I had a 7th grade math teacher that would on occasion say to us, “There is no rest for the wicked.” I don’t know why I thought of that today, but I remember him saying such when things happened at school due to someone acting up and getting in trouble. Isaiah also mentions this in his writings. “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.” And, quite frankly, there isn’t. We have to be on target and right with God and everyone else around us. If you aren’t, there just isn’t that rest and calm in your soul to move ahead with ease.
“This is what the Lord says–your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.'” We should have no doubt that His way is best for us. And, as much as we struggle when we try to find our own, it just doesn’t work out. Can you relate to this?
Isaiah continues, “‘If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.'”
God is our Father. And, as loving parents do, He teaches and directs and disciplines when necessary. As His daughter, I need to respectfully listen to him if I want that peace and rest I need. Righteousness comes to us when we obey his Word. But, this in my view is where many of us flounder. And by doing so we can become reckless in paying attention to the Word and God’s guidance. This in itself invites reprimands and jeopardizes that peace and righteousness we long for.
I want peace of mind; tranquility and quietude in my spirit. The Psalmist wrote: “Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” Peace is so much better to have within than restlessness.
ritasalomon 