September 4

I will lead the blind by a way they did not know; I will guide them on unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light before them and rough places into level ground. These things I will do for them, and I will not forsake them. — Isa 42:16 BSB

What is the mind of a person—any person, your mind, my mind—like when under affliction? When someone faces physical pain, financial hardship, family sickness, guilt of conscience, or inner struggles without a glimmer of divine light, what are they? A miserable, rebellious person without a shred of resignation, without any contentment or submission to God’s will.

But let the glory of the Lord be revealed; let them catch a glimpse of a suffering Jesus through faith. Let some ray of divine light shine on their path, and let the hope of the overwhelming glory that will be revealed at Christ’s return break through, and suddenly all their crooked paths seem straight. How? By bringing their crooked will—crooked because it wasn’t aligned with God’s will—into harmony with God’s promises and commands, and with the example of Christ. The crookedness isn’t taken out of their circumstances, but it is straightened in them. The cross isn’t removed from their shoulders, but strength—that strength which is made perfect in weakness—is given to carry it. This was how it was with Christ in the garden and on the cross, and this is how it is with those who follow the crucified Lord.