A Wakened Heart, a Listening Ear, an Encouraging Word – Brad Jersak

Isaiah the Prophet:

Isaiah, son of Amoz, was a priest and prophet based in Jerusalem in the 8th century. The book bearing his name records visions and events through the reigns of four kings of Judah, leading up to the Babylonian captivity and a period immediately after the exile. Isaiah was commissioned as a messenger in a temple-shaking encounter with the Lord (Isaiah 6) and his prophecies included judgments concerning the nations, the rise of a virgin-born Prince of Peace, and the arrival of God’s universal kingdom on a renewed world.

It’s worth pondering Isaiah’s relationship with God, how he functioned, and his example to us. In this post, let’s zoom in on just one verse, where the prophet reveals a snippet of his faith. Here is the New International Version of Isaiah 50:4:

• The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue,
      to know the word that sustains the weary.
  He wakens me morning by morning,
      wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.

Pillow Talk

While the Hebrew prophets, including Isaiah, are often depicted as a wild bunch, Isaiah describes his morning routine in quiet, gentle terms. His day begins with God, and he imagines God waking him up, “morning by morning.”

Of course, we know that every living creature that passes through a sleep cycle will wake up naturally without divine intervention. All that’s required is a working bladder. And I’m sure Isaiah knew this, too. It’s not as though God literally shook him awake… but Isaiah was also aware that when his body and mind woke up to face a new day, God was also there, simultaneously waking his heart to the presence of the Holy Spirit, who would prepare and empower him to face the tasks of the day, whether in mundane acts of service or experiencing profound revelations of the coming Messiah (as in chapters 2, 7, 9, 42, 53, 58, and 61 foreshadow Jesus Christ).

Isaiah invites us to wakeful hearts as well. Before our heads leave the pillow, we are welcome to remember Immanuel: the God who is with us (Isaiah 7:14). To be awake means that we are conscious of God’s presence in our lives: of the Father’s care (Matthew 6), of Christ in us (Colossians 1:17), and of the continual filling of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). While the reality of knowing the eternal God is with us and in us is a mindblower, to become aware of that truth can be as natural as waking up each morning.

A Listening Ear

When I wake up each morning, my eyes are overly sensitive to light… I had a bad experience with eye surgery that regressed, and since then, my mind wakes up well before my eyes want to participate. As I lay awake with eyes shut tight, I don’t start by generating creative thoughts. I listen.

What do I listen to? I may listen to Eden firing up the coffeemaker. I may listen to the Vancouver rain falling outside. I may overhear whatever news of our family or news of the world Eden has tuned into on her cellphone. But mostly, before that, I’m listening on the inside. And what we listen to makes all the difference to our day.

My default mode is too easily tuned to the inner voices of worry. Worries about people I care about, worries about deadlines, worries about crises, worries about nothing… you name it, and I will worry about it. It doesn’t even feel like a choice. Those thoughts seem to present themselves as I’m waking up. But at this point, like Isaiah, I can make a choice. I can (re)direct my heart to listing for God’s kind voice and comforting promises. I can remember God’s invitation to “cast all our cares” at the throne of grace, and Jesus’ call, “Come to me, all you who are weary.” If that isn’t my first instinct, fine. But I can make it my first decision. I will listen.

A Comforting Word

This verse describes Isaiah’s morning listening is purposeful. And it’s also unselfish. Like Jesus, the Servant-King of Isaiah’s dreams, this prophet has a servant’s heart. God awakens him to listen for the words of comfort others will need today. And despite his more grandiose experiences, I am confident that Isaiah’s norm was much like ours.

As our listening shifts from worry to prayer, people come to mind… love brings them to mind. And as we hold those people in our hearts, we become aware of their needs. Perhaps we’ll recognize the burdens that run deeper than their immediate circumstances. Love awakens our ears to be attentive and perceive others’ true needs and concerns.

We can then ask God to “instruct our tongues” with a word of comfort we can offer to the weary, a word of wisdom for the perplexed, a word of kindness to the wounded, and so on. When we ask, a specific thought may occur to us to share with a specific person. OR we may not know at all who or what to say until we encounter them later in the day. I wouldn’t presume to say, “God told me to tell you.” We can commence naturally, with our simple message of comfort or encouragement.

If what we offer reflects the love of God, issues from a listening heart, and is uplifting to the recipient, we don’t need to “play Isaiah.” We can just be ourselves… or, at least, our true and awakened selves rather than our anxious and worried selves.

Strength, Comfort, Encouragement

When Paul described this ministry to the Corinthians, he needed to help them dial down their hyper-charismania. It was getting out of hand, and the meetings had become harmful. He grounds them in these healthy parameters: “…the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort” (1 Corinthians 14:3).

“WAIT! That’s it? Just strength, comfort, and encouragement? Not reading minds, predicting earthquakes, or directing elections? Well, anybody can do that!”

Yes, exactly. We are all invited to wake up, listen, and share the good news that strengthens the weak, comforts the grieving, and encourages everyone. Isaiah reminds us to live that way morning by morning and every day.

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