Isaiah 11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
    from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

What follows is a glorious description of the Messiah and His kingdom, so beautiful that it has caught the imagination of people down through the centuries. Having the record of Jesus’ life on earth, the first part seems very real and inspiring to us, but the “peaceful kingdom,” as it has been called, still seems like fantasy. At the same time, there are videos all over the Internet of people being kind to wild animals and finding those animals respond amazingly, and delightfully. We still have the peaceful kingdom to look forward to! Paul quoted Isaiah 64:4 to say, “‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’—the things God has prepared for those who love him—these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10) We have things to look forward to, and the closer we get to God, the more He reveals them to our heart. Every year around Christmas we read a lot of Scriptures that talk about the Messiah. Most of them are past, and thus verifiable, but some, like parts of this chapter, have yet to be fulfilled, and so must be received by faith. That’s not a bad thing! As Paul commented to the Romans, “Who hopes for what they already have?” (Romans 8:24) We have received incredible blessings already, but we have more to look forward to!

This is appropriate for me right now, because at 76, I feel like in so many ways I already have enough. God has been more than gracious to me, and I am deeply grateful. I have missed some of His blessings by my foolishness and/or sinfulness, but what I have received blows my mind to think about it all. The problem is, thinking that’s enough cuts me off from even more, and God’s blessings are never for just me alone. I am to be an active channel for His blessings to flow through me to others, so that they too may know what a great God we have, and give Him praise, glory, and obedience. Life on this earth is currently a mixed bag, just as Jesus said it would be, (John 16:33) but if I will keep my eyes on Him, His blessings will keep flowing through me to many, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all You enabled me to do yesterday. Thank You for all You have for me to do today. May I fulfill each task in Your strength and wisdom, so that Your purposes may be accomplished on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!