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Isaiah 61:1b,3b – He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted … to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. (NIV)
Have you ever been in the pit of despair, having lost your way in the fog of self-pity and remorse? The other day, I listened to a friend recall how she felt when lost in the fog of despair and anger. It centered on her son's wedding. I will let her tell you what happened.
- As I think back to the situation when my life took a downward spin into rage and hate, the problem facing us was our oldest son getting married to a girl 17 years his junior. I recall what led up to the wedding, which my husband and I were not going to attend because of things said and done. The choice of a girl wasn't something I agreed with, and we didn't talk for some time. It was the Christmas before the January wedding when a meeting was set up at our other son's home, and all the cards were put on the table, and we reluctantly agreed to attend with reservations. On the wedding day, we were told by one of the attendants that our son's wife had said that the new bride would be feeling better if the parents of her husband-to-be were not at the wedding. Sigh! We did attend though, hiding my feelings.
Nothing was going right, and I couldn't control the situation, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn't sleep, and I had continued headaches. My thoughts of the situation overwhelmed me. I felt weak and helpless. My life was going down the wrong thought trail. I was struggling like a fish swimming upstream. I finally fell down on my knees and cried out to God, "I give this situation to You, Lord. Please forgive me for trying to control things I have no control over." Then I prayed:
To accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
As I said the Serenity Prayer over and over daily, I totally surrendered to God to let Him handle it in His time. As time has gone by, I finally have that sense of peace back. God's Spirit is definitely at work in my life, and I leave the rest up to God to oversee my son's life and his relationship with his wife. My burden of being bewildered has passed as I let go and let God do His work.
Hearing of my friend's life-giving struggle, I thanked God for His peace which was obviously with my friend now, having brought her through a very painful time. Yes, God does send us His peace, as Isaiah said in today's verses. "He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted … to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair."
We struggle through life with many challenges facing us, and we hit that wall and wonder whether we can get over it or through it. Yes, we can, through God and His Son, our Saviour and Redeemer. He is our Rock through life. Praise to our Lord!
Prayer: Dear Lord, we believe in You, but we can lose our way in the fog of self-contemplation and self-will. We should have called out to You, and when we finally did, You were there in the fog with a bright light. Please forgive us, for You alone are the only One who can truly lead life here on earth, as we walk on with faith and trust. You were always there for us. Thank You, dear Lord, for picking us up when we were down. All praise and glory be to You. Amen.
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Thanks Iris for sharing.
Excellent devotional Iris, Thank you.
Iris this is such a blessing to me today.
Dear Iris: This Devotional is perfect for what I’ve been dealing with.
Thanks Iris for a very touching devotional.
Blessings.
Dear Friend in the Lord,
Thank you and God Bless you so much.
Sometimes life is tough. Praise God that He is able, if we give it to Him to help with.
(England)
Amen and amen! Thanks for sharing your friend’s story with us this morning, Iris. Thanks be to God that He is always with us and He will always pick up the pieces of our lives when we let go and let God. Have a wonderful day!
Dear Iris,
I really enjoy your story “The Pit Of Despair”.
Thank you.
Dear Iris;
Thank you for sharing your friend’s story. It is hard to let go of things and situations that we think would be better if we controlled them. I still need to make that choice in certain situations. I think of that phrase right now: Let Go and Let God…your prayer is powerful.
Thank you for being so up front, writing about your son’s wedding. I believe it will help many others as I have found that at EVERY wedding of my friends children lately, there are huge problems between the two families. Our son’s wedding was no exception. The GOOD news is that in every family that prayed and believed the conflicts were resolved, perhaps it took a few years, but it was worth it. For my own son, we now get along with my daughter-in-law’s parents and everyone understands each other better. I know this couldn’t have happened without prayer. I also know that you will heal in time too. In God’s way, not ours, but you will heal.
Thank you Iris. There have been numerous occasions in my daily life when the Serenity prayer has been of great comfort. I found a copy of the complete serenity prayer online and that is what my wife and I use today. I have attached a copy that is my own version in which I have cleaned up some of the gender specific pronouns. I hope you don’t mind. The Serenity Prayer, and the prayer of Julian of Norwich has become my mantra.
All shall be well
All shall be well
All manner of things shall be well.
Thank you again for your devotional.
Blessings.
Thanks again, Iris. You have a knack which God uses for getting to the heart of where we live and expressing it well. It helps!
Hi Iris,
This Prayer line and Daily devotional has been a massive blessing to me, my family and my friends over the last 12+ years. I just wanted to say THANK YOU! It was spot on, just for me. God is so perfect and He knows what we need and when we need it. I pray that God continues to work through you and encourages you to be His voice. I also pray that I will continue to hear Him only and to deafen my ears to all evil trying to turn my attention away from Him.
Praise God and may He bless you!!