How can you not smile knowing this is true?

I'm reading from Isaiah 35:4-9 this morning and I can't help but smile and be filled with warmth and hope.

Tell fearful souls, "Courage! Take heart! God is here, right here, on his way to put things right and redress all wrongs. He's on his way! He'll save you!" Blind eyes will be opened, deaf ears unstopped, lame men and women will leap like dear, the voiceless break into song. Springs of water burst out in the wilderness, streams flow in the desert. Hot sands will become a cool oasis, thirsty ground a splashing fountain. Even lowly jackals will have water to drink, and barren grasslands flourish richly. There will be a highway called The Holy Road. No one rude or rebellious is permitted on this road. It's for God's people exclusively - impossible to get lost on this road. Not even fools can get lost on it. No lions on this road, no dangerous wild animals - nothing and no one dangerous or threatening.

Only the redeemed will walk on it.

[From The Message paraphrase]

• What pictures of healing speak to you?
• What do you like best about the Holy Road?
• What one phrase speaks to you most? Why do you think that is? What does your choice tell you about what you want from God?

Call to action!
Pray to God this morning in thankfulness and appreciation for the hope you have based on His promises. Be fully confident that they are true and you can count on them.