“Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;
break forth into singing and cry aloud,
you who have not been in labor!
For the children of the desolate one will be more
than the children of her who is married,” says the Lord.
“Enlarge the place of your tent,
and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords
and strengthen your stakes.
For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,
and your offspring will possess the nations
and will people the desolate cities.”
-Isaiah 54:1-3
When I was a sophomore in college, I went home for an evening to have dinner with my family. My mom walked into the kitchen so excited to show me the new painting she “just HAD to buy”….when she turned the painting around, it was a kids painting for a nursery. I was confused why my mom had bought the painting, so I asked her. She told me so excitedly, “I can’t wait for you and your sisters to have kids one day so I can hang this up in a nursery!” I laughed and said, “Mom, you do realize that me, Kat and Ashtin are all single right now and no where near getting married and having kids?” And she went on to tell me how she couldn’t pass up the painting because she was waiting in eager expectation to be a grandma one day and she knew we would have kids so she could hang up the painting.
Four years later, I am sitting in Bolivia laughing about how my mom buying a silly painting has shown me more about the heart the Father calls his children to have.
In Isaiah 54:1-2, God calls the barren women to sing to the Lord before they have been given the gift of having a child. I imagine these women have been married for years and their hearts are yearning to build a family. And what does the Lord call them to do in the waiting? Sing. God calls them to rejoice in the Lord before the blessing.
In verses 2-3, we see the Lord calling the women to now prepare for the blessing.
“Enlarge the place of your tent,
and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes.”
The Lord basically tells the women to make room in their homes for the gift of a child that God will one day bring. He tells the women to:
- Prepare joyfully
- Labor in expectancy
Have the women been given the gift of bearing children yet? No. And yet the Lord calls the women to go ahead and sing in the waiting and prepare their lives to one day receive the blessing.
We all have “barren” places in our lives. Whether you are barren and long for a child, or single and waiting to get married, or you are longing to have a specific job, or a dream deep within your heart that you are waiting to have fulfilled…we all have barren places. And I believe God is asking us two things:
- What are the “barren” places in your life that you want to see God work in?
- How will you tangibly change your mindset and your life in order to prepare to receive the blessing?
Like my mom buying a painting to one day hang up in a nursery when she becomes a grandma, we all have the choice to make room in our hearts and our lives to prepare for the blessing that God will one day so graciously give….are you willing to prepare yourself well?
ACTIVITY:
Make a list of every “barren” place in your life and write out tangible ways for you to prepare yourself to receive the blessing.
Examples:
- I desire to one day be a wife. I will prepare myself to receive the blessing by: being mentored by women older and wiser than me; be more intentional in prayer; become a good steward of my finances before I get married so I can be financially stable with my future husband; continue to find a solid church community
- I desire to one day have a career. I will prepare myself to receive the blessing by: continual prayer for what the Lord has in store; APPLY! APPLY! APPLY! I will be proactive in seeking job opportunities and I won’t be afraid to ask questions.
