And the LORD will cause His voice of authority to be heard, And the descending of His arm to be seen in fierce anger, And in the flame of a consuming fire In cloudburst, downpour and hailstones. Isaiah 30:30
The bolt of lightning struck the sides of two big pine trees in our front yard. It was more like a blast, yet I would imagine in slow motion it would have been like descending fingers of flashing brilliance coming from heaven, sliding down the side of the bark peeling it like a banana, and throwing the pieces in every direction.
These imaginary drill-like fingers burst completely through several places in the brand new sidewalk. It hit the bricks and tossed them like tiny legos. It blew the dirt and plants in every direction. It ripped off the entire curb in the street. They were angry fingers of light. Everything within close vicinity of this explosive hand was affected.
Then the electrical pulse flew through the ground, to the concrete floor, rode up my leg and forcefully gnashed at my hand that was touching the plugged in computer. It all happened so fast. The shot of electricity threw my hand backwards with an enormous blast leaving a white whelp. The walls reverberated with the concussion, and I heard glass breaking. My whole body trembled from being plugged into the source of power, and so, I was dazed. It happened in one split second of time, yet all evening my hand stung, and my heart palpitated in weird rhythms.
Sometimes God allows us to be jolted so He can get us to focus on Him. It may not be lightning, but He wants our devoted attention. He may have been attempting to gain this in much gentler ways: through His words, by words of caution from our friends, by a restless or fearful spirit, or by an inward conviction. We ignored His nudges of warning. We refused to listen. Sometimes it takes a more forceful action on His part to make us stop in our tracks and look at Him.
But then the most wonderful thing happens. When He has our full attention, and we are trembling on our knees in repentance, He forgives us. He cleanses us. He redeems us. He holds us in His arms of love. He sets us down on the right path. He only wants what is best for us, but we can be such stubborn people. Maybe we should stop and listen before we have to be jolted.
Father, forgive me for not listening to You in the first place. Amen.
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