Listen

But now, says the Lord— the one who created you, Jacob, the one who formed you, Israel: Don’t fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; when through the rivers, they won’t sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you won’t be scorched and flame won’t burn you.

Isaiah 43:1-2

Think

It is maybe impossible to not be afraid when you are going through terrible things. Fires, swift waters, floods, illness. How can you not feel afraid? What is the writer hoping to convey to the reader?

Maybe it’s there in plain sight. One word: redeemed. “For I have redeemed you.” To redeem is to compensate for a bad thing by seeing something good, finding something valuable, receiving something comforting. And in this case – the good is God. God goes with us.

There are fast moving “waters” sweeping around us right now. A medical crisis moves us from uncertainty to hope and back to uncertainty. There is fire – literally – the burning of buildings, banners, and … hearts. The rising fire of racial injustice is making a problem that we’ve long tried to hide now visible and critical to treat.

And each of us deals with fire, water, and danger in personal ways. So today, how do you see God redeeming your less-than-great parts by holding up and reminding you of your great parts? Whatever it may be, God says, “I will be with you.”

Gina Yeager-Buckley

Pray

Loving God, you made me – ME. What did you intend for me to do in this life? For you? For the world? What do you intend for me to do today? In the hours ahead, open my eyes, increase my patience, still my anxieties, remind me that you and I go together… wherever I go. Whether it’s a place of fear or a destination of joy, I will go with you. As you go with me, I will put my heart in your hands and go with you too. Amen.

Go

Taking today’s moments into your breath, your heart, your hands and feet,

live what you hear from God today,

and tomorrow.