Recently I was lying in bed in the early hours before the dawn. It was during one of those seasons as a counselor when the task of bearing other’s burdens was taking a particular toll. I could feel the pain of the sheep entrusted to my care in the depths of my soul. This pain motivates my prayer, my study, and my diligence as an under-shepherd. At times, I grow weary in doing good, even knowing better.
On this particular morning, my words all used up, my soul was groaning in sighs too deep for words. Suddenly, a wave of peace swept over me in my bed as tangibly as a wave of water. With it came a sense of knowing. I somehow knew that God had heard the cries of my soul on behalf of the beloved. I knew the prayers would be answered in ways above and beyond our expectations. The Father is not stingy; He is not meager in granting the desires of our hearts when they are in alignment with his will. He is able and willing to grant them exceedingly and abundantly above and beyond our wildest dreams.
These are the moments that keep me going. Much more than words of praise on lips of men, more even than the days when actual life circumstances begin to shift miraculously and the hand of the Lord is seen to deliver us in times of trouble…it is in these quiet intimate whispers in the wee hours of the morning when it seems darkest and most hopeless, hope breaks through in the intangible voice of the Spirit of God. Ironically, I would never know these moments without first walking a narrow and difficult path. God’s treasures are rarely found on the broad and easy road.
If you are weary of wielding the sword of faith, take heart. He is not far from you. He will hold up your arms and make you victorious for his Name’s sake. If you have prayed for the wayward child until your knees are calloused and your inventory of words has run dry, keep crying from the depths of your spirit. He hears you. He will answer your prayers and be true to his promise to hold his sheep tightly in his hand. If your heart is broken by the circumstances of life that have thrown it to the floor again and again, hand it to Him. He is the Master of mending the broken hearted. Wherever you are today, know that He is not far from you. His love for you is never-failing and oh, so competent.
We are not paupers, as the enemy would have us believe. We are indeed, children of the King. Take heart.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
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