Some Review in Isaiah

I’m reading through my old journals as I work on my second book. Back in late 2005 through early 2006, I was reading in Isaiah from the Amplified Bible for my Quiet Times. I’m amazed at how much I got out of Isaiah. There were many encouragements.

One encouragement was found in Isaiah 50:10. As I read that verse again, I recognized that sometimes my perspective on my struggles doesn’t match God’s perspective. I think when I’m struggling and everything seems like doom and gloom, I’m not seeing life the way God wants me to see life. Verse 10 says,

“Who is among you who [reverently] fears the Lord, who obeys the voice of His Servant, yet who walks in darkness and deep trouble and has no shining splendor [in his heart]? Let him rely on, trust in, and be confident in the name of the Lord, and let him lean upon and be supported by his God.”

First, this verse says we may (probably will) have times of darkness and deep trouble and be without the shining splendor (joy) in our hearts. God recognizes that. He says that there are people (like myself) who may walk in darkness even while they fear the Lord. That may seem depressing to you and maybe you feel it lacks the hope you are looking for in your life. That’s how I often see things. I think if I’m not always joyful and uplifted then maybe I don’t really reverently fear God. If you have had your doubts in that area, be assured that you can be one of God’s chosen people and still suffer from trouble and suffer through darkness in your lives. This verse says so.

Second, let’s not miss the second part of this verse. It tells us that there’s a way to persevere through the suffering and hardships. We can rely on, trust in, and be confident in the name of the Lord. We can lean upon and be supported by our God. That tells me where to go when everything else seems to have failed me (and maybe I should go here first). I can go to God. And when I do go to God, my perspective on my suffering changes. My situation may still be dark and full of trouble, but there’s ultimate hope that God will see me through. That support is not available anywhere else. Only God is truly reliable and knows how to support us.

Again, ultimately, He’s already given us everything we need for eternal life: Jesus Christ. That’s where our hope can come from. Even if my depression seems to be ruling in my life right now, I can look at things from that eternal perspective and know that this life is not the end. Better days are ahead.

Mindfulness

I have a life long struggle I’m going to let you in on. Mindfulness. What am I talking about when I say mindfulness? I’m talking about giving my attention to the task at hand, one at a time, not allowing distractions to get in the way of serious thought and action toward the given task. I was told recently that this is not unique to me. There’s actually an enormous amount of scholarly research on this topic. Why? Because all humans suffer from not being mindful to some extent. Some worse than others.

I have spent a lot of time in my lifetime avoiding mindfulness. Not wanting to confront problems head on, avoiding possible painful (and often pleasurable) experiences, are just two reasons mindfulness is not a skill I have readily available to me. I actually went to some extremes to remain mindless including drinking, dissociating, even day dreaming when I was supposed to be confronting a situation with my full attention.

However, I’ve been told (and am coming to believe) that mindfulness is a desirable state to be in. I’m not totally convinced yet, but I’m dabbling in trying to be more mindful to see if the quality of my life changes. The research indicates that the more mindful a person is, the greater their enjoyment of the things that make up life.

I also discovered that mindfulness is a characteristic of God. Psalm 8:4 in the Amplified Bible says, “What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?” It’s amazing to me to realize that God does mindfulness perfectly and constantly. It’s just a fact for Him. I know how hard it is for me to remain mindful for even short periods of time, yet God does it all the time. And, what is He mindful of? Mere man. As Psalm 8:4 implies, man is not worthy of the Almighty God’s thoughts. Yet He chooses to be thinking about us and concentrating on mankind.

I feel like I can try being mindful a little more often. I’m especially thinking, “If God can be mindful of me, I can try to concentrate more and with better quality upon God.” I can spend five more minutes reading and meditating on His Word. I can spend a few more minutes in concentrated prayer. And if I can learn to do that, I can learn to be mindful in other areas of my life. So here’s to practicing mindfulness.