Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Teach Me Tuesday


So, in an attempt to actually follow through with my commitment to my 2011 goals, I am here to share a little of what I have been learning throughout the past few weeks. I am not eloquent in my writing by any means, but I pray that what God has put on my heart might just help you to dig a little deeper and see who He really is and who He desires you to become.

Isaiah 53:7-12 (emphasis on 11), ESV
"Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities."

So, in reading for my BSF lesson, I came across this verse and had to stop, ponder, and shake my head in amazement. The words "see and be satisfied" are common words that I think many people use without a second thought. I put on a new outfit, I "see it" and am "satisfied with it". I do my hair, I "see it" and am "satisfied with it". We don't understand the depth of context here. We are a selfishly driven, extrinsically motivated society and we must see and be satisfied often. That is how our daily lives process what is going on. "Am I happy with the driver in front of me?" "Have I gotten my coffee this morning?". The word satisfied is used to describe things we want, things we come across that make us happy. When we are not happy, we are not "satisfied".

What was Isaiah describing here related with satisfaction? Jesus Christ being crucified, taking on all our sins, and offering up all He was for billions (no...an infinity...or a larger number than humans can count) of people to come. WOW. Not an ounce of selfishness there.

I was struck today by these four words "see and be satisfied". How can I incorporate these words into my daily life, minute by minute, in order to see what God has given me today and be satisfied. Not look out and question "what if I would have done something different with my first 5 years of marriage", "where would Dan and I be if we didn't start a company", "why does my life feel so monotonous", "why does God have me going through _____" or a million other questions I could be asking. Instead of measuring up my satisfaction for the day on whether or not I look good, wear the right clothing, did the right "things", chose to be with the right people, or whether I was productive; I desire to look back and be satisfied because I am following God's plan with what He has given me today. I don't want my "see and be satisfied" to come from the world's standards, but from the model of Jesus Christ, who was satisfied going through Crucifixion so that others would benefit.

Did I give up myself today, in every way possible, as honorably as I could, selflessly, with every ounce in me, to do what He has asked me to do? "See and be satisfied" today!!!!