How weary are you right about now? As we enter the home stretch of the year, there are busy days ahead. For many, the upcoming holidays can be among the least restful times of the entire year. We plan, we purchase, we entertain, we worry about making memories and not disappointing others. It can be overwhelming.
When I was at a point of deep exhaustion and overwhelm, God used Isaiah 30:15 to invite me to a different sort of life.
Isaiah 30 is about the life and times of God’s children in Jerusalem during the reign of Judah’s King Hezekiah. They dealt with some very difficult circumstances. Their first choice concerning how to handle things was not the wisest. Judah did not seek God but sought help elsewhere, “adding sin to sin” (Isaiah 30:1).
I spent a lot of years trying to navigate life by relying on my own instincts instead of relying on God. I thought I had to be a wonder woman of performing and problem solving. I can identify with those ancient Judeans. The demands of the upcoming holiday season can woo me back into that sort of "be productive, make everything amazing" mindset. But God woos my wayward heart to rest in His peaceful paths with kindness and gentleness.
In the midst of a lengthy set of charges against His wayward children recorded in Isaiah 30, God quietly but firmly slips an invitation into their hands: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and trust shall be your strength” Isaiah 30:15a (ESV).
Sadly, the next part of the verse records their initial response: “But you were unwilling.”
God’s children made the choice to reject Him and to pursue their own paths. Instead of choosing rest, they chose to run to Egypt; instead of choosing faith in God, they chose flight from Him. Can you identify at all?
God, however, didn’t stop offering a path back to Himself. He invited Judah to return to Him and rest. What a generous invitation. Because our loving God never changes, this invitation still stands. You have an invitation to an intimate relationship with a powerful, personal God. He often won't shout His invitations in competition with the world's loud voices, but His quiet, kind wooing continues nonetheless.
All invitations come from a sender. The invitation in Isaiah 30:15 is no different. It comes from “the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel.” Names had special significance in Old Testament times, serving not only to specify someone, but to reveal an identity and a personality. This is true for God’s names as well. Often we breeze past the ways God is named in the Bible. There are fascinating things to learn by looking more closely.
“The Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel” is a unique expression of who God is. Isaiah 30:15 is the only place in all of Scripture this particular combination of God’s names occurs. It reveals several notable things about Him.
The Hebrew found in the name translated “Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel” offers a window into the expansive nature of God. He is holy, masterful, and powerful; therefore, He is able to save. He is near, personal, and relational; therefore, He is willing to save.
This Isaiah 30:15 naming of God expresses the rich fullness of His nature. This is who invites you to return and rest in Him. This personal and powerful God invites you to intimacy.
God extends a wondrous invitation, much needed amid our busy, demanding, and sometimes confusing lives. He says return, rest, find salvation. He says trust and find strength. God offers us salvation from things that threaten us. He offers us strength through the Holy Spirit to face hard things that seem too much to bear.
There is invitation to the path of returning, rest, quietness, and trust. You can respond to an invitation to an intimate relationship with a powerful, personal God.
Adapted from Return and Rest: A Study in Isaiah 30, a six week Bible study designed to help you explore God’s invitations and His character. It’s available at Amazon .