Pastor Tom Grieb continues our series "Emerging."

The prophet Isaiah spoke a hopeful word to a wearied people who found themselves exiled in a faraway land.  The fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. at the hands of the Babylonians saw the Southern Kingdom of Judah carted off in exile to the homeland of their captors.  It was a horrible time indeed.  The people of God were shattered to the core.  They wondered how any of this could have happened.  They even wondered if God had abandoned them. 

Enter the prophet Isaiah and his encouraging word, “Comfort, comfort, my people, says your God.”  The prophet goes on to talk about a highway that would be formed in the desert, hastening their return to normalcy.  Above all things, Isaiah talked about strength for those who were tired and weary.  Soon God’s people would be heading home, “soaring on wings like eagles, running and not growing weary, walking and not becoming faint.”

As God’s people emerged from their exile, he empowered them in every way.  God stands to do the same for you and me in the mix of the very things we face.  Even as we emerge from a season of pandemic, God stands to lead us to a brighter day.