“In that day of peace, battle gear will no longer be issued.
Never again will uniforms be bloodstained by war.
All such equipment will be burned.”
Isaiah 9:5 NLT
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Jeff Foxworthy started a pretty significant wave of comedy when, in 1990, he began the “You might be a redneck if…” conversation. One of the reasons I find it so funny is because he includes himself in the depictions of redneck qualifiers. He isn’t pointing fingers at others – HE is the inspiration for the monologue – which makes the whole thing very inviting and safe as well as funny.
I wonder if there are conversations we could be having among each other about our “might be’s.”
- You might be a mother of all boys if you find it normal to be clotheslining people by 6:30 in the morning.
- You might be a Wisconsin native if you identify outsiders as people who can’t pronounce “Waukesha.”
- You might be a social media addict if you know what kind of cake was served at your neighbor’s cat’s birthday party yesterday.
And in an unfortunately less humorous way, but hopefully equally safe and inviting to admit:
- You might be considered normal if you’ve watched at least one youtube video on Surviving an Active Shooter Event.
- You might be considered normal if you no longer feel safe letting your kids walk to school alone.
- You might be considered normal if you feel depressed or anxious more than you feel happiness or joy.
It’s nothing to laugh about that this second list has become just as commonplace as the first list for many of us. However, if we believe that God is God, we can have an even better response than laughter.
In the book of Isaiah, God used the prophet [Isaiah] to warn his people that trouble was coming, that darkness and despair would be a part of their life for a time. When we watch the news each day, our present time doesn’t seem all that different from the darkness Isaiah was warning that era about. However, Isaiah does this really cool thing (that I wish OUR news anchors would do) every time he explains to the people that there would be trouble. He ALSO reminds them that it will not go on forever.
“God will break the chains that bind his people and the whip that scourges them, just as he did when he destroyed the army of Midian with Gideon’s little band. In that day of peace, battle gear will no longer be issued. Never again will uniforms be bloodstained by war. All such equipment will be burned.” (Isaiah 9:4-5 NLT)
God promised that in Isaiah’s time, but it is still just as true today. There will be a day that battle gear of all types – emotional, physical and spiritual – will not even need to be issued because Peace will be the authority. We will no longer need Military Forces. We will no longer need evacuation plans. Shoot – we won’t even need Ladies Wine/Whine Night anymore! WHAT?! Why?
“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 NIV)
That child, that son is Jesus. He was born to give us eternal freedom and peace. He purchased our future so that we could someday be forever with him in Heaven. And because of that, we identify boldly and joyfully with these awesome “might be’s”…
- You might be a Christian if you take time on a regular basis to share your hopes, dreams and fears with him.
- You might be a Christian if you ask Jesus to give you his joy that exists in spite of this present darkness.
- You might be a Christian if you teach your boys to pray instead of clothesline. (Especially at 6:30a.m… Yeesh.)
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Dear Lord, even with the best of intentions and the boldest of faiths, some days are heavy and we become weary. We humbly ask you to transform our fears and weakness into moments to praise and worship you. Help us to encourage one another and use these dark times as a catalyst for community and growth in you. Amen.
Thanks Emily for bringing a smile to my face!
Dan
ANY time!! 🙂 Thanks for reading!!