Into The Glorious Unknown

“Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord: ‘The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners and release those condemned to death.’”
Psalm 102:18-20

What a year it has been! As I was pondering what title to give this devotion I thought about the adventure I am on as I do my best to follow after God and how sometimes that means going into the unknown, hence as I look forward it seems that going “Into the glorious unknown” is appropriate. As I settled on the idea – I thought that it might be a lyric from a song and so it is. The actual lyric is “Let’s follow our leader into the glorious unknown” from the old Steven Curtis Chapman song The Great Adventure. There is another lyric in the song that speaks to this week’s passage “I opened up the Bible and I read about me, said I’d been a prisoner and God’s grace had set me free (emphasis mine).” We are all bound by something at some time and God’s grace can free us even from death if we let him.

I have long stopped thinking I know what it means to be called by God to do His work full time. In what seems like forever ago I thought I knew what the plan was. I have learned that I am clueless, that instead each step – each sometimes painful step I have taken has taken me further into the glorious unknown, has stretched me, has at times broken me, but has always made me – is making me stronger and more willing to take the next step.

I cannot see into the future, but I know there are no coincidences when following after Jesus – everything that has happened in the past has been preparing me for the next step – it’s been preparing you too.

What’s stopping you from fully surrendering your heart and life to Jesus? What is holding you bound, what are you a prisoner too? Jesus reading from what we know as Isaiah 61:1 said: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Will this New Year be the year you find real freedom, where your eyes are truly opened, where you will find His favor even in the midst of life’s struggles?

Come with me and together we will follow Jesus into the glorious unknown.

A Prayer
Father - thank you for getting us through this past year. Some of us are a bit battered and bruised, but we are also strong and closer to You. As we seek to follow you into the glorious unknown of a new year be our strength and courage. Show each of us what you would have us do and grant us Your favor so we can do Your good work – Amen.