May 23, 2024 | God's Daily Reflection: Isaiah 44:1-20

May 23, 2024by Asherah Alexandria Tsarine

Daily reflection is the practice of taking time each day to consider your thoughts, actions, and emotions, and to review your experiences and events. It can also involve evaluating your motivations, attitudes, and desires, and asking yourself why you feel and act the way you do.

Please thank God for this new section on my website. I prayed to Him earlier about taking over my hands for writing so He can use me to write what He wants you to read. I've been practicing and working on allowing God to lead me each day; I refer to Him for everything. It's His idea that I fast for 40 days and 40 nights, what I write, what I share on social media and this website, what I do - I call it obedience. Obedience to God. What is it like to live for God? What does God do when we put HIM in control?

Let's find out.

The Blessings of Israel

44 “But now listen, Jacob, My servant,
And Israel, whom I have chosen:
²This is what the Lord says, He who made you
And formed you from the womb, who will help you:
‘Do not fear, Jacob My servant,
And ^[a]Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
³For I will pour water on ^[b]the thirsty land
And streams on the dry ground;
*I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring,
And My blessing on your descendants;
⁴And they will spring up ^[c]among the grass
Like poplars by streams of water.’
⁵This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’;
And that one ^[d]will call on the name of Jacob;
And another will write ^[e]on his hand, ‘Belonging to the Lord,’
And will give himself Israel’s name with honor.

Note: I am consistently led to these verses. I have opened my Bible up to many versions of these verses:

Joel 2:28-29 (NASB):
- "It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days."
Acts 2:17-18 (NASB):
- "‘And it shall be in the last days,’ God says, ‘That I will pour forth of My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, And your young men shall see visions, And your old men shall dream dreams; Even on My bondslaves, both men and women, I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit And they shall prophesy."
Ezekiel 36:27 (NASB):
- "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances."
Ezekiel 39:29 (NASB):
- "I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,” declares the Lord God."
Zechariah 12:10 (NASB):
- "I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn."

In the Kabbalah:

Zohar 1:117a: Discusses the outpouring of wisdom and divine light in the end times.
Zohar 2:56b: Refers to a future time when divine illumination will become more accessible to humanity.

⁶“This is what the Lord says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of armies:

‘I am the first and I am the last,
And there is no God besides Me.
⁷Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it;
And, let him confront Me
^[f]Beginning with My establishing of the ancient ^[g]nation.
Then let them declare to them the things that are coming
And the events that are going to take place.
⁸Do not tremble and do not be afraid;
Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?
And you are My witnesses.
Is there any God besides Me,
Or is there any other Rock?
I know of none.’”

The Foolishness of Idolatry

⁹Those who fashion an idol are all futile, and their treasured things are of no benefit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be put to shame. ¹⁰Who has fashioned a god or cast an idol to no benefit? ¹¹Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up, let them tremble, let them be put to shame together.

¹²The craftsman of iron shapes a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, ^[h]fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and ^[i]his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary. ¹³The craftsman of wood extends a measuring line; he outlines it with a marker. He works it with carving knives and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of mankind, so that it may sit in a house. (13) Note: This is referring to a Chair. ¹⁴He will cut cedars for himself, and he takes a holm-oak or another oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel tree, and the rain makes it grow. ¹⁵Then it becomes something for a person to burn, so he takes one of them and gets warm; he also makes a fire and bakes bread. He also makes a god and worships it; he makes it a carved image and bows down before it. ¹⁶Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat, he roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” ¹⁷Yet the rest of it he makes into a god, his carved image. He bows down before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.” (17) Note:

Forms of Idolatry:
- Physical Idols: Statues, images, or objects made of wood, stone, metal, or other materials that are worshiped or considered divine.
- Abstract Idols: Anything that takes the place of God in one's life, such as money, power, fame, or even certain ideologies and beliefs.

Does this include wooden crosses? Jesus on the cross? The virgin Mary statue?

God: Yes, all of this.

What about the Bible or any written works dedicated to you?

God: Books are a guide.

¹⁸They do not know, nor do they understand, for He has smeared over their eyes so that they cannot see, and their hearts so that they cannot comprehend. (18) Question: Who is "He" being referred to in this verse?

God: Man; human beings of this world (earth).

¹⁹No one ^[j]remembers, nor is there knowledge or understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I roast meat and eat it. Then ^[k]I make the rest of it into an abomination, ^[l]I bow down before a block of wood!” ²⁰He ^[m]feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has misled him. And he cannot save ^[n]himself, nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

God: Man plants seeds, it rains, and the trees grow. Then they cut the trees for lumber to make paper and to burn for heat and physical idols. Nowhere did I ever proclaim that My Son's (dead) body should ever be displayed on a cross, that the virgin Mary should be a statue and nowhere did I ever proclaim that any idol should be worshipped for the sake of Me.

All one need do is BELIEVE in the unseen, pray to me and talk to me in their thoughts. The Bible can be used for Good; it can be a Guide for the lost, but once found - simply pray to Me every day and I will make your pathway straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NASB): "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."

Author's Note: This verse encourages believers to rely on God's wisdom and guidance rather than their own, promising that God will direct their paths when they fully trust and seek Him.

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Listen: https://pandora.app.link/swrQ3SN3PJb

Bible (NASB) Source: Bible Gateway