Praying for 30 days-day 18

This morning I was really struggling with grace. I hate the time I waste on watching Netflix and messing around on my ipad when I should be playing and cherishing the moments I have with my family. It is so easy to get wrapped up with the things of the world and loose focus on what's important. God is faithful and gave me a little reminder of something to be thankful this holiday season.
Isaiah 64
" Oh, that You would rend the heavens!
That You would come down!
That the mountains might shake at Your presence—
² As fire burns brushwood,
As fire causes water to boil—
To make Your name known to Your adversaries,
That the nations may tremble at Your presence!
³ When You did awesome things for which we did not look,
You came down,
The mountains shook at Your presence.
⁴ For since the beginning of the world
Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear,
Nor has the eye seen any God besides You,
Who acts for the one who waits for Him.
⁵ You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness,
Who remembers You in Your ways.
You are indeed angry, for we have sinned—
In these ways we continue;
And we need to be saved.

⁶ But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;
We all fade as a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind,
Have taken us away.
⁷ And there is no one who calls on Your name,
Who stirs himself up to take hold of You;
For You have hidden Your face from us,
And have consumed us because of our iniquities.

⁸ But now, O Lord,
You are our Father;
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all we are the work of Your hand.
⁹ Do not be furious, O Lord,
Nor remember iniquity forever;
Indeed, please look—we all are Your people!
¹⁰ Your holy cities are a wilderness,
Zion is a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
¹¹ Our holy and beautiful temple,
Where our fathers praised You,
Is burned up with fire;
And all our pleasant things are laid waste.
¹² Will You restrain Yourself because of these things, O Lord?
Will You hold Your peace, and afflict us very severely?"

 

Contrast between man and God

Man

+ We need to be saved v 5

+ We are an unclean thing v 6

+ The good things we do are like filthy rags v 6

+ Our sins have taken us away v 6

+ We don't call out for His name v 7

+ We don't stir up ourselves to seek you out v 7

+ We are only clay v 8

God
+ Mountains shook at His presence v 3
+ He acts those who wait for Him v 4
+ He meets Him who rejoices and does righteousness and remembers Him in His ways v 5
+ He is angry for we have sinned v 5
+ He is the potter v 8

We are humans who can try with every ounce of our being to do good things but because of our evil hearts, they are anything but good. They are like filthy rags. But God is a God that the mountains tremble at because of His power and control. He is a faithful God who sticks by us. He is more than willing to meet with us when we remember who He is and what He has done. When we sin He hates our sin because He is a just God. Our filthy rags is what separates us as non believers from God but as a believer, it reminds us of what He did when He sent His Son as lowly baby who came to do Father's will and die for our sins. That is what this scripture reminds me in this Thanksgiving season, that my filthy rags show me my need for my Savior. For those who are not believers in what Jesus did on the cross, this too can be your hope.

Father, I pray that ________ will see all personal good works are as filthy rags in Your sight and that they will not make anyone right with You.