By Ben Van Arragon
Read: Isaiah 54:1-10
“Your Maker is your husband.” (v. 5)
For many, Christmas is a season of profound loneliness. In any given community, there are people who have few friends, have lost (or are estranged from) their parents or children, or who have no community available to them.
Maybe that’s the way you feel. When it seems like everyone else is celebrating with loved ones, otherwise tolerable loneliness can feel unbearable.
The book of Isaiah was written for God’s people during a season of great loneliness: the exile in Babylon. During the Babylonian invasion, nearly every household in Israel lost someone. In the exile, the nation was torn apart, families were separated, and an entire population was ripped from its home. Like a grieving, childless widow, Israel felt abandoned and unloved.
But they weren’t alone. Through the prophet Isaiah, God declares his khesed, his unbreakable love for his people. God calls himself Israel’s “husband” — their faithful covenant protector and provider. God promises to give back immeasurably more than Israel lost.
God does not promise to protect us from the pain and loss of life in this broken world. However, he does promise three things: he promises to be with us in our pain; he promises to return and complete his saving work; and he promises, in the end, to give us immeasurably more than whatever we lost in this life (Rom. 8:18).
If during the upcoming season you feel lonely, remember: your maker is your faithful protector, provider, and partner. God is your first love, and he will never leave you.
As you pray, remember that you are never alone.
—————
Ben Van Arragon is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. After 20 years of congregational ministry, he now serves his denomination as a pastor wellbeing consultant in Grand Rapids.
Read: Isaiah 54:1-10
“Your Maker is your husband.” (v. 5)
For many, Christmas is a season of profound loneliness. In any given community, there are people who have few friends, have lost (or are estranged from) their parents or children, or who have no community available to them.
Maybe that’s the way you feel. When it seems like everyone else is celebrating with loved ones, otherwise tolerable loneliness can feel unbearable.
The book of Isaiah was written for God’s people during a season of great loneliness: the exile in Babylon. During the Babylonian invasion, nearly every household in Israel lost someone. In the exile, the nation was torn apart, families were separated, and an entire population was ripped from its home. Like a grieving, childless widow, Israel felt abandoned and unloved.
But they weren’t alone. Through the prophet Isaiah, God declares his khesed, his unbreakable love for his people. God calls himself Israel’s “husband” — their faithful covenant protector and provider. God promises to give back immeasurably more than Israel lost.
God does not promise to protect us from the pain and loss of life in this broken world. However, he does promise three things: he promises to be with us in our pain; he promises to return and complete his saving work; and he promises, in the end, to give us immeasurably more than whatever we lost in this life (Rom. 8:18).
If during the upcoming season you feel lonely, remember: your maker is your faithful protector, provider, and partner. God is your first love, and he will never leave you.
As you pray, remember that you are never alone.
—————
Ben Van Arragon is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. After 20 years of congregational ministry, he now serves his denomination as a pastor wellbeing consultant in Grand Rapids.
