Isaiah 1.3 "The
ox knows its master, the donkey its owner’s manger, but Israel does not know, [My]
people do not understand.” – St. Isaiah
This morning in my devotions I read: “Delight yourself in Me, for I am the deepest Desire of your heart.”
(Young, Sarah. Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence (p. 192). Thomas
Nelson. Kindle Edition.)
I thought about
that. I thought: how often do I fill my days seeking this or that? I think that
way because I have been trained that way, and because of my training, I do as I
do, and believe as I believe. What is sad is: I was not created to be my own
god; I was not created to live a life apart from God.
And Isaiah, the great preacher of Israel said, “The ox knows its master, the donkey its
owner’s manger, but Israel does not know, [My] people do not understand…”
The simple animals get it – and often (very) I don’t.
This isn’t about training as much as it is about
retraining. The ox and the donkey have one small advantage: they’re hard-wired to get the simple concept
of ownership and food. Their huge disadvantage is no freewill, and no knowledge
of the God who created them. All they know is the simplicity of food, water,
and husbandry.
My devotions today were a paradigm shift in my thinking:
we all have a deep desire; we’re hard-wired that way. What we don’t know (or
what we ignore, and/or are distracted from) is the deepest desire of all humanness: the desire for God. The secular won’t buy that, nor will the atheist, nor
the hedonist, nor the consumer. Only those that are taught and trained to hear
and live by the voice of God will give heed to their deepest desire: the presence of God Himself.
For the most part, we’re dumbed down to desiring the
sparkles and glitters of this life. We accept the lie that this life and its
limitations, doesn’t get any better than this… We accept short-sightedness
believing all we see, is all there is. That’s the context of animals: dumb as
oxen, stubborn as donkeys… Funny: we need the oxen and donkeys God has created!
God said: My people
do not understand. The dumbest of His people are those who think, they are
not His people – ah, but the earth is the
Lord’s and the fullness thereof… The dumbest and the poorest on earth are
those who deny God. Our purpose in this life is to know God and enjoy
(underscore that!) Him forever. That means we’re free from the confines of
ownership and food – it means we choose to accept our deepest desire: the innate
hunger in all of us for the power, presence, and promise of God.
Oxen and donkeys know
instinctively. We know innately. Knowing our desire is tantamount to
knowing God.
Father, that I know
You is of magnitude that defies understanding. That my deepest desire is You,
smacks vehemently against everything this world offers in place of You –
religion, health, wealth, and happiness. As I go forth in these days, may my knowledge
of this desire, and the presence of the Holy Spirit within me, be the filter of
defense for all that vies for my attention. All of my fountains are in You –
amen.
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