His Thoughts, My Thoughts
Isaiah 55:6, 8-9
6 Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. 8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.
Here is an open invitation for us to come find the Lord. He is inviting us to find Him, and call upon Him, talk to Him, seek Him out and draw near to Him. This is more than some ritualist rote prayer. This feels like the Lord is telling us to come as we are, and to share what is deep within our heart, even down to the very deepest concerns and questions that are rolling around in us. Often, I believe, many thoughts within us remain unprocessed and therefore unanswered and left buried, often to only arise randomly again to trouble us. “Come,” says our heavenly Father “and find Me. Call out to Me. I’m not that far away. I am near.” He already knows all our thoughts. In fact, the Word tells us that He even knows our thoughts afar off. Often we may feel like no one would understand how we feel, and even how to address our questioning thoughts. But Abba tells us He knows every thought and He knows all our ways. Father knows our thoughts better than we do. He even states that His thoughts are not our thoughts, His ways are not our ways. Many times in our humanness, maybe because of how our family attitudes and postures were, or because of the influence of our friends or even our church family, we may have set thought patterns that are not what the Lord’s thoughts are for us presently. I remember when Stephen and I were invited to come to New York to pastor our present church. Here we were, from the vast state of Maine. We both had grown up on farms, out in the country, with a definite country way of thinking and living. It was a good way to grow up. But the very thought of “New York” must have sent shivers up and down my mother’s spine. She adamantly told us that was not where the Lord wanted us to settle. I think she was envisioning New York City with its high-rises and very crowded neighborhoods. Subways, and heavy traffic. and whatever else she had seen of it on television. Yet our first building was located in a beautiful, lush country area with lots of woods, wildlife, and winding, endless roads that go on for miles and miles in upstate New York. We now presently have resided here with our awesome church family for 43 years. We came to New York, even though my Mom’s thoughts were not for it. We can get a strong mindset about people, places, timing, what should have been, and what could have been, and actually become very stubborn in our thinking. The Holy Spirit has to work with us to help us receive the mind of the Lord in whatever we may be struggling with. I pray you are pliable clay today and always will be able to receive the mind of the Lord for your life. And remember, He is always near.
What about you? Are you wrestling over something? Turn it over to the Lord asking Him to give you His thoughts, ways, and direction. He wants you to have all of what He has for you. Be in a posture of surrendering to Him and then also be ready to receive and hear from Him. He loves you so!
