Grace For The Journey

  Any Star Wars fans out there?  Other than the movie sequels of the Chronicles of Narnia and the Lord of the Rings,  my grandsons have this epic move series at the top of their list.  Remember the opening scenes of Episode IV?  After a laser battle between a little spaceship (the good guys) and the ominous Imperial Star Destroyer (the bad guys), we see Princess Leia and her loyal fighters quickly overpowered by Darth Vader and his Stormtroopers.  The situation is dire and our heroine has time only to pass a message on to her faithful robot R2D2, who is then jettisoned to safety on a nearby planet, into the hands of Luke Skywalker who discovers Leia’s message: “Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope!” The message is repeated over and over: “Help me . . . you’re my only hope!”

That simple little phrase encapsulates David’s plea in the first verse of Psalm 51:1, where he pleads, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your lovingkindness; according to multitude of Your tender mercies.”  After fighting a year-long battle against the sin and the forces of darkness in his own heart, he had reached a point of desperation.  Finally, he admitted that he could not overcome the guilt of his sin by his own cleverness, charm, power, or position.  Nor could his inner turmoil be quieted by a clever spin from a PR department.  In the face of the mess he had made of his life – adultery, deception, murder . . .

He was left with only one hope:

A plea for mercy from God

Who held all the cards

Regarding David’s cleansing.

One thing I have learn in my walk with my precious Lord is that . . .

Whether it’s the overwhelming force

Of life’s struggles

Or the guilt of our sin,

Our only hope is that

God in His mercy will forgive and deliver us.

As David is led by the Holy Spirit to write in Psalm 41:22, “Why are you downcast, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me?  Hope in God; for I shall et praise Him The help of my countenance and my God.”

The good news for David,

And for those of us who need to come

To this same tipping point in our walk with Christ

Is that our hope is never misplaced

When we place it entirely and completely in God.

And our confidence

In His willingness

To bestow delivering mercy

Is grounded, as David said,

In the fact that

God is a God of unfailing love

And great compassion.

We don’t need more meds or self-help positive spins on life when we are beyond ourselves.  We need God!  David said it best when he penned the words of Psalm 25:3, “Indeed, let no one who waits (hopes) on You be ashamed.”

In the midst of the turmoil of life and in the mire of our own sin, one simple prayer offers us the promise of rescue and deliverance.

“Help me, Lord Jesus. You’re my only hope!”

Where do you go for strength and solutions when you are in need?  When was the last time you turned to God to find help in your time of need (Hebrews 4:15-16?  What characteristics of God can you list to give you confidence that, when you are in need, He can be counted on?  Read Psalm 25:1-22, 42:1-11, and 51:1-19 prayerfully, and claim their promises for yourself.

This is God’s Word For Today … This Is Grace For The Journey

Rest and Rejoice in this eternal truth!

Pastor Terry

Ephesians 4:7 – “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”

Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”