Day 201, or July 20. God always knows best. Our thoughts today are rooted in Isaiah 26,
verse 9. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.
First the big picture surrounding this verse. Throughout their history, God's people constantly
wandered away from the plans of God, and were always trying their own systems and being
astonished when they failed. In the days of Isaiah the people were aware of the failure
of the northern tribes of Israel, who had gone their own way under one bad king after
another, before being scattered by the Assyrians, never to be seen again. You would think they
would learn from that lesson, but they didn't, and ultimately God has them swept away by
the Babylonians into exile, but that won't happen for about another hundred years. In
the meantime, other prophets speak on behalf of God, but despite having some good godly
kings, the Israelites never fully obey God's instructions, and keep on rebelling.
And now our action step for today. Reading the Maker's instructions is usually my last
desperate act when trying to assemble a flat pack piece of furniture. At first glance,
the task doesn't seem that difficult, and bearing in mind millions of other people have
achieved success, surely I won't fail. Sadly, too many of us treat life like this, and simply
bumble along bouncing from one catastrophe to another like a little steel ball in a pinball
machine. When Isaiah breaks into song in chapter 26, he confirms that this world works best
when we follow the Maker's instructions. Isaiah is probably primarily referring to the last
days when Jesus will return in judgment as he writes this chapter, but these words are
just as appropriate today and for the rest of the intervening years until Jesus does
return. God has made sure that we have His plan for life in the Bible. If you have tried
the rest and found them wanting, why not always make the Bible your choice and try the Creator's
rules for life?