Do you believe that I am able to do this? Matthew 9:28.

The Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed. Deuteronomy 31:8 NKJV.

I loved this today from Henri Nouwen in You Are The Beloved: “My recent illness has really convinced me of the importance of not judging or condemning, not even our own past, and of looking at people with immense compassion and love in the way Jesus looked at the adulterous woman and made her discover her own goodness through the eyes of Jesus and thus find the strength to “sin no more.”

And our chapter, Isaiah 43, shows us the love of Creator God – Father…Son…Spirit, that though we have turned away from Him, His love does not turn away from us. But now, this is what the Lord says – He who created you, Jacob, He who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in My sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth – everyone who is called by My name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made.” v. 1-7. There is nothing and no one who can do what God does or be what our God is. This morning it struck me how much I love the early morning light and my sacred time with God. Yet we always say that the sun rises and sets. No. This planet is on a journey around the sun and rotates for day and night on that journey. Our life is a journey just as surely as this planet God has made. And I am with Him and so can you be with Him each day of this journey. “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed, nor will there be one after Me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed – I, and not some foreign god among you. You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am He. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?” v. 10-13. We can read these words, but when we ask God to be with us, they come alive with His presence. “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. The wild animals honor Me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to My people, My chosen, the people I formed for Myself that they may proclaim My praise…But you have burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your offenses. I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for My own sake, and remembers your sins no more. Review the past for Me, let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence. Your first father sinned; those I sent to teach you rebelled against Me. So I disgraced the dignitaries of your temple; I consigned Jacob to destruction and Israel to scorn.” v. 18-21, 24-28. God did not leave us in ignorance. He spoke through His prophets. He came to be with us and show us just how much the Father loves us. And He speaks today through His Holy Spirit dwelling in us when we turn to Him realizing our need. We need God. And He is here, always. And with Him, your life will never be the same. Come. Spend this day with Him!