I’m just “ta-prending,” Lolly. My two year old grandson, Thomas, has a vivid imagination. In preparation for the arrival of his baby brother in a few weeks, he is rehearsing all of his favorite things with the stuffed penguin chick that has a recording of Timothy’s heartbeat inside. Just this evening, he put Timothy in the new double stroller and took him to the zoo and the Great Wolf Lodge. They pretended riding up and down the elevator, riding the fire truck in the arcade, and feeding the giraffes. His momma gives him a baby washcloth to bathe baby brother and they tuck him in together at night.
Even though he’s only two, Thomas knows the difference between real and pretend. He knows his baby brother is still in mommy’s tummy and baby Timothy penguin is just a stuffed toy. He knows when we’re really going to the zoo and when we’re only pretending. He’s even learned to pretend tasting something rather than putting all the toy foods in his mouth to keep from spreading germs. He asks for a pretend bandaid if he has a scratch because he doesn’t like the real ones, which he associates with shots at the pediatrician.
It struck me this afternoon that the line between pretend and reality has become blurred. Somewhere along the line, truth was traded for a lie and God was sidelined. When I look at the world around me, I see what the prophet Isaiah wrote about thousands of years ago. We have lost our way and we’ve forgotten where to look for direction.
”So, go now and write all this down. Put it in a book so that the record will be there to instruct the coming generations, because this is a rebel generation, a people who lie, a people unwilling to listen to anything God tells them.
They tell their spiritual leaders, “Don’t bother us with irrelevancies.”
They tell their preachers, “Don’t waste our time on impracticalities. Tell us what makes us feel better. Don’t bore us with obsolete religion. That stuff means nothing to us. Quit hounding us with The Holy of Israel.”“
Isaiah 30:8-11 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/isa.30.8-11.MSG
”“What sorrow awaits my rebellious children,” says the Lord. “You make plans that are contrary to mine. You make alliances not directed by my Spirit, thus piling up your sins.“
Isaiah 30:1 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/isa.30.1.NLT
God sent His messengers, the prophets, to remind Israel what He had first told them through Moses.
”Look at what I’ve done for you today: I’ve placed in front of you Life and Good Death and Evil.
And I command you today: Love God, your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his commandments, regulations, and rules so that you will live, really live, live exuberantly, blessed by God, your God, in the land you are about to enter and possess.
But I warn you: If you have a change of heart, refuse to listen obediently, and willfully go off to serve and worship other gods, you will most certainly die. You won’t last long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse.
Choose life so that you and your children will live.
And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him.
Oh yes, He is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God, your God, promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.“
Deuteronomy 30:15-20 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/deu.30.16.MSG
By Isaiah’s time, we find the very nation God freed from slavery in Egypt running back to Egypt for protection against her other enemies. Rather than consulting God, her kings are relying on advice from wise men and false prophets while the true prophets of God are ignored, imprisoned, or killed. The treasures of Israel, even the gold and silver articles of worship, were paid to purchase protection from mercenary armies.
”For without consulting me, you have gone down to Egypt for help. You have put your trust in Pharaoh’s protection. You have tried to hide in his shade. But by trusting Pharaoh, you will be humiliated, and by depending on him, you will be disgraced.
This is the reply of the Holy One of Israel:
“Because you despise what I tell you and trust instead in oppression and lies, calamity will come upon you suddenly— like a bulging wall that bursts and falls. In an instant it will collapse and come crashing down.
You will be smashed like a piece of pottery— shattered so completely that there won’t be a piece big enough to carry coals from a fireplace or a little water from the well.”
This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:
“Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength.
But you would have none of it. You said, ‘No, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.’
But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
***
So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.“
Isaiah 30:2-3, 12-16, 18 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/isa.30.2-18.NLT
As He waited for Israel, His wayward child, so He waits today. Peter, the headstrong disciple of Christ, said it best.
”He is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.“
2 Peter 3:9 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2pe.3.9.NLT
”Even though the Lord may allow you to go through a season of hardship and difficulty, he himself will be there with you.
He will not hide himself from you, for your eyes will constantly see him as your Teacher.
When you turn to the right or turn to the left, you will hear his voice behind you to guide you, saying, “This is the right path; follow it.”“
https://bible.com/bible/1849/isa.30.20-21.TPT
Do you long to hear the voice of the Lord? Do you listen for His direction? When He speaks, do you listen and act in obedience, even if it’s not the answer you anticipated?
”The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.“
Deuteronomy 29:29 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/deu.29.29.NLT
You hold the Word of God in your hands. If you’ve trusted in Jesus’s death and resurrection to satisfy the wrath of God on your behalf, then you are God’s child.
”Like newborn babies, you should long for the pure milk of God’s word. It will help you grow up as believers. You can do this now that you have tasted how good the Lord is.“
1 Peter 2:2-3 NIRV
A Fitting Reply 
This is one of my favorites ♥️
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