February 26

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…”

            The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion—to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

Isaiah 61:1-4

            Isaiah 61 is one of the best passages in all of Scripture.  It is no wonder that Jesus read it as an anthem, declaring the beginning of His ministry.  What does the Spirit of the Lord look like when it is active?  It brings healing to the broken, freedom to the prisoners, comfort for the mourning, victory for the weak.  The small, the ignored, the marginalized, the wronged will all be transformed into the mightiest, identified as specially chosen and planted by God Himself to bring restoration and healing to the cities and cultures that have been ravaged and ruined by the strong and the corrupt.  The wounds that have been passed down from generation to generation will be exposed and healed rather than being hidden away and continuing to fester and poison.  That is what the Spirit of God does.  That is what Jesus did during his time on Earth.  And that is the invitation that is available for those of us who call ourselves followers of Jesus and have access to the Holy Spirit of God.

            We have the opportunity to champion the weak and the marginalized who are living in our own homes.  We can raise awareness of the challenges that the special needs community faces to our churches and our governments.  We can be advocates who look to increase spending on IDD services instead of continually cutting them.  We can teach our children to be self-advocates since their testimony is always more impactful then our own.

            We have the opportunity to comfort and support the mourning:  parents who have lost children; parents who are barely hanging on to their sanity in the face of the pressures of life; adults and children who are going through trauma and are facing the reality of a special needs life.  We can sit with all of those.  We can weep with those who weep.  We can listen to their sorrow and share our hope and just be with them.

            We have the opportunity to be the tools of transformation to those around us.  The passage talks about “giving them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.”  Those things do not just happen by accident, they must be passed on from those who have been through the fires.  We have the choice to live in victory instead of defeat and joy instead of mourning.  We have the choice to live lives that are filled with praise instead of being marked by complaining.  And we can show those who are in mourning that there is a way to healing and restoration after loss and tragedy.  Before we can lead people to healing, we have to live there ourselves.

            This is not an invitation to perfection.  This is not a reprimand to get out of your own head and cheer up.  This is what happens when the Spirit of God is active and moving.  This is what we will see as we draw closer to Jesus.  We are being transformed into Oaks of Righteousness.

A moment to reflect:

Who do you know that you could speak works of comfort and encouragement to?