Isaiah 51:1-3
Listen to me, you that pursue righteousness,
you that seek the Lord.
Look to the rock from which you were hewn,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah who bore you;
for he was but one when I called him,
but I blessed him and made him many.
3 For the Lord will comfort Zion;
he will comfort all her waste places,
and will make her wilderness like Eden,
her desert like the garden of the Lord;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the voice of song.
You that seek the Lord, look to the rock from which you were hewn. You that pursue righteousness, look to the quarry from which you were dug.
Was there ever a more beautiful word?
I’m hewn from Sarah, who laughed in the face of God’s promise to her in her old age. She had given up hope that the best was yet to come, but God had other plans.
I’m hewn from Miriam, who led her people in song and dance to celebrate the freedom God had won for them.
I’m hewn from Mary, who believed she was chosen to bear God’s son…and from Elizabeth, whose blessing inspired Mary’s song.
I’m hewn from strong, faithful women who endured devastating loss and kept on loving.
I’m hewn from Elsie, whose front closet was home to a coffee can filled with her ginger cookies–always ready to be shared with loved ones who came to visit. I’m hewn from Ione, who taught me to make rolled out sugar cookies and who adopted every single child who came through the lunch line where she served. I’m hewn from Coletta, whose strong fingers gently traced my face when it was bedtime at her house: one little forehead, two little eyes, one little nose, two little ears…
I’m hewn from Annette, who raised me to value commitment and tenacity, who instilled in me a love of music, who demonstrates to me the truth of the gospel: death never has the final word.
If I want to see God, I look at these women who have birthed in me hope, and joy, and the profound experience of unconditional love. If I want to be strengthened in my pursuit of righteousness, I look to how God has worked powerfully in their lives.
And you? Tell me about the rock from which you were hewn, the quarry from which you were dug. Tell me about the ones through whom you’ve felt God’s comfort, the ones through whom you’ve experienced joy and gladness, the ones who create in you thanksgiving and inspire you to lift your voice in songs of praise to your Creator.
Come, Lord Jesus, come. Inspire us to seek you in the lives of those through whom we’ve experienced your love. Amen.