Prayer, Purity, and Proclamation – A Fasting Devotional –
From: Pamela Procter
In prayer earlier this week, the Lord showed me something about Isaiah 6-7.
In chapter 6 verses 1-4, The Lord is speaking to Isaiah as he is in PRAYER:
"In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke."
In verses 5-7, Isaiah's lips are cleaned in an act of PURITY:
5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
In verses 8-13, Isaiah is asked to PROCLAIM a word (a pretty harsh one)
8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” 9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people:
“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” 11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?” And he said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, 12 and the Lord removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. 13 And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remain, when it is felled.” The holy seed is its stump.
I Imagined it to be a rough job as a prophet in OT times as they got a lot of bad news to deliver people! But beginning in Isaiah 7:10, the Lord speaks to Isaiah again and to Ahaz about the coming of Immanuel! What a PROCLAMATION indeed!
The Gospel was proclaimed to me in 2005. I had past experiences of people holding signs about it, screaming it at me in condemnation, and even spitting on me while telling me I was bound for hell. But almost 16 years ago, a young woman came into my salon reading her Bible. When I asked her what she was doing, she patiently walked me through parts of John and Romans. She invited me to church the following Sunday, where I ran to the altar and surrendered my life to God. I reflected on this recently as I was trapped in an elevator for 50 minutes. Emmy's birth mother stayed with me on the other side of the doors. When told by the firefighters that she could go home, she replied "No, this is my friend and I am not leaving her." Birth mom and I have had a rocky three year history, but to know that she views me as her friend meant the world to me. I have proclaimed the gospel to her by honoring her, serving her other children, and loving her unconditionally.
Let's pray for ways to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ today!
In prayer earlier this week, the Lord showed me something about Isaiah 6-7.
In chapter 6 verses 1-4, The Lord is speaking to Isaiah as he is in PRAYER:
"In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke."
In verses 5-7, Isaiah's lips are cleaned in an act of PURITY:
5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
In verses 8-13, Isaiah is asked to PROCLAIM a word (a pretty harsh one)
8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” 9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people:
“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” 11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?” And he said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, 12 and the Lord removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. 13 And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remain, when it is felled.” The holy seed is its stump.
I Imagined it to be a rough job as a prophet in OT times as they got a lot of bad news to deliver people! But beginning in Isaiah 7:10, the Lord speaks to Isaiah again and to Ahaz about the coming of Immanuel! What a PROCLAMATION indeed!
The Gospel was proclaimed to me in 2005. I had past experiences of people holding signs about it, screaming it at me in condemnation, and even spitting on me while telling me I was bound for hell. But almost 16 years ago, a young woman came into my salon reading her Bible. When I asked her what she was doing, she patiently walked me through parts of John and Romans. She invited me to church the following Sunday, where I ran to the altar and surrendered my life to God. I reflected on this recently as I was trapped in an elevator for 50 minutes. Emmy's birth mother stayed with me on the other side of the doors. When told by the firefighters that she could go home, she replied "No, this is my friend and I am not leaving her." Birth mom and I have had a rocky three year history, but to know that she views me as her friend meant the world to me. I have proclaimed the gospel to her by honoring her, serving her other children, and loving her unconditionally.
Let's pray for ways to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ today!