"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16
"He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less." - C.S. Lewis
How many times have we felt small in this big, big world? How many times have we felt like our prayer was too unnecessary, or our need too insignificant? How many times have we felt alone and abandoned, like no one could hear us, like no one could see us?
To Jesus, there's no thought of "this one is more important than that one." Or "I like this one better, so I'm going to listen to Him first." Jesus died for all of us, therefore we can assume that He loves and cares for all of us just the same. Every need you bring before God is heard and considered. Every moment of worship is blessed and welcomed. Every sin you confess is forgiven and washed away. Our God is a God of detail. He hears every prayer of every human being. Never be afraid to take your need to Him, no matter how big or small you perceive it to be.
"All praise and all the honor be
To the God of ancient mysteries.
Whose every sign and wonder
Turns the pages of our histories.
But tonight my heart is heavy
And I cannot keep from whispering this prayer,
"Are you there?"
Oh great God, are you small enough?
Be small enough to hear me now."
- Nichole Nordeman
Sometimes it seems like God is silent. Sometimes it seems like nothing makes sense. Sometimes it doesn’t seem possible that anything will ever turn out right again. Sometimes it seems like God is just not speaking to us. But he’s given us his Word. The Bible is different from any other book because it is alive and active. And it does not return empty.
“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” ~Isaiah 55:11
It fills me with such an overwhelming peace to know that the God who cannot break His promises has promised us eternal life and everlasting love. He has promised us joy unspeakable and full of glory. He has promised to be with us in times of great happiness as well as in times of great sorrow. Sometimes we feel alone in our struggles, or alone in our lives. But Hebrews 4:15 says: We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
Jesus knew each and every one of us. He knew all our sins, he knew all our struggles. And while we were yet sinners, He died for us. When we could not love Him, He gave up His life as a sign of his adoration. He took each of our darkest sins and afflictions onto his shoulders and nailed them to a rugged cross. As long as we have Christ living in and through us, it is impossible for us to be alone.
It's enough to drive a man crazy; it'll break a man's faith,
It's enough to make him wonder if he's ever been sane,
When he's bleating for comfort from Thy staff and Thy rod,
And the heaven's only answer is the silence of God.
It'll shake a man's timbers when he loses his heart,
When he has to remember what broke him apart.
This yoke may be easy, but this burden is not,
When the crying fields are frozen by the silence of God.
But when you have to listen to the voices of the mob,
Who are reeling in the throes of all the happiness they've got,
When they tell you all their troubles have been nailed up to that cross,
Then what about the times when even followers get lost?
There's a statue of Jesus on a monastery knoll,
In the hills of Kentucky, all quiet and cold,
And He's kneeling in the garden, as silent as a Stone,
All His friends are sleeping and He's weeping all alone.
And the man of all sorrows, he never forgot,
What sorrow is carried by the hearts that he bought,
So when the questions dissolve into the silence of God,
The aching may remain, but the breaking does not,
In the holy, lonesome echo of the silence of God.
- Andrew Peterson
- Written by Lorien Cockman and Elizabeth White
