Someone is calling us to come
“Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near… Let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly forgive.”
Isaiah 55:6–7 · Read in the Tanakh
A new year begins, sometimes bringing a long list of things we would like to change. Before we turn to the list, Isaiah invites us to notice who is calling us. The LORD is near. We can turn to Him even before we have the words, and even when there are things in our lives we feel ashamed to bring before Him.
The call to return also means leaving a way that harms us and others. But we do not have to wait until we are worthy to come: He Himself invites us and promises abundant forgiveness. Perhaps our first step this year will be to pause, incline our ear, and tell Him honestly what we hope to leave behind and where we want to walk with Him.
A simple prayer
LORD, I hear Your invitation. Help me come as I am, listen, and trust Your lovingkindness. Show me one step back toward You.
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Stay with one question, reflect quietly, write in a notebook, or talk together.
Head
What does the LORD promise those who return, and what are they asked to leave behind?
Heart
What speaks to my heart in this invitation to come?
Hands
What one thing will I bring honestly before the LORD today?
Feet
With whom could I share the hope of a new beginning?
You might close your eyes for a moment and ask: What do I sense the LORD’s Spirit showing me through these words?
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Listening and coming, within a covenant of lovingkindness
In the same chapter we read: “Incline your ear and come to Me; listen, that your soul may live” (verse 3). The call to return comes with the promise of an everlasting covenant and the faithful mercies promised to David. Listening invites movement: turning toward the LORD and making room for His word in our lives. Even days we have missed do not close the invitation.