The Upper Room Daily Devotional from Nashville, Tennessee, United States "BEFORE WE CALL" for Thursday, 19 May 2016 with Scripture Isaiah 65:17-25

The Upper Room Daily Devotional from Nashville, Tennessee, United States "BEFORE WE CALL" for Thursday, 19 May 2016 with Scripture Isaiah 65:17 “For, look! I create new heavens
and a new earth;
past things will not be remembered,
they will no more come to mind.
18 So be glad and rejoice forever
in what I am creating;
for look! I am making Yerushalayim a joy,
and her people a delight.
19 I will rejoice in Yerushalayim
and take joy in my people.
The sound of weeping will no longer be heard in it,
no longer the sound of crying.
20 No more will babies die in infancy,
no more will an old man die short of his days —
he who dies at a hundred will be thought young,
and at less than a hundred thought cursed.
21 They will build houses and live in them,
they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They will not build and others live there,
they will not plant and others eat;
for the days of my people
will be like the days of a tree,
and my chosen will themselves enjoy
the use of what they make.
23 They will not toil in vain
or raise children to be destroyed,
for they are the seed blessed by Adonai;
and their offspring with them.
24 Before they call, I will answer;
while they are still speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
and the lion eat straw like an ox
(but the serpent — its food will be dust).
They will not hurt or destroy
anywhere on my holy mountain,”
says Adonai.
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The LORD says, “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.”[Isaiah 65:24 (NIV)]
My mind was reviewing the chores I wanted to do before my baby woke up from her nap. I knew that when she woke up, her diaper would need to be changed and she would want to be fed. The only way she could tell me about her needs would begin with restlessness and progress to crying.
I was watching the time as I worked, intently listening for her to stir. When that happened, I would hurry to her room before her cries progressed to wailing. After changing her diaper, I would hold and feed her. I loved my baby and would do anything for her. But while blissfully sleeping, my daughter was in her own little world — unaware of my presence.
As I continued my work, I realized how often I am like my daughter — living in my own little world until what I consider a crisis happens. Then I become frantic and begin wailing to God about my needs and concerns. Yet God’s ear is already attuned to our needs. God is ready to assist us, whatever the problem, even before we call. Thanks be to God for hearing and caring for all of us!
The Author: Donna Trimm (Virginia, USA)
Thought for the Day: Even before we call, God is ready and willing to help us.
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for your love that tunes in to our needs even before we know what they are. Amen.
Prayer focus: PARENTS OF YOUNG CHILDREN

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