I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint. Jer. 31:25
Heavenly Father, this one little verse is as big as the Grand Canyon. How good, kind, and compassionate you are. Come, nourish our hearts with the riches of your grace and the wonders of your love.
Thankfully, we don’t have to pretend around you. We don’t have to feign strength or make excuses, buck up or hunker down. When we feel a little (or a lot), weary, you meet as a loving Father, not as a disgruntled coach. You meet us with the gospel, not with a scorecard; with a smile, not with a scowl; with encouragement, not disgruntlement. Thank you.
What makes us weary, Father? Where do we start? Well there’s political madness and too much meanness, cancer in our friends and heartaches in our breasts. Then there’s the normal process of bones aching, and moments of stuff breaking. Christians that can’t get along, and friends who simply move on; transitions in our vocations, and the long overdue need for a vacation.
Thank you for not calling us “whiners” when we tell you the things that burden us. Thank you for not castigating us for having cares; but bidding us to cast them on you.
Father, we so look forward to the Day of no more pettiness or petulance, no more hard-heartedness or fragile temperaments, no more hurt feelings or bullying egos, no more communicating in part or conflicting to win.
No more passive aggressiveness or active indifference, no more innuendo or bravado, or anything else that hides the beauty of the gospel. And that Day is guaranteed, hallelujah… paid for in full by Jesus.
Father, settle and center our hearts today with the good news—the fresh news of the gospel. Not for a month, or a week, but just for this one day, help us rest in your sovereign rule and sufficient grace. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ tender and triumphant name.
