God is not like us. If we can afford a nicer house in a classier neighborhood, most of us will seize the opportunity. But God doesn’t value upward mobility. He values downward mobility. And this is great news for all of us. If you’re wondering how to find God, Isaiah 57 contains the verse you’ve been looking for: “For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with Him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite’” (v 15). These hopeful words are addressed to people who have been released from physical captivity but are still living as spiritual captives. Like all of us, they have proven their inability to live the righteous lives God required of them. Isaiah sees two dark trends in particular emerging among his contemporaries. One, the godly are disappearing, and rather than mourning the loss, people haven’t noticed. Their spiritual perception is so dim that the passing away of an older, more faithful generation causes no alarm. Thankfully, those who die in the LORD are blessed anyway. Delivered from an evil generation, they are now at peace in the presence of their God (v 1-2). The second trend that concerns Isaiah is the spiritual adultery he sees all around him. God’s covenant with us is like a marriage relationship. But Israel was constantly flirting with idols, as if the LORD wasn’t enough to satisfy and thrill them forever. Since God was no longer real to them, they pursued other lovers, adopting their pagan practices (v 3-9). Awestruck by human power, they lost their fear of God, whose promises meant nothing to them (v 10-13). Still, the way back to God is always open. If you have drifted from Him, God isn’t building barriers to keep you away. Our pride keeps us at a distance, but God is making sure that the way back to Him is free of any obstruction (v 14). All we have to do is go down low in humble repentance, for that is where the Holy One dwells with surprising power to restore our lives. He dwells in a high and holy place, where we can’t go. But He also dwells among the lowly and contrite, where we can go. So humble yourself, and God will find you (v 15). He knows how much discipline we can take; and if we stay low, He will comfort us with wonderful healing and peace—which the wicked will never experience, despite their restless searching (v 16-21). For further meditation: