kayte
Well-Known Member
Is 65:17-21
Thus says the LORD:
Lo, I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
The things of the past shall not be remembered
or come to mind.
Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness
in what I create;
For I create Jerusalem to be a joy
and its people to be a delight;
I will rejoice in Jerusalem
and exult in my people.
No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there,
or the sound of crying;
No longer shall there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not round out his full lifetime;
He dies a mere youth who reaches but a hundred years,
and he who fails of a hundred shall be thought accursed.
They shall live in the houses they build,
and eat the fruit of the vineyards they plant
We might wonder why the church chose this reading during Lent.
When we’re supposed to be busy with penance, the exuberant joy expressed here might appear out of place. If we thought for a moment about the state of the world and looked at our own lives, it might seem a little premature to be thinking about the new heavens and the new earth. We may come to the conclusion that the earth is in pretty bad shape right now, and we’ve still got quite a ways to go ourselves!
It’s true that Lent is a serious time when we should be purifying our hearts from anything that has come between us and God. But to do that, we need a vision of what Lent is all about—and that vision is the joy of the resurrection. Although we haven’t reached the full measure of everything God intends for us, we can still be glad that God is doing a great work in us. Scripture promises that “he will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
Try a different approach. Meditate on this description of the new Jerusalem. It’s a place where the old has vanished, and the new has come. It’s a place where every tear is wiped away, and suffering and death will give way to peace, rest, and complete fulfillment. Then, look at this season as a golden opportunity to get ready for this new era.
“Thank you, Lord, for the great hope and the glorious future that you have in store for me. Thank you, too, for the changes you are working in me during this season of Lent!”
Psalm 30:2,4-6,11-13; John 4:43-54
Thus says the LORD:
Lo, I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
The things of the past shall not be remembered
or come to mind.
Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness
in what I create;
For I create Jerusalem to be a joy
and its people to be a delight;
I will rejoice in Jerusalem
and exult in my people.
No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there,
or the sound of crying;
No longer shall there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not round out his full lifetime;
He dies a mere youth who reaches but a hundred years,
and he who fails of a hundred shall be thought accursed.
They shall live in the houses they build,
and eat the fruit of the vineyards they plant
We might wonder why the church chose this reading during Lent.
When we’re supposed to be busy with penance, the exuberant joy expressed here might appear out of place. If we thought for a moment about the state of the world and looked at our own lives, it might seem a little premature to be thinking about the new heavens and the new earth. We may come to the conclusion that the earth is in pretty bad shape right now, and we’ve still got quite a ways to go ourselves!
It’s true that Lent is a serious time when we should be purifying our hearts from anything that has come between us and God. But to do that, we need a vision of what Lent is all about—and that vision is the joy of the resurrection. Although we haven’t reached the full measure of everything God intends for us, we can still be glad that God is doing a great work in us. Scripture promises that “he will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
Try a different approach. Meditate on this description of the new Jerusalem. It’s a place where the old has vanished, and the new has come. It’s a place where every tear is wiped away, and suffering and death will give way to peace, rest, and complete fulfillment. Then, look at this season as a golden opportunity to get ready for this new era.
“Thank you, Lord, for the great hope and the glorious future that you have in store for me. Thank you, too, for the changes you are working in me during this season of Lent!”
Psalm 30:2,4-6,11-13; John 4:43-54
