Great Plains Daily Devotional for 3/24/2019

Isaiah 55:1-9 

Ho, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and you that have no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
    listen, so that you may live.
I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    my steadfast, sure love for David.
See, I made him a witness to the peoples,
    a leader and commander for the peoples.
See, you shall call nations that you do not know,
    and nations that do not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has glorified you.

Seek the Lord while he may be found,
    call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake their way,
    and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

I remember when I was a young boy, how I would play until dark in the summer months. At some time during our evening, but not yet dark, my mother would call out my name because it was time come to the house for supper. In our house we didn’t eat dinner at the evening meal, it was our noontime meal. It was such a joy to hear my mother’s voice calling out to me to come and eat.

Most of the time we would have sandwiches for supper, but the sandwich was not just meat and bread. We had cheese, lettuce, fresh-sliced tomatoes, pickles and peppers. And, of course bread and potato chips with whatever sandwich spread you would like to have. However, the best part of the meal was not the food but the fact that we sat down as a family and shared the day we had lived, with the joys and hurts.

In our passage today from Isaiah 55:1 we find a call to different nourishment and one that will last forever:
“Ho, everyone who thirsts,
  come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
  come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
  without money and without price.”

What God desires is to give us is more than just food and drink but life-giving, soul-filling soul food. As we are beginning this new day, let each of us ask of God: “How is it with my soul? Come and fill me with your nourishment for life.” 

Prayer for Reflection

Isaiah 55:1-9
Psalm 32
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Luke 13:1-9