I Am Creating

I Am Creating

Reading: Isaiah 65-66; Psalm 62; John 3 17 “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore. 18 Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness. Her people will be a source of joy. 19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and delight in my people. And the sound of weeping and crying will be heard in it no more. (Isaiah 65:17-19 NLT) Over the past few months, I’ve had occasion to meet with people I knew and was very involved with many years ago. It’s been instructional to me and I’m still processing the impressions and insights from these encounters. First, it’s simply really great to see old friends! It’s great to hear the stories of God’s faithfulness through the years. It’s sad to hear the stories of hardships, loss, and broken relationships. But it’s good to see old friends. And you know as well as I do that life has its ups and downs. One thing that stands out is that some people are happier than others. And the degree of happiness doesn’t seem to correlate with how prosperous they have become, how healthy they are, or how much they have suffered and lost through the years. Some of the folks are still nursing wounds and bearing scars from past hurts and disappointments. Some folks are wishing things could be just as they were all those years ago – that what we had then could be “re-created” for us now. That’s why these verses from Isaiah really caught my attention today. God is always creating. Every day we awaken to a “new earth” of possibilities and choices. It’s different from the “old earth” of thirty years ago or even yesterday. But it’s the “earth” – the reality – he’s created for us right now. It’s not yesterday, it’s not tomorrow, it’s now! It’s today! It will keep changing, because God is always creating. So here’s one take-away from this: Don’t let the old earth, even yesterday’s earth, keep you from living fully and responding in faith to the opportunities of the earth God has created for you right here and now! Embrace it! Live it! Love it! Prayer: Father, Thanks for being the God who is still creating the new heavens and new earth for today. May my friends and I remember fondly the “old earth” and may we fully live the opportunities and experiences of the “new earth.” Amen.