call home

When it was time to come home, I could still hear Dad whistling or my mom calling from the porch after we'd been outside all day. When I was a child we would play outside until the sun went down and the next morning we would be outside again to watch the sun rise. The loud shout always meant it was time to come home. We recognized the call because we knew who was calling out.

In the book of Isaiah, we can see how God calls his children, reminding them not only of where they come from, but above all, who they are. He emphasizes that they are part of God's story. Consider the words of Isaiah: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I will give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place.” (Jesaja 43,1-3).

Israel did not keep God's covenant and was banished from his home: "Because you are precious in my sight and honored, and because I love you, I will give people and nations in exchange for your life." (Jesaja 43,4).

Pay attention to the following verses: “Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your descendants from the east and gather them from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up,’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory and formed and made.” (Jesaja 43,5-7).

The people of Israel went into exile in Babylon. They settled there and made themselves reasonably comfortable in exile. But true to his word, God called them to remember who he was, who they were in him, so that they leave Babylon and return home.

Like the voice of parents reminding us of who we are and where we came from, so God reminds the people of Israel and all people of their history. He calls to them to come home - to God. Do you hear the echoes in this story? "If you walk through water, I will be with you, and if you walk through rivers, they shall not drown you" (verse 2). This is the story of the Exodus. God is reminding them of who they are and calling them back home from the four corners of the earth.
Is this how God called you? Is God calling you to come home? He calls you out of this confusing, distracted world and back to your story. Back to the story that God is personally writing with you. He is calling you to be what you really are—a beloved, royal child of God. It is time to respond to God's appeal and return to His home!

from Greg Williams