An important message from the prophet Isaiah
(From Isaiah, chapter 35, verses 1-10)
About 2700 years ago the prophet Isaiah came so close to God and God came so close to him that Isaiah knew that God wanted to tell God's people to live together in peace. And so, Isaiah began to speak in public to the people living around him in the Holy Land. Many people listened carefully to Isaiah and remembered what they'd heard him say. They told their children, and their children told their children, and so on, and so on, and so on
When Jesus was a young boy, his parents and the people in his faith community told him about God's message of peace spoken through Isaiah. As Jesus grew up, he felt a strong connection between himself and Isaiah. When he began his ministry as a grown up, one of the first things he did was preach about Isaiah.
Each Sunday during the season of Advent, as we look forward to celebrating Jesus' birthday at Christmas, we hear a little bit of God's message spoken through the prophet Isaiah. And we pray that God's message of peace will continue to show in the way we live our lives today.
From the prophet Isaiah to those who were living far from their homeland:
"Be strong! Don't be afraid! Soon God will come to you and bring you home.
"When that happens, the land itself will rejoice and burst into flower! The desert will become a place where everything can grow! The burning sand will become cool, like a refreshing pool of water.
"Everyone will come home. Those who are blind will see! Those who are deaf will hear! Those who can barely walk will leap like deer! And those who cannot speak will sing for joy!
"God will lay a highway for you - a Holy Way just for God's people. The Holy Way will be well-marked. No one will get lost or hurt as he or she travels on it.
"God will make sure that everyone finds his or her way home. There will be great joy in all the land. Sorrow and sighing shall fly away - far away."
Questions to think about:
Have you ever been far away from home? What did that feel like?
How did it feel to finally come home?
How is life with God like a home-coming?