Have Patience. It Works.

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isa 55:11 AV)

I have repeatedly used this verse to encourage those who sow the seed to the souls of others.  I use this verse to prove their labor is not in vain.  No matter the response, the word of God is effective.  It will either drive people to God, or it will drive them away.  One way or another, sowing the word of God will have an effect.  Yet, the context of this verse is the rebellious house of Israel and their eventual salvation transformation at the return of Christ.  Promises were made to Israel of a coming kingdom wherein Israel would walk with God in faith and obedience.  Something that has challenged them since the days of Abraham.  Therefore, this verse is a promise to those who know God, yet are challenged in their walk with them.  Which is the hope for us today.

If you have ever been tasked to do something which seems impossible, you know what the promise above means.  This is especially frustrating when the task is something you absolutely want but it doesn’t seem possible.  Compounding the problem is when we cannot see the small improvements we are making in our journey to be successful.  We learn.  We practice.  We fail.  Then we try again.  We know we have what we need.  We know the skills taught to us are sound.  We simply don’t have the skill or discipline to conquer the task.  Our failure is not a matter of information.  We wonder what our problem is.  We think we will never be able to master the skill.  We get discouraged because others can make it happen, but we seem to lack something they have.  For example.  I did not learn how to spell phonetically.  This puts me at a large disadvantage.  If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you probably have noticed a typo or two.  In my defense, most of the typos are not ignorance, but poor muscle memory.  I type away and invert letters or vowels because a more common word sharing the exact same letters is a habit.  Then God invented automatic spell correction.  What a wonder!  Then came Grammarly.  Another God-send.  I learned all this in grade school.  There is nothing new I can learn.  But these two tools have slowly improved my skill level and my goal is to be able to type one complete blog without any funny lines underneath the words I use.  I am hoping to eventually fire Grammarly.

This is true of our walk with God.  The word of God works miracles in our hearts.  Many go unnoticed.  We are slowly converted into Christlikeness and we look back and cannot see the major changes that have occurred over a great length of time.  This also gives us hope as we struggle with those stubborn issues that seem to plague us.  In time, they two will disappear.  How do I know?  Because as long as I stay in the word of God, study it, and allow it to work on my heart, eventually the seeds of truth will germinate and the peaceable fruits of righteousness will abound.  I can place my hope and trust in the promise God made to Israel as my own.  What was and is true regarding the word of God for Israel is true for you and me today.  So, do not become discouraged by failure.  Be patient.  Strive for Christlikeness and hope to the end for salvation!