“Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray…”
We drove by the Nazarene Church on Liberty Expressway a few days ago, and, as usual, their bulletin board had a great saying that gave me an idea for an article. It read: “When life knocks you to your knees, stay there and pray.” That is not an exact quote but it is very close. I love the message because it is so true. People have a tendency to give up and throw in the towel when life puts them in a hard place. This is as true of people in churches as it is of people who do not attend church. We Christians should realize that we have a profound resource to help us through the down times of life. We somehow have gotten the idea that life should always be to our pleasing, but that is not the way the world works. A man who had everything that his world offered, named Solomon, looked at life and declared, “vanity, vanity all is vanity.” What he meant was that life is empty when God is left out of the loop. Why would we not pray when life knocks us to our knees? I think that too many people, even Christians, want to be considered self-sufficient. The world in which we live has a tendency to look down on people who need God to help them through life. Having faith in God, and depending on Him, is considered to be weakness instead of strength. We have a high view of human strength, and I am amazed at times at the strength of character and perseverance that we humans can have. It is good to be a person who does not fold when life caves in. The problem that I have is when we think that we have to face life without God’s help if we are to be considered strong. I think that it is God’s strength that makes all of the difference when we get knocked to our knees. I know that I do not want to face life’s hardships without knowing that God is with me and giving me His strength. Sometimes people feel that God does not care whether or not they have problems in life. If you are reluctant to call on God when you are knocked to your knees, understand that God does care what you are facing in your life. I think of an incident in the book of 1 Kings 17 concerning the prophet Elijah and a widow who lived in Zarephath. She and her son were about to starve to death. The Lord used Elijah to provide her with the means to survive. (You can read about it in 1st Kings 17:9-16.) My present purpose is to point out that God did care what happened to this poor, seemingly insignificant widow and her son. The Bible is filled with how God cares for people and is willing to help them through all of life. There are people who do not feel that they are good enough for God to help them. Understand that everything that God does for us is based on His grace and not on merit. Jesus revealed this when He went into the city of Jericho and encountered one of the most hated citizens of that town, whose name was Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was hated because he was a chief tax collector who made his riches on the backs of the people of Jericho by collecting the hated Roman tax. Zacchaeus was short of stature and had to climb up into a sycamore tree to see Jesus. Jesus saw Zacchaeus, called him down from the tree, went home with him and in the process saved him. Zacchaeus demonstrated his conversion by restoring much of his wealth to the citizens of Jericho from whom he had collected taxes. Zacchaeus was certainly not “good enough” for Jesus to accompany him to his home and do a work of grace in his life, but that is what happened. No one reading this is as unworthy of God’s blessings as Zacchaeus. Throw yourself on the love and mercy of God and see what He will do in your life. Remember: “When life knocks you to your knees, stay there and pray.” That is not just good advice, it is necessary advice. Heed it! Bro. Joe
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
All
Archives
September 2021
|