Living in place we don't want to be

Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be weary,
and the young will fall exhausted;
but those who wait for the Lord
shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:28-31

A few years back ESPN was interviewing players who were preparing for the Super Bowl. Many of them were expressing hope that they could get sleep the night before. They were anxious about how they would play. For some players, getting to the Super Bowl is a burden that is hard for them to bear. It may be the exciting pinnacle of their careers but, in some respects, they were struggling to live through it. Even blessings and good things can bring stresses and responsibilities that are challenging to bear. Even in the blessings of a new job, or being newly retired, with graduating from school or with a new child in the family there are times when you may not like the place you find yourself living.

More obviously, life has stresses and challenges from bad circumstances and choices. That’s what made the prophet Isaiah’s assignment so tough. He’s been called to proclaim hope in the midst of despair, to tell the exiles in Babylon that God is on the way to deliver them just when they have begun to seriously doubt it. In this great sermon, Isaiah the preacher argues that the one who created the vast universe and all that is in it has the power to restore the Hebrews as a people. It is a tough sermon to preach, because in the midst of their captivity the people are wondering how their God can be great and powerful when they are so miserable.

Like the Israelites of Isaiah’s day, many people are living in places they don’t want to be. Who is in exile today? There are many of us living in our own homes who are living in exile. When our lives are not in the place we want them to be, it’s natural to say, “God’s not paying attention to me. God is not interested in taking care of me.” It’s easy for us to say that the wrong is strong. It’s easy to say, that is, until you compare it to the power and care of God.

Are we willing to trust God when we are living in the places we don’t want to be? God has the whole world in hand. This is no time to despair. Look to God, Creator of the ends of the earth. Look to God, whose promise of deliverance was confirmed in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This God who knows all, creates all, controls all and plans all . . . also loves all. God tells us how precious we are in God’s sight. We who are frail, we who are fallen, we who are living in places we don’t want to be, are closest to God’s strengthening presence. We are not hidden or abandoned. We won’t have to live in places we don’t want to be.