I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18
But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. Gal. 4:4-7
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for everything you’ve done to make our relationship with God one of perpetual favor and filial affection. However, there are still stretches when I begin to think, feel, and act as though I’m a spiritual orphan—as though I don’t really have a heavenly Father who loves me deeply and is involved in every detail of my life.
When I get sucked back into this downward spiral, my spirit shrinks and my fears enlarge. My peace says, “Bye-bye,” and my control issues say, “We’re back.” I get defensive and I go on the offensive. In short, I’m no fun to be around. Instead of the life-giving aroma of the gospel, I start exuding the stale smell of unbelief
Jesus, I come to you now, preventively. Circumstances of late could “grease the track” towards my falling into one of those downward cycles of Abba-less thinking. So I choose to preach the gospel to my heart right now. You are my comprehensive forgiveness and my perfect righteousness; and you haven’t left me as an orphan. You came to us, your beloved friends, through the gift of the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Adoption—the very Spirit by which we now cry, “Abba, Father.” You never have and never will abandon us.
Instead, I abandon myself to you and to the resources of the gospel. You are working in all things, for my good and your glory. Nothing, and no one, can separate me from your love. As one hour gives way to the next, may the beauty and power of the gospel override the ugly and lethargy of unbelief. So very Amen I pray, in your compassionate and triumphant name.
