When pressures mount, instead of withdrawing or exploding or complaining, you and I need to run to our Heavenly Father, throw our arms of faith around Him, and embrace Him more tightly. Why? The Psalmist gives us three reasons: Read …
Did you think Jesus only cares about things like heaven and hell? About forgiveness and sin? About holiness and wickedness? About truth and lies? About salvation and judgment? Jesus does care about those things. But He also cares about your job, about whether your child makes the sports team, about your children’s college tuition, about your budget now that you are unexpectedly pregnant, about the roof that leaks, about the cranky transmission in the car, and about all the other physical problems and needs we face.
Jesus cares even if the physical problem we face is largely of our own making. He cares if we are having car trouble, even if it was caused by our not having taken the time to change the oil regularly. He cares if we are having financial struggles, even if they were caused by our having run up massive debts on our charge accounts for things we wanted but did not necessarily need. Jesus cares about your physical needs today.
When the Holy Spirit comes into you at your invitation, you receive as much of Him as you will ever have. You do not get a little bit of Him then and a little bit more at later experiences. Since He is a Person, you cannot get Him in pieces. You either have all of the Holy Spirit or you have none of the Holy Spirit. Why is it, then, that He seems to get us in pieces? He comes to us unconditionally, while we surrender to Him conditionally.
We give Him our Sundays but not our Mondays.
We give Him our actions but not our attitudes.
We give Him our relationships but not our reputations.
We give Him our time but not our thoughts.
We give Him our burdens but not our bodies.
We give Him our prayers but not our pleasures.
We give Him our crises but not our children.
We give Him our health but not our hearts.
Would you drop the conditions and give Him all of you?
Often when I am under stress and pressure, I feel one of my greatest needs is to get a good night’s sleep. But I’ve found that physical rest alone is not enough to revive my flagging spirit. I need the spiritual revival that comes from spending quiet time alone with Jesus in prayer and in thoughtful meditation on His Word.
A careful study of the life of Jesus reveals that as pressed as He was, He “often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” If Jesus felt He needed time alone in prayer with His Father, why do you and I think we can get by without it? How is your prayer life? Could some of the exhaustion you are feeling be the result of simple prayerlessness? How motivating it has been for me to view my early morning devotions as times of retreat alone with Jesus, Who desires that I “come with Him by myself to a quiet place” in order to pray, read His Word, listen for His voice, and be renewed in my spirit.
