I had the pleasure of having a conversation with a trusted and valued friend where the subject of “plans made and suddenly changed” came up. We acknowledged the need for grieving when that happens, and I found her comments to be both wise and helpful. Even when you are handling the change with patience and grace, it is still a good and necessary thing to recognize that unexpected change can take a toll on your heart. I think when we have come out the other side of these events and are mostly “unscathed,” we want to minimize or dismiss the impact that the loss of something that we had planned and looked forward to can have on us. This is not a healthy response. It is good to acknowledge the disruption, mourn over it, work through the grief of that unexpected change, and then seek closure. It is also good to count the blessings we see even in the midst of the trial.

I want to invite you to think about a situation or time when you felt the extreme heat of disappointment, an unfulfilled dream, a sudden illness, the end of a relationship, or a life-changing loss. To liken those events to being engulfed in extreme heat should give you a sense of what Isaiah was writing about in Isaiah 25. He is writing about the unexpected change that came over Israel when the surrounding nations assaulted them and drove his people out. Isaiah wisely acknowledged this tragedy, and then focuses our attention to the “plans formed of old” and praises God for the deliverance that will eventually come.

Isaiah 25 (New Revised Standard Version)

O Lord, you are my God;
    I will exalt you; I will praise your name,
for you have done wonderful things,
    plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
² For you have made the city a heap,
    the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of foreigners is a city no more;
    it will never be rebuilt.
³ Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
    cities of ruthless nations will fear you.

Note that Isaiah began this writing with words of praise and thanksgiving. The Assyrians had already overtaken the Northern Kingdom and Isaiah’s role as prophet was to warn of the time when the Babylonians would seize Jerusalem. It was a time of great tribulation and a forecast of the Great Tribulation that will come at the end of time. If you are in a tribulation or remembering a time of great trouble, you will find instructions here on how to handle your situation. The first step is to praise. Isaiah said, “I will exalt you,” a reminder that worshipping God in the storm is a choice we make. Will you exalt God in your disappointment?

⁴ For you have been a refuge to the poor,
    a refuge to the needy in their distress,
    a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
⁵     the noise of foreigners like heat in a dry place,
you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
    the song of the ruthless was stilled.

Even on our worst days, God is worthy to be praised. He offers refuge to the needy and provides shelter in bad times. He fights our battles for us and never leaves our side.

⁶ On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
    a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
    of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.

Christian readers will feel an immediate pull toward seeing this next section as a description of the Feast of the Lamb that Revelation talks about:

“for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd,
    and he will guide them to springs of the water of life,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:17

⁷ And he will destroy on this mountain
    the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
    the covering that is spread over all nations;
⁸     he will swallow up death forever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
    and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
    for the Lord has spoken.

All of our disappointments will be swallowed up, for the Lord has spoken. In the end, isn’t that the only thing that really matters?

⁹ It will be said on that day,
    “See, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
    This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
    let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

Having this conversation with my friend provided a shade from the heat. Who in your life is in a predicament that burns? Can you offer comfort just by listening? God is on our side in all times of distress, and we can offer hope to others by reminding them of that very thing. Reach out to someone today and give them a listening ear. You will be blessed to be a blessing.

Let us be glad and rejoice!

Springs of the Water of Life by Kathy Schumacher