O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
Waiting. Israel was waiting for a Savior. He was promised so many years ago, and yet He had not come. As I sing the words of this classic carol, I can feel the longing, the heart's yearning.
Waiting, whether for something good or bad, for something big or small, is difficult. It is hard to wait for an expected baby to be born, hard to wait for the impending death of a loved one. It is hard to wait in a long line, hard to wait for Heaven. But waiting is the way of life.
Yes, God's people had been waiting and longing for their Messiah. And yet, sadly, most did not recognize Him when He came.
But the wonderful, joyous truth is this...
And it will be said in that day, "Behold, this is our GOD for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the GOD for whom we have waited; let us REJOICE and be glad in HIS SALVATION!" ~Isaiah 25:9 NASV
Cheryl, it's so encouraging and refreshing to read these scriptures. The Gift of Him is even more powerful to our hearts BECAUSE OF THE WAITING. And the longing. And yearning. May He give us grace to recognize Him in the midst of all our waitings.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, Cheryl ... I love your new blog header ... so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post, Cheryl. Amen and Amen!
ReplyDeleteAnn