Isaiah 43

So I’m a little emotional right now. You know–lump in throat, tears wanting to blur my vision and spill out of my eyes, heart swelling–that kind of emotional.

What’s wrong? you ask. I read Isaiah 43. Yep, that’s the problem. God knows how to make me cry.

Seriously. The words were popping out at me; I underlined a bunch of stuff; I copied the words from another translation; I paraphrased the wonderful things in there and wrote them down.

I suggest you read it yourself. But I’ll share some of my thoughts here.

Verse 1:
God created me. He made me the way I am, and He said it was good. I shouldn’t worry about my looks, or what other people might think of my appearance. He made me, and He loves me.
He redeemed me. He saved me from my sin. He paid the price so I wouldn’t have to. He rescued me, washed me clean, atoned for my faults and failures.
He calls me by name. Names are special and powerful; being called by your name signifies being known. God knows me; He loves me; He wants to have a relationship with me!
I am His. I belong to Him, and He takes care of His “stuff.”

Verse 2:
When I walk through the deep/rough waters, when I pass through the flames, when I go through a hard time, when I’m stuck “between a rock and a hard place”–it’ll be okay. I’ll be okay; I won’t be brought down by these things. Because God is with me (verse 5).

Verse 3 and 4:
God is my God, my Savior. He’s a personal God, a God each individual can know separately/uniquely/personally.
“I paid a huge price for you… That’s how much you mean to me!… I’d sell off the whole world to get you back…” (MSG) He gave up His Son–His Son gave up His life–for me. And they’d do it again if they had to. I’m precious in His sight.

Verse 6 and 7:
God will gather His children together. Even though we’re scattered around the world, one day we’ll all be together–with our Father. He wants us all, all that bear His name.

Verse 10:
I am His witness and His chosen servant. I’ve seen how He works, seen the things He’s done; I know what He’s said. I am a witness, and I need to tell others my story. And He chose me to serve Him.

Verse 16:
God makes a path in the sea’s pounding waves. Remember the children of Israel and the Red Sea? God parted the waters. I might be facing an ocean, thinking that there’s no way across or that I’m going to die, but He makes a way.

Verse 18 and 19:
Forget the past. I think what this is saying is: forget the past mistakes. Forget the regrets, the pain, the things you wish you could do over. Don’t dwell on history–live in the present! Look towards the future! (Read Philippians 3:13-14.)
“I will do a new thing” (KJV). God will do brand-new things, things I haven’t seen. And I think this ties in with forgetting the past; I don’t have to live in shame and guilt about my past because God has made me new!

Verse 20:
God will provide water in the desert for His chosen people to drink. He literally did for the children of Israel while they wandered in the wilderness. And He quenches my spiritual thirst, my longing. He provides for my needs and takes care of me. I am chosen by Him.

Verse 25:
He won’t remember my sins. I wrote about this in Behind His Back. It’s amazing to think about, that God chooses to forget our sins, doesn’t keep track of them, forgives everything as soon as we ask…

Anyway, that’s kind of the condensed version. 😄 What are your thoughts? What sticks out to you the most? Did you get emotional too (surely I’m not the only one!)?