Today our message came from the book of Isaiah 40:21-31.
I will not print the whole passage for you here, but commend it to your reading.
The key verses are the most recognized:
"29. He gives power to the weak,
and to those who have no might He increases strength.
30. even the youths shall faint and be weary,
and the young men shall utterly fail,
31. But those who wait on the Lord
shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint."
(These eagle photos were from this time last year)
Here are some key thoughts from today's message:
- Learning how to live...how to trust in God...how to soar like the eagles...look at verse 31 (above)
- Pastor told the story of a young woman who was ready to give it all up...ready to die...and she didn't believe that God really cared about her or knew her at all, and she really didn't know Him. But somehow she received this message in a note..."Never give up...never give in..." and it spoke to her heart at just the critical moment in her life...Could it have been a message from God, she wondered?
- Have you ever had a message from God?
- Has there ever been a time when you questioned God...Does He love me?
- Am I just too sinful, too flawed, too weighed down with guilt and shame?
- God is saying to us:
- "I know you...I died for you...Stop being so hard on yourself...Trust ME...I LOVE you just the way you are. I have great plans for your life.
- God loves us...Hope and peace are found only in trusting in God.
- God is with us...God loves us...
In the book of Isaiah the people of Israel were in exile. They were faint, powerless...they thought God had forgotten them. They were hopeless, insecure...God wasn't hearing or answering their prayers (they thought)
Listen to what God is saying to the children of Israel through the Prophet Isaiah in verses 25-28:
"25. To whom then will you liken Me (God),
Or to whom shall I be equal?,
says the Holy One.
26. Lift up your eyes on high,
and see who has created these things,
Who brings out their host by number;
He calls them all by name,
By the greatness of His might
and the strength of His power;
Not one is missing.
27. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel;
"My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my just claim is passed over by my God."?
28. Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the Lord,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable."
- God loves us no matter what...God is with us always...
- God created the heavens...the stars, and called them all by name (vs. 26, and see also Psalm 147:4)
- God has promised us..."have hope, God will renew our strength.."
Are you feeling discouraged, beaten down with life...our calendars are filled with something...doctor appointments...and we get tired of going to the doctor and not getting any better...
- I wonder about the obstacles that keep me from imagining the wonders that God has promised.
- I need to pray for true healing to change my life.
Are you feeling alone, powerless..."How could God love me?" "Does God even see me?" "How could God love me?" (see verses 27-28)
It's easy to forget God's attentiveness for each and every one of us...but God loves us, He cares for us...He has promised to care for us, and has told us to not be afraid...
Jesus is there to remind us that God loves us, when we feel lost, alone, unloved.
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
The pastor told the story of a Christian school in tornado alley, where a tornado was coming. And the little children were afraid as they gathered together in the hallway. As the storm was passing over their building and actually destroying much of the building, the children were praying. Afterwards, one little girl told the story of how they were saved. She said she saw angels come and hold up the ceiling of their hallway, and when things started getting really difficult for them, the angels called for more help, and many more angels came and held up that ceiling and the children were all safe and sound even though the rest of the building was destroyed.
God can be depended on. God never gives up on us. If we wait and trust in God...He is there and He will hear our prayers and be there to hold us up.
\Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 11:28-30
"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
Don't give up and don't give in! God is in control...and He will not fail you!
Our choir sang this beautiful anthem before Communion:
Come, Come to the Table
by Joshua Metzger
Please listen and worship the Lord with me...
I pray you have a week of blessing and renewal in the Lord. And if you are feeling weak and alone, remember that God is there to give you strength...and to carry you with wings like eagles as you soar with Jesus.
Please Note : I want to repeat this disclaimer here...the notes, outline, and content included here are based upon my own personal understanding of the message that was being given. I am not attempting to completely quote or reproduce this message or any other message I've shared previously. Just as each person reading these notes may glean insights and thoughts that seem to directly apply to one's own situation and interpretation, my own delivery of these messages is skewed by my hearing and translation of what is being said. Some may read my notes here and wonder if they were hearing the same message as I...and I say, God speaks to each of us as He wills...there are things He is trying to get across to each individual that may be entirely different than what the person sitting next to you in the pew is needing to hear... That is how the Holy Spirit works! He knows what we need to hear and how to apply it to our hearts. So it is with that understanding that I present these sermon notes to you.
Sermon Notes: FUMC, Interlachen, FL, Pastor A.C. Myers, November 4, 2018
