And then there are the darkest of times, when we feel ourselves marooned and isolated to such an extent that we feel incapable of uttering any words at all.
Sometimes it's best to just accept that this is how things are, for now. Better times may soon come. We trust in God's kindness they will.
Yet, in all the struggle, we can know that even the slightest connection to Jesus is sufficient for us to know his powerful grace. The woman in Mark 5 whose life and vitality were ebbing away knew that the mere touch of his garment would bring her the relief she longed for. The multitude who crowded around our Lord at the close of Matthew 14 knew the same.
Because the power of grace and compassion are entirely in our Lord Jesus and not in us. It isn't the fluidity and coherence of our prayers, nor the clear expression of our longings that makes the difference. It is Jesus.
And not only can we take encouragement from that but Hebrews 7:25 assures us that, in all our inconsistency and variability, our Lord Jesus prays continually for us: "He is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them."
Jesus lives, forever, and Jesus prays, constantly, for us. Nothing hinders him. He is no part-time Saviour. He isn't having to fight a rear-guard action against resurgent evil such that he has no spare capacity for us in all our need.
By the power of his indestructible life, he stands and prays for us. With full wisdom and insight. With an empathy that reaches depths no other can plumb. With a willingness and ability to help that can scale every height.
As we lament our weakness in prayer, the fact remains that we are loved and held by the Saviour who saves to the uttermost. No latent inability in our souls and no blatant attempt to snatch us from our Lord will alter the outcome. There ever shall be mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
************
Sometimes it's best to just accept that this is how things are, for now. Better times may soon come. We trust in God's kindness they will.
Yet, in all the struggle, we can know that even the slightest connection to Jesus is sufficient for us to know his powerful grace. The woman in Mark 5 whose life and vitality were ebbing away knew that the mere touch of his garment would bring her the relief she longed for. The multitude who crowded around our Lord at the close of Matthew 14 knew the same.
Because the power of grace and compassion are entirely in our Lord Jesus and not in us. It isn't the fluidity and coherence of our prayers, nor the clear expression of our longings that makes the difference. It is Jesus.
And not only can we take encouragement from that but Hebrews 7:25 assures us that, in all our inconsistency and variability, our Lord Jesus prays continually for us: "He is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them."
Jesus lives, forever, and Jesus prays, constantly, for us. Nothing hinders him. He is no part-time Saviour. He isn't having to fight a rear-guard action against resurgent evil such that he has no spare capacity for us in all our need.
By the power of his indestructible life, he stands and prays for us. With full wisdom and insight. With an empathy that reaches depths no other can plumb. With a willingness and ability to help that can scale every height.
As we lament our weakness in prayer, the fact remains that we are loved and held by the Saviour who saves to the uttermost. No latent inability in our souls and no blatant attempt to snatch us from our Lord will alter the outcome. There ever shall be mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
************
I hear the words of love,
I gaze upon the blood,
I see the mighty sacrifice,
And I have peace with God.
’Tis everlasting peace!
Sure as Jehovah’s name;
’Tis stable as His steadfast throne,
For evermore the same.
The clouds may come and go,
And storms may sweep my sky;
This blood-sealed friendship changes not
The cross is ever nigh.
My love is oft-times low,
My joy still ebbs and flows;
But peace with Him remains the same-
No change Jehovah knows.
That which can shake the cross
May shake the peace it gave,
Which tells me Christ has never died ,
Or never left the grave!
Till then my peace is sure,
It will not, cannot yield,
Jesus, I know, has died and lives,
On this firm rock I build.
I change, He changes not;
The Christ can never die;
His love, not mine, the resting-place,
His truth, not mine, the tie.
The cross still stands unchanged,
Though heaven is now His home,
The mighty stone is rolled away,
But yonder is His tomb!
And yonder is my peace,
The grave of all my woes!
I know the Son of God has come,
I know He died and rose .
I know He liveth now,
At God's right hand above,
I know the throne on which He sits,
I know His truth and love!
(Horatius Bonar, 1808-89)
