“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”
In the ancient world, messengers would run from one place to another to tell of a victory or defeat in war; they were bearers of news. These messengers would run miles and miles on foot, getting blisters, scrapes, and bruises on worn-out feet. Yet, when carrying the message of Truth, these are the feet Isaiah 52:7 calls beautiful.
The word translated here as “beautiful” can also mean befitting, lovely, or timely. How timely it was when we received the good news and chose to follow God! God encounters us in the most magnificent and creative ways. The feet of the gospel messenger are beautiful because of the message they carry. The message that God loves and cares for us, and reigns over all the earth echoes who Jesus is—the One who came to save us.
The way God meets us and delivers the gospel message is personal to every human being. These encounters reveal God’s character to us. So I sought to find out from students, How did God meet you?
To paint all the ways in which God meets us personally, I asked several students if they could put into words who God has been for them. Their statements glorify God and echo how unique His encounters with them were. Who God has been reflects how timely and lovely His ways are. So who has God been to you? Several students had this to say:
“God has been so many different things in my life, from a Saviour to a teacher to just a friend. But I would say, most importantly, God has been the only one who truly, in my life, has turned the darkness into light.” – Kariena Miles
“God has been all that the world couldn’t offer: unwavering in faithfulness, abounding in love, and gentle in refining. Truly, He has been a Shepherd, a Father, and a friend to me.” – Sarah O’Hare
“Long story short, God’s been my reason to live. Period. I wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for Him who saved me.” – Megan Harrison
“God has been to me just a friend and honestly a shoulder to cry on, somebody to talk to when it feels like you never have anybody to talk to.” – Samuel Raspa
“God has shown me that the only freedom is found in surrender to Him and that when I give God my whole life, I find in him everything that I need.” – Lydia Wiens
“God has been a Saviour in a dark time, and the Father I always needed and was looking for—a Shepherd that led me out of the darkness of this world.” – Anonymous
“All of God’s attributes feed into one another, and this is such a big question that two sentences aren’t sufficient… But I’ll try my best. God is kind and generous, and I see this in the ways of creation—He was so kind to us because He didn’t need to make us, yet He did. And He’s so generous even in the ways that He takes care of us. Literally, Jesus coming to save us was such a generous act. He is so full and abundant with what He does. Even just getting to know Him, having a relationship with God—crazy—we don’t even deserve that.” – Laura Perez Saldarriaga
“To put it in simple terms, God is my Lord and Saviour who ripped me out of the mud, made me cleaner, whiter than snow, and for that, I owe him my life. So, He’s my everything—to live is Christ and to die is gain.” – Bryce Livingston.
“He’s the fulfillment of everything I’ve ever looked for in my life, like satisfaction or belonging or love. He’s the answer to everything I’ve ever searched for, everything I’ve ever asked for. He’s family to me… My true Father.” – Beth Ton
What binds us as believers and sets us apart from the world around us is the fact that, like everyone in the world, we are all touched by hurt, pain, and grief, by moments that have marked our life with heartbreaks, and by the greatest joys. But what is different is that we believe in Someone far greater than our human comprehension; we have a constant hope that there is Someone who loves us more than we will ever know. As believers, we are marked by our belief in a God we cannot see, and what sets us apart is the hope we cling to. This hope, though unseen, is immeasurably valuable and places an everlasting imprint on our lives.
“He’s home to me.” – Isabelle Brown
In every believer’s heart there is a gentle cry for God, a prayer that He might meet us and be with us. To know God is to know hope, beauty, freedom, and true love. And to know Him is to know that even as we search for God, He is already searching for us.
The feet of those who bring good news are beautiful because of the gospel message they carry. I had a friend in Bible school who once shared how she is confident in the fact that she did nothing to find God; rather, God found her. She wasn’t looking for answers or reading the Bible. As she puts it, God found her, giving her faith, peace, and trust in Him. It was nothing of her own doing; it was a free gift.
God finds us.
And how beautiful the feet.