Here [am] I; send me

Life is short, isn't it? The word of God, the Bible, tells us that it's so short that it resembles even a vapor: It appears suddenly, and then vanishes away just the same. And how often is it that you hear someone say ... ? "Time goes by so fast!," "I can't believe that it's already (add Month here)!", or "Seems like that was just yesterday!" Indeed, life is very short ... especially when we are extremely busy with whatever it is we might have on our plates.

With that in mind, my question to you is this: "What are you doing with your God-given life?" Christian ... born-again believer ... redeemed of the Lord ... are you redeeming the time in these evil days?

The best way any of us (Who are His) can redeem the time, is by responding to God's call: Have you responded? What is His call; what is His will for us individually? It is as simple as listening to His word and doing what He says. As mentioned in one of the previous blogs, God's will for our lives does not have to be a complete mystery: It's revealed in His word!

God says this: "...be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Romans 12:2)

We can prove (and therefore know) what His will is, what His call is upon our individual lives! How? Simply, don't live your life to fulfill the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or in order to fulfill its pride ... in other words, do not be conformed to this world! This is exactly how the world lives; it's not of our Father in Heaven! (1 John 2:16) Instead, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You renew your mind by faith in the One whom has you in mind, the One whom has given you a new heart, Jesus Christ. Seeking Him through His word and through prayer is where it begins. As our hearts were renewed by Him, so too our minds will be.

How awesome that is! The Lord God, Maker of heaven and earth, glorious in Majesty, is mindful of us, mere mankind, who has willfully rejected Him and His ways since the beginning of the creation! (Psalm 8:4) How merciful and gracious He is! He sent His Son! Our God has visited us, in spite of us! And He desires to use us! It began 2,000 years ago, and it continues even today.

As we grow up spiritually as Christians, being transformed by the renewing of our minds, we continually learn of that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God ... that call that He has upon our lives.

We do have short lives, so what are we doing with them?

Isaiah, the prophet to Judah in the Old Testament, knew God's call on his life and responded to it: "Here [am] I; send me." (Isaiah 6) Before his response to the call He saw the LORD in a vision, seated on a throne, high and lifted up! Angels were giving Him glory, honor, and praise: "Holy, holy, holy, [is] the LORD of hosts: the whole earth [is] full of his glory."

When he saw this vision, he automatically knew who he was through and through, and all of his people, in comparison to the LORD, who is Holy: "Woe [is] me! for I am undone; because I [am] a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." God immediately made a provision for his sin (a picture of what God has done for us through the Gospel): "...thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged." Isaiah had seen a vision of the King, the LORD of hosts; he saw his own sinfulness and that of mankind; and God had made a provision for his terrible state: No wonder Isaiah had such an eager response to such a call that was made upon his life: A. R. FAUSSET put it this way concerning the message that Isaiah would bring: "...few would be willing to bear the self-denial which the delivering of such an unwelcome message to the Jews would require on the part of the messenger." Matthew Henry put it this way: "Who will be willing to go on such a melancholy errand, on which they will go in the bitterness of their souls?’’

Well, Isaiah was willing, as were the other prophets. They lived their lives unto God; they responded to the call that was upon their lives. But even more than that, Who was Isaiah a picture of when he said, "Here am I; send me?" Who was the Promised One that was sent by God after Isaiah's time, whom referenced these passages that Isaiah had preached? Jesus Christ ... He is the perfect example of someone living His life unto God. In the midst of a world that did not know Him, a very hostile world, He is the One who redeemed the time with perfection. Christ knew God's call, God's will, and lived it out, every single moment of his life ...even to the point of suffering and dying upon the cross.

We need Him, Christian. Living our lives unto Him, redeeming the time, begins by an all-out surrender at His feet. Knowing His call upon our lives, His will, begins with seeking to know and understand Him.

Just to keep it basic: Seek Jesus Christ through His word, the Bible, and through prayer ... then simply do what He says. As we get to know our Lord more, and continually learn to stand upon the promises He has made to us, the easier it is to know His will and to live it out: If you are still confused as to what His call is upon your life, the plain and obvious message He has given His people is simple: love God and love all people. Now that would be a way to live the life that God has given us! Loving others, especially loving them unto the truth, is indeed a way of redeeming the time.

Here am I; send me,

One Clay Soldier among many