A Prayer About Being Held and Upheld
“You whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth… even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” Isaiah 46:3-4
Heavenly Father, like most of your promises of tender care, these words came to your people during a time of their rebellion and idolatry. Such patience, forbearance and kindness from you is astonishing. There is simply no other God like you. There is clearly no other God who loves so passionately and persistently, with your eyes wide open to both our dignity and our depravity. There is truly no other God but you.
These words of hope land afresh on my orphan-like heart today, Lord. I’m not really sure why, but the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas seem to underscore my brokenness, magnify my restlessness and intensify my longings. Now that I think about it, that seems to be a pretty consistent picture of the world into which Jesus was born.
“Long lay the world In sin and error pining, ‘Til He appear’d And the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope The weary world rejoices…“
Dear Father, it’s only because you sent Jesus into the world, for your people, that I am free to acknowledge my sin, my errors, my pining and my weariness. It’s only because you came, Lord Jesus, that I have any sense of worth, hope or joy… It’s only because you came and because you now reign, Lord Jesus, that I dare to believe that I am being held and upheld, from “the womb to the tomb,” from conception to completion. For indeed, “you know my need,” and “to my weakness you are no stranger…”
Loving Father, I’ve been twice born only as a result of your sovereign pleasure and grace. You have carried me all along the way, and you will continue to carry, sustain and rescue me until the Day you send Jesus back into the world to finish making all things new… until the Day when “all that is within me praises His holy name.”
Until the Day when I join the whole family of God, and every angel and the entire creation in exuding… “Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever, His power and glory Evermore proclaim. His power and glory evermore proclaim.” So very Amen, I pray, in Jesus’ grace-full name.