Thoughts and ways...

Week 23:

Isaiah 55:8-9 8“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. 9“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

What a strong reminder of who is God! I know that in my life, I make many decisions without first inquiring of God. When my plans go awry, I question God as to why the plans did not work. Is this an experience you have had as well?



Idolatry still occurs today. However, in our western culture, as a whole, we do not have a statue type idol that we set up as a god to worship. Now, we have some of what I call “distractive” idols like money, sex, power, worldly goods, influential people, etc. But, as a whole, I believe our main idol that we worship is ourselves. In this “me” generation and this “me” culture, we set ourselves up as gods. We rely on our own understanding. We feed our egos and desires. We have decided to rely on nothing, no one, only ourselves. We rely on our own knowledge and our own power. We deny the spiritual realm in many cases and believe that if it cannot be seen, touched, felt, or measured…it does not exist. If we cannot do it ourselves, then it cannot be done. The sad part is…we sprinkle in a little God here and a dash of Jesus there and call it good.

One of the great revelations in our “me” mentality is that God is still God, and we cannot explain everything. No matter how hard we try. God knows the master plan. As educated as we can become, there are still too many things we cannot know and/or figure out. Only God can know the answer. His thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways. This passage is powerful, comforting, and disconcerting.

One, it is powerful because it is a reminder of how big God is and how small I am. He is still God and I am not. He chooses how things are and will be. He has the power to do that. No matter how hard I may try, His will is His will. Second, it is comforting to me to know that God is in control. He has my greater good in mind, no matter how bad my circumstances may be. That actually takes some pressure off of me. God is in control, I just need to follow. Third, it is disconcerting because I think I have the answers and I think I know how this life is supposed to play out. God has other plans and many times they do not match mine. My ego struggles with that, because I have set myself up as a god in my life. It is very hard at times to wrap my mind around what God has planned because…His thoughts are not my thoughts and my ways are not His ways.

As a side note here, I do believe that God empowers us to use our mind and experiences to guide us. In fact we have quite a bit of power due to receiving the Holy Spirit when we accepted Jesus as our savior. However, we must remember from where the power comes.

Next time you are feeling way too smart for your own good, remember that His thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways. When you are feeling that you are overwhelmed with your circumstances take comfort that His thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways. God is still the ultimate power and we are His creation, created for His bidding.

Questions/challenges:

1. In what ways have you set yourself up as a god?
2. Describe any modern day idolatry you have witnessed?
3. What comes to mind for you when you read; “His thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways.”?
4. Spend some time each day this week meditating on this passage and see what message God has for you around this passage.

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