By: Claudene Sebolai Arise [from spiritual depression to a new life], shine [be radiant with the glory and brilliance of the Lord]; for your light has come, And the glory and brilliance of the Lord has risen upon you. For in fact, darkness will cover the earth. And deep darkness will cover the peoples; But the Lord will rise upon you [Jerusalem]. And His glory and brilliance will be seen on you. Isaiah 60:1-2 (Amplified) The verb “step up” implies action. The dictionary definition for “step up” means to increase something, to come forward, to improve one’s performance or to take on more responsibility. In other words, one cannot “step up” whilst remaining inactive or unproductive. In Isaiah 60, God is presenting Israel with a challenge to step up. The prophecy opens up with a very powerful word “arise”. In my own words, this one word is a call to wake up, stand up and step up! Waking up in this context refers to the realization that your present situation; be it physically, emotionally, mentally, psychologically, financially etc., is no longer satisfactory. In other words, you cannot accept that where you are now is all there is to life. Waking up creates a hunger for standing up. You cannot step up unless you stand up from an unacceptable present.
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