– Scripture:

                 Restore Your Connections

The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me because God anointed me. He sent me to preach good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, Announce freedom to all captives and pardon all prisoners. God sent me to announce the year of his grace, a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies, and to comfort all who mourn, To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion, give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes, Messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit. Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness” planted by God to display his glory. They’ll rebuild the old ruins and raise a new city out of the wreckage. They’ll start over on the ruined cities, take the rubble left behind, and make it new. You’ll hire outsiders to herd your flocks and foreigners to work your fields, But you’ll have the title “Priests of God,” honored as ministers of our God. You’ll feast on the bounty of nations; you’ll bask in their glory. Because you got a double dose of trouble and more than your share of contempt, Your inheritance in the land will be doubled, and your joy go on forever.

                            Isaiah 61:1–7 MSG

 – Reflection:

I know that everybody loses touch with one thing or another, but to lose touch with the Father and all the blessings he has for us is not acceptable. In the passage above, Isaiah is recounting what GOD has told him and how they are to restore the buildings that are in ruins and make them new. He is asking us to do the same thing with our lives too. To take the lives we have misdirected so far and begin rebuilding them with his plans in mind, following what he had for us always. When we do that, we will definitely notice a new life and more energy to get his work done for his glory, not ours.

Where do we go from here?

Take a moment to survey your life. Which type of relationship is most broken? If none is obvious, take time to listen and pray. Ask our counselor, God the Holy Spirit, to guide you. Once you’ve focused on what’s most in need of rebuilding, what’s most in need of repair, you’ve got your own individualized blueprint for “what’s next.” Begin working on it this week. Start with something practical.

Our Prayer for Today

Father, as we restore relationships with you, God, when we soften our hearts, decide to trust you more than we trust ourselves, and bend toward obedience. We will restore relationships with ourselves when we soften our hearts and decide to care for ourselves as God intended, finally dealing with self-condemnation, idolatry, or addiction (to work, to food, to alcohol, to pornography, or anything else). We will restore relationships with others when we soften our hearts, decide to look around for people who need us and bend our lives toward loving, serving, and forgiving them.