September 10

Isaiah 6:1-7:25; 2 Corinthians 11:16-33; Psalm 54:1-7; Proverbs 23:1-3

“I saw the Lord.”

Beautiful words.

What does it mean to see the Lord? Isaiah saw the Lord. A vision of God and His glory filled Isaiah’s mind and understanding. He was overcome by his own sinfulness in contrast with the LORD’s holiness (Is. 6:1-5). But from this encounter with God, he had the strength to minister to his people for over six decades while they refused to listen to God’s warnings.

Paul saw the Lord, too. We read about it on June 13. Paul was changed by his encounter with the Lord. His encounter with Jesus gave him strength to evangelize the Gentiles.  It enabled him to endure all that we read about today: “worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely…beaten with rods…stoned…shipwrecked…in the open sea…in danger from rivers…in dangers from bandit…I have labored and toiled and often gone without sleep. I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked” (2 Cor. 11:23-27).

Two men who saw the Lord and their lives were forever changed. Their encounters with God gave them strength to fulfill His assignments to them.

Isn’t that what we need—an encounter with God? It’s the only thing that will keep us true to God through the trials that come to us. This is why we come daily to the OYB. We need to see God; we need to understand the magnitude of who He is.

I haven’t had an experience on the magnitude of Isaiah’s or Paul’s. But I have ‘seen’ the Lord in His Word and I’ve heard His voice in my heart many times. I’ve seen His glory in creation and in beautiful babies and children. I’ve felt His love in worship services and circumstances and relationships.

During a particularly difficult time in our lives, I remember ‘seeing’ the Lord every Sunday for at least six months. On the weekdays I met with the Lord in His Word and hungrily listened to Him. I often recorded in a journal the words from Scripture that God spoke to me. Then, as usual, I went to church on Sunday. And one of those Scriptures that the Lord had given to my heart during the week would be mentioned somewhere in the service. I felt a ‘hug’ from the Lord when this happened. After the first few weeks, I began to realize that the Lord was revealing Himself to me - showing me His favor toward me - by honoring me with these quiet encounters with Him. No one sitting near me could possibly have known what was going on in my soul as Jesus reassured me each week of His care for me, His love for me, His knowledge of my pain. I almost never mentioned this occurrence during those months; I knew it was a special encounter from the Lord that was intended to strengthen me for the trial I was enduring and not something I was supposed to talk about. But I anticipated this ‘hug’ each week and was not disappointed.

Keep coming to God’s Word. He will meet you there. Ask Him for a ‘sighting’ of Him and He will answer.

He doesn’t just do it for Isaiah and Paul and Nell Sunukjian. He will do it for you, too.

- Nell Sunukjian

How did God speak to you in Scripture today? Click here to share your reflections on God's word or read past posts. We'd love to hear from you.