"Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.  And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips:  Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged” (Isaiah 6:6-7).

When we have a vision of Him, we get a true look at ourselves. “Woe is me!” we say.  Seeing Him looking at me makes me aware of the blemishes in my character.  When I see the Lord, I see the world, too. I stop saying, “Here am I, send somebody else,” and I start saying “Here am I, send me.”  He then equips me by cleansing me for service and giving me “hot lips.”  What I say will burn its way into people’s thoughts and bring them to the point of deciding for or against God.

But whom do I talk to? You may ask.  How am I expected to know who needs God’s message?  God told Isaiah to tell “this people.”  “This people” were the same people Isaiah had been preaching to for a long, long time.  He had been getting discouraged because they hadn’t responded, but God sent His prophet right back to tell them all over again.  What was more, the Lord told Isaiah that they still wouldn’t listen!  But that was not to be his concern.

How do you keep going when all your effort seems futile?  You’ll need time to get a fresh vision of God, which will give you a fresh vision of yourself, a new look at your world, and a new concern in your heart.  Then you’ll be able to go back to rebellious people and see a difference.  Not in them perhaps, but certainly in you!  You’ll find you have the capacity to be faithful without having to see the results.