Then…
By Debbonnaire Kovacs, Sept. 2, 2015
Isaiah 35:4-7a
Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
“Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
He will come with vengeance,
with terrible recompense.
He will come and save you.”
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water.
————————-
Are you or fearful? I am, all too often. Hear the whisper: “Here is your God. Your God. God is your Beloved and you are God’s beloved. God will bring recompense and reconciliation to whatever situation that is causing your fear and will save you. And… if it’s your own inner thoughts, and blame games, and circular thinking that’s causing your fear (likely it is) God can heal that, too. Keep reading.
Are you blind? I am. Look up with your sightless, useless eyes. Seek the blue peace of heaven. Feel God touch your eyelids and whisper, “Be open!” Look at God’s face first, always, and then you will be able to see around you, see what is as what it actually is.
Are you deaf? I am. Far too often! Unable to hear hope or help or healing. Unable to hear the Spirit. Shhh… Be still. Don’t try so hard to hear. Just be still and listen. Hear the breeze. Hear the birdsong. Hear the voice of a loved one. Hear the sirens and the screams without thinking you have to fix them, just for a moment. Hear Spirit whisper, “Be unstopped!” Hear God first, always, then listen for the one next thing you are given to do.
Are you lame? Is it sometimes impossible to even stand, let alone walk, and do you watch others leap and dance with sorrowful envy and helplessness? Here is your God. Hold out your hand and put it into that great and tender Hand. You will move, as Lois flew with Superman. It will seem like magic. It will be magic—true magic from before time began. Together, you shall leap like a deer. But don’t let go! And if you do, God will catch you.
Are you speechless? I am. Or I babble senselessly… Shhh… Listen… Pray with St. Patrick, “The Word of God to be my speech.” Hear the Spirit whisper, and learn to lisp those words after God, like a baby learning to speak. Remember the last time you did that with a baby? You be the baby—God’s baby—and let it be that much fun. Giggle at your attempts to imitate.
Then…look around you with your new heart. Feel the joy. See, with your new eyes, water bursting forth like Bridal Veil Falls where you never thought to see water. Hear, with your opened ears, the chuckling of the streams through your desert. Wade with your new feet from the pain of the burning sands into the cool delight of the pool of grace. Drink deeply, and shout your praise with a new tongue and a new heart.
Recognize the fearful, blind, deaf, lame, speechless, helpless ones about you, and sing your song to them. Point them to the Healer. And stand back.