For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain

quiet, till her righteousness shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch.

Isaiah 62:1

This is how Isaiah began his prayer. He is one hundred percent committed. He is in it for the long haul…for as long as it takes (ALAT). Jerusalem is his heartbeat, much like our children are for us. And we have children or grandchildren that are in the same condition that Jerusalem was. We are like Isaiah. We pray:

Because I love _______, I will not keep still. Because my heart yearns for ______, I cannot remain silent. I will not stop praying for _______ until ____ righteousness shines like the dawn, and ____ salvation blazes like a burning torch.

Isaiah 62:1 NLT

We are also watchmen. We are at our post. We will pray day and night, continually. We will take no rest, we who pray to the Lord. We will give the Lord no rest until He completes His work. (62:6-7 NLT) And we know…

He will complete the good work He began in them. He will continue working in them until He is finished. (Philippians 1:6 NLT)

We go out through the gates! We prepare the highway for _____ to return. We smooth out the road and pull out the boulders. (62:10 NLT) Just like the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God! Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills, straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places. Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all the people will see it together. The Lord has spoken!” (Isaiah 40:3-5 NLT) John the Baptist spoke these words as he prepared the way for Jesus (Luke 3:4-6).

Today, we are the voice shouting (praying). As we pray, a path is being cleared for the Lord to come to our King’s kids. We are clearing the road and pulling out the boulders. God is saying, “Rebuild the road! Clear away the rocks and stones so _____ can return from captivity.” (Isaiah 57:14 NLT) I am picturing a road with boulders blocking the way. I see us moving those boulders off the road and now those very boulders that were blocking the way for the Lord to come are now blocking the way for the enemy to get to them. The Lord is coming and the enemy is not. We are clearing the way!

God may lead us to speak His word to them, but I would caution you not to assume this is what He wants you to do. Even John the Baptist spoke God’s word when and where God led him to. Our relationship with the Lord is the most important. What we do and say to them must flow out of that relationship. Even how we love them must flow out of that relationship. God is the One with the power and we want to partner with Him, not assume He will follow our lead. Recently I was reading in Hosea and it seemed like God was shouting it at me as Nathan filled my mind. Did he want me to share it with Nathan? I wasn’t sure and asked for confirmation. The next morning I was reading in Jesus Calling and the first line was “Be willing to go out on a limb for Me…your desire to live a risk-free life is a form of unbelief.” Again God was shouting it at me and it was the confirmation I needed. I emailed all the Scripture in Hosea to him that I believed God was leading me to. In the middle of writing this devotional, he called. What a gift! He said he got the email, because I had texted him asking if he got it since he hadn’t responded in over a week. Calling was the gift because it meant he accepted me after what I had written. We didn’t discuss it unfortunately, but maybe next week when we are there for Christmas. I know God’s word does not return void and it is in His hands now.