outfit of choice

Isaiah 61 has been a theme in my life this last year or so… It keeps popping up in different areas and my eyes are open to new truths found there…
so it is no surprise that, once again, it speaks to my despairing heart.

“…to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”
Isaiah 61:3 NIV

I have found my heart grumbling… complaining {a lot more than I care to admit} – when my spirit really just desires to be engulfed with everything beautiful.

My King longs to cover me with a garment of praise…

“…to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”

What blows my mind is that it isn’t just a covering that He offers; rather, He offers a trade… “instead of”…
He comes to remove the ‘spirit of despair’ – the root of my complaining – and trade it for a ‘garment of praise’.

Doesn’t that sound wonderful?

So I’ve been thinking about this and what this looks like in the minute by minute.

For me – it means discipline… Not that I have to earn this new garment of praise – but I have to let go of my ugly.
It means discipline to surrender my complaining and instead to have bestowed on me a garment of praise.

As I consider this even more… this isn’t about trading my complaining or stinky attitude.
Oh no – this is about trading an even bigger ‘ugly’.

My Lord wants to take my despair and give me something new to wear.

Despair.

A place where we can’t see hope…
A feeling of complete loss…
the depths of grief.
A suffocating desperation…

Despair to me feels like there is no way out… wondering if God is really going to show up. I tend to go there when I begin to believe the lies of our enemy that our King is not trustworthy.

“I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” Psalm 27

We don’t have to fall (or jump?) into this pit of desperation.
We don’t have to choose despair!

“…unless I had believed…”

We get HOPE.

And our Heavenly Father sent His Son Jesus to give us this very hope that saves us…
This hope that brings us to a place where we can take off the ugly and offer it to Him… trading it for a glorious “garment of praise.”

I can praise Him! Although there may be despair all around me, I need not have it be my covering.

Do you have a spirit of despair today?

There is hope to be found and a new outfit to wear!
My ugly… His beautiful.