“You are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you… When you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned… For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” Isa. 43:1-3
Heavenly Father, there aren’t three more precious words in the entire Bible than these: “You are mine.” They are true, because of the Gospel. Today, we ask you to make them real in our figurative (and literal) “waters,” “rivers,” and “fires.”
You don’t say to us “if“ we experience threatening circumstances, fearful encounters, and vulnerability-fueling events—but “when” we do so, you will be with us. “With us”—not as a mere observer, but as a mighty Savior. We’d rather “smell like smoke” with you, than live our lives “Scot-free” without you. (Pun intended).
Father, thank you for being upfront with us, about life between the resurrection and return of Jesus. There will be things we didn’t plan for, deliverances we didn’t have faith for; and “grace-stories,” that at the time, felt more like a contradiction of your faithfulness, than an expression of it.
We rest in the promise (and mystery) of your sovereign rule over our pleasures and pains, our laughs and our laments, our miracles and our messes. No “rivers,” “waters,” or “fires” are ultimate. Only you are. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ tender and triumphant name.