If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
Isaiah 58:8b-12
Desire is the key to self-discipline. If you want something, you are motivated to obtain it.
Consider the promises.
God will always guide you. He will meet all your needs, even when in dry places. You will never be in darkness–even in your darkest moments, it will be like noon day. You will be well-watered, prospering in everything. And, you will restore the things that had gone before, that have fallen, and been destroyed. That which was from generations past, you will rebuild.
If that is the promise, what is God requiring? The removal of the yoke. The removal of the pointing of the finger. An end to bad speech. And, instead, to assist those who are oppressed, and to spend yourself on behalf of the hungry. If this is the requirement for that, shouldn’t we be devoted to it?
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