Water in the Wilderness ...

Wednesday, June 15, 2016. Some images of the bible are just fantastic. They are encouraging. They are reflecting life and perspective. I have been reading the Book of the Prophet Isaiah recently. And it is full of words about God's salvation, about righteousness and love and mercy.

Thirst and open Rivers …

God is changing everything. When the poor and needy seek him, he will answer. he will put a pool of water into the wilderness, springs of water into the dry land. He will put cedars into the desert, and olive trees will grow there in the wilderness. God is a God of wonder, a God of power, a God of mercy, justice, love.

We all know the difficulties which we have with poverty in our world even now, 2500 after Isaiah. We all know that we are still struggling, with justice, with faith, with a life perspective for everyone. We are still human, with all our scientific revolution, with all our progress, still struggling with war, with illnesses, with natural catastrophe, with our human nature as a whole.

Reading the book of Isaiah is like a fountain of inspiration, a fountain of insight and motivation, a fountain of life and perspective for me. Reading this prophetic word is like a bright light for my day, like a comfort for my feelings, like clear and clean air for my mind. Please, have a look into this book:

$ASCII�� JKJK'�\# ��@��k��L��A�Y��@B��Rk�� y*��v��"�"��"��"��"�"�"�"�"�"�"�"�"��"�"�� "��"��"�� "�"�"��"�"�� "�� p� ��"�"�"�"�"�� "��p� �p� ��`3��p� �� "�"�"�"�"�� "�0�`3�Q3�`3�af��p� �p� ��"�"��"�"�� "��`3�af�af�af�af�p� ��"�"�� "�"�� "��p� �p� �`3��"�"�"��"��"�� `3�`3�af�af�af�`3�p� �af��"�"�"�� `3�aU�aU�aU�af�af�af�aU��"��"�"�� af�af�af�af�`3�`3�af�af�qf��"�� "�� af�`3�af�`3�p� �p� �`3�af�qf�� "�� "��"��"��"�af��p� �af�p� ��"�� "��`3�`3�`3�`3�� p� �af�� "�� "��"��"��"�� "��"��"�� p� �� "�� "��"�� "�~��P�G��+�3]��I��l��p��U��k��J��#��A�2��#��A�2��#��A�2��#��A�2��#��A��FAFA��0��FAFAe��/�"8��/�"8R�8��~�/�"8f�A��/�"8p�Mr��/�"8x��z�/�"8�� k�/�"8��r��u�/�"8��pY�s�/�"8��u�l�/�"8��o�/�"8��FAFA��rZ ��f ��T��Fl ��(��3��ZP��6��FAFA��F�� Z��i ��U��...$

Hand of the Lord …

17 When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the Lord will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. 18 I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. 19 I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, 20 that they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it. (Isaiah 41, 17ff)

Our faith is not a philosophy, we could pick and change as we wanted. It is an encounter with the living God. It is about facts - in the spiritual world as well as in our physical world. It is about God himself, and about our relationship to him. It is about his love, his mercy in Christ Jesus, and about the power which is in the name of Jesus.

Our faith is not about our power, but about the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes, God can open springs in the desert. And he does! But the greatest power is shown when a human heart by free choice comes to love the Lord and his human brothers and sisters. Nothing less is what God is aiming for. Nothing less is what faith is about. Nothing less is what all power and dominion is good for: to support love in freedom and in full justice. (Roland Potthast) ... more texts