own. But, to know God promised to visit them again must have been of enormous comfort. Even though they had been taken from their land, perhaps it might have been a little more bearable to anticipate their return from exile. To know the Lord’s promise to visit them, to me, is life changing and mind altering (in an immensely positive way)!
The Lord assured them, contemporarily expressed (and paraphrased): I’m telling you beforehand that after you have been through all that you must go through, I will come to you . . . I will visit you and change your life . . . giving you your heart’s desire! You will return to your home! I will answer your prayers; this temporary state of being will not last forever! There IS more, and it is good! This is My Word to you. This is My Promise!
Waiting for the Lord’s visitation is not easy, but it is certainly worth it. We change as we wait, and when the promises come, when the Lord does what He said He would do, our hearts rejoice!!! It is if we are dreaming, but this time, it is real!
Are you awaiting the Lord’s visitation? Has it been a long wait? Waiting for the visit of our Lord can be emotionally, physically, and mentally difficult. When we desire to do things in a God-honoring way, it challenges us to the core of our being. We wait because we have learned, through our experiences, that it is far better to wait for the Lord than to take matters into our own hands.
The anticipation of the fulfillment of what we await, and more importantly, for Whom we wait, is opportunity to encounter the Divine in our waiting. It is a chance to come into a place of being that can only happen through waiting. But, God is ALWAYS worth the wait! Praise God from Whom every single blessing—that we can or ever will have in life—flows!
As you prepare to enter 2022, God be with you in a close, personal, and very special way . . . and please remember that this world is definitely a much better place because you are in it.
Happiest New Year! Thank you so much for reading! Please post a comment on my website, and share this message with your family and friends!
Until next time, My Friend,
Selah