Hope in the Lord

   Isaiah 40:31

But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

 I find this passage very comforting. Through this passage I know I don't have to rely on my own fleeting strength. God will renew my strength. That's a comfort because I am not very strong. But as often as this verse is quoted, I rarely see the previous verses quoted with it. I have quoted the entire chapter below. I know it's long, but it is God talking to us, comforting us. These are tough times, even scary to some. But God has not forgotten us. He will see us through and give us the strength we need to walk through this portion of history. God is good and loves us more than we can comprehend. Let's trust and hope in Him together, uplifting one another in brotherly love.

Isaiah 40:6-31

 ¹ Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

 ² Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
       that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for,
       that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.

 ³ A voice of one calling: "In the desert prepare the way for the LORD;
       make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.

 ⁴ Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low;
       the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.

 ⁵ And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.
       For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

 ⁶ A voice says, "Cry out." And I said, "What shall I cry?" "All men are like grass,
       and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

 ⁷ The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on       them. Surely the people are grass.

 ⁸ The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever."

 ⁹ You who bring good tidings to Zion, go up on a high mountain.
       You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout,
       lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah,
       "Here is your God!"

 ¹⁰ See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him.
       See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.

 ¹¹ He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms
       and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.

 ¹² Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
       or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?

 ¹³ Who has understood the mind  of the LORD, or instructed him as his counselor?

 ¹⁴ Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way?
       Who was it that taught him knowledge or showed him the path of understanding?

 ¹⁵ Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.

 ¹⁶ Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.

 ¹⁷ Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless
       and less than nothing.

 ¹⁸ To whom, then, will you compare God? What image will you compare him to?

 ¹⁹ As for an idol, a craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
       and fashions silver chains for it.

 ²⁰ A man too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot.
       He looks for a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple.

 ²¹ Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

 ²² He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
       and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

 ²³ He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.

 ²⁴ No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown,
       no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

 ²⁵ "To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.

 ²⁶ Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these?
       He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name.
       Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

 ²⁷ Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel,
       "My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God"?

 ²⁸ Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God,
       the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary,
       and his understanding no one can fathom.

 ²⁹ He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

 ³⁰ Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

 ³¹ but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
       They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary,
       they will walk and not be faint.

BOOK REVIEW: GREEN By Tedd Dekker

BOOK REVIEW: GREEN
By: Tedd Dekker



Green is a science fiction fantasy about a man named Thomas Hunter who could time travel between two worlds. Well, actually between two times. Our world in the "present" and our world several thousand years into the future. What happened in one reality effected the other. It could be confusing at times and riveting at other times. The evil represented in the book was truly evil and gross. If you are squeamish I wouldn't recommend this book. I would not say that he was gross just to be gross, but to depict evil as it really is in all of it's gross darkness. The good represented in the book was as bright and pure as the evil was dark and stinky. Jesus was the ultimate hero in the book who was never in danger of loosing to the evil forces. He was in control all the time and Elyon's will (God's will) prevailed at all times.

I enjoyed the book, but as I finished it I was left less than satisfied because of the circular nature of the series. Green is book zero in Tedd Dekker's circle series. It is really unusual because it is truly written in circular form. I have never read a Dekker book before, and the author suggests that because this is written as a circle, a reader can start with any book and end with any book. I must admit that it took me quite a while to "get into" the book because I had never read the others in the series, but I was indeed able to understand the book and read it "out of sequence" so to speak. I am interested in reading the others now to see if I would have enjoyed it more if I read it in the order in which they were written.It never "ended" in the traditional sense, but led into the next book "Black." But I did enjoy reading the book and look forward to reading the others in the series.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”