My whole being exalts
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
The whole earth is full of his glory. Isaiah 6:3
Read Isaiah 61:10—11
My active day is finished. The things I’ve done still lurk somewhere in my mind, and some still seek my attention. There’s nothing wrong in that. It’s all quite proper. But how can I join the prophet in rejoicing in the Lord with my whole being? As though I could be fully focused on the Lord, with not the least distraction? The prophet certainly felt that the Lord had decked him out like a bridegroom, or even as a bride. That bride and groom would be feeling all tingly and excited inside their wedding clothes, and for this one day the centre of everyone’s attention, including their own. So somehow I am to see this: if I struggle to make the Lord the centre of my focus, well, stagger me! He has made me the centre of his!
O, dear Lord, is it really possible that you should focus on me? Me! Call me? Me! Dress me? Me! Dress me in your righteousness? In your beauty? In your royal robes? Truly, real beauty is almost unbearable. And you sanctify me, set me apart as yours, as a holy presence within your creation. And through the eyes of the prophet I see that your presence does that throughout the creation and among the nations and cultures. Righteousness and praise accompany your way and your people. You spread this all around you. How blessed I have been to taste this. May I witness more and more of your beauty in people, in places, in creatures, and even in things. And may I finish this day gladly exalting in you.