Always, Only Jesus
"Do not stay so far from me, for trouble is near, and no one else can help me." (Psalm 22:11)
"...No one else can help me."
No help unless He helps.
No joy unless He supplies it.
No endurance, no patience, no peace, no goodness... unless it comes from His hand.
No joy, no faith, no purpose in challenges unless He Himself gives it to us.
The process to get to this place is arduous. It's one we don't ask for, but as Christians we need.
You see, when trouble is near, and we find that our resources are running out, we have whatever veiled our vision of Him removed so we can really see Him.
He IS all -we just don't tend to see Him that way.
He is our soul's answer -but we usually just have Him in our minds as a plan B.
It's usually something else and Him we depend on -not just Him.
The Christian life is a process of growing in exclusive dependence on the One who is all we need. (Read John 15 for more on this.)
And sometimes, that process is painful, full of deep sorrow and loss.
Sometimes, that process involves temporary comforts being ripped away so that the only thing left to reach for is Him.
In the kingdom of heaven, dying only means one thing: new life.
Death to self means His life can now flourish in us.
Shattered dreams mean His dreams have room to grow in us.
Loss of earthly comforts only mean His comfort can touch us more deeply than it ever did before.
Doing without something needed here on this earth makes room for Him to step in and fill that void.
"Blessed be... the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation..." (2 Cor 1:3-4)
God often takes away our small comforts so He can give us His immeasurable comfort.
He removes temporary joys so He can give us eternal joy.
He takes away the temporary fixes so that we can find His eternal healing.
We won't find Him if we are always looking to others to fill our hearts' chasms.
We won't know Him if we are always seeking comfort in places that only comfort in small ways.
My disappointment is His opportunity to be my hope.
My pain is His opportunity to be my healer.
My loneliness is His opportunity to be my Friend.
My broken heart is His dwelling place.
My shattered dreams are the places He becomes my dream.
You see, every void something lost leaves is a new space where He can stand.
We talk about Him being our all, but we will never truly experience Him as all as long as we hang on to other things.
Our pains are our opportunities to let go of those things and find new hope in a God that cannot fail.
As I ponder this, I currently ache over something He is asking me to let go of... I don't want to let go.
I don't want the pain of temporary comforts and joys not being there, but I find an irresistible mystery that draws me to open up my hands and say, "yes, Lord...."
I say yes, but my heart doubts. Will He truly step in and be all He has promised?
There is only one way to find out.
Just follow Him, one step at a time. He does not lie, so I can trust Him.
"Whoever loves his life will lose it," Jesus said in John 12:25, "but whoever hates (that is, disregards) his life in this world will keep it for eternal life."
"If anyone serves Me," Jesus continued in verse 26, "let him follow Me..."
Jesus is asking for more than our labors on His behalf: He is asking for you and me to come and be with Him:
"And where I am, there My servant will be also...."
I used to think of it being as if a bunch of strings were attached to me and the things I love at the end of each string.
Every time Jesus cuts a string, He attaches it to Himself.
The pain of surrender is never just for pain's sake. It is always that we might experience Him more fully as being more than what we were looking for in those things.
Oh, to fully taste and see and know Jesus as He is...
Below is something I wrote partly as a prayer, imagining what it would be like to be consumed with Him and what all He is and desires to be to me.
Read and be enraptured with Him.
...
Always, Only Jesus...
Jesus, my burning desire.
Jesus, my passion.
Jesus, my purpose.
Jesus, my life.
Jesus, my all.
Jesus, the One I want others to see.
Jesus, my pursuit.
Jesus, my dearest and most intimate Friend.
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus...
The place my mind wanders to.
The One whose thoughts and desires I want to know.
The Master who has every right to tell me what to do.
The Shepherd who gently leads me.
The One worth laying down my life for.
The One whose love captivates my heart.
The One whose words are like rare treasures to me.
The voice that soothes my troubled soul.
The One whose priorities matter more than mine.
The One whose love burns inside me for others.
The King worthy of all my worship.
The rapturous One who puts me in awe.
The gentle physician who binds up my wounds.
The kind Savior who draws near to my broken heart.
The strong One who fills in every void that weakness leaves.
The One who has not lost the pieces to my shattered heart.
The One who sees me and knows me like no other.
The One who is the perfect fit for every need I have.
The One who is the perfect fit for every need that others have, too.
"...Christ is all, and in all." (Colossians 3:11)
...
If life is painful for you right now, look at Him. Look at the One who bears the wounds of this fallen world. (Hebrews 12:1-3)
He knows what pain is, for He endured His fair share.
You are always deeply understood by this kind and gentle Savior. (Hebrews 4:15)
And with every blow that this world deals you, every crack in your soul, every void that a loss brings, comes the One who comforts with eternal comfort and strengthens with heavenly strength. (2 Corinthians 1:5)
Yes, even when the pain you are experiencing is the loss of something He asked of you.
For it is in our weakness that He is strong. It is through the cracks that His light shines.It is in our powerlessness that the supernatural is experienced.
We need not dread trouble being near, for it is then that we look up and find Him to be that ever-present help in our trouble. (Psalm 46:1)
We need never fear coming to the end of our own strength and resources, for it is then that His grace is shown to be sufficient for us. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
We can even approach death's door with confidence, for we know the God who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:9)
My friend, He is available to you, and He can't fail you, so look up. Look into His face.
See His tender love towards you and let Him love you in your deepest agonies.
"I will be glad and rejoice in Your unfailing love, for you have seen my troubles, and you care about the anguish of my soul. You have not handed me over to my enemies but have set me in a safe place." (Psalm 31:7-8)
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