The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. (Psalm 34:18 NIV)
“To fail to sing is to give darkness a place in your soul.” – Calvin Miller
I’m in a place right now where I can clearly recognize that God is carrying me by the prayers and love of friends and family. Within 36 hours, I learned that my beloved Dad had passed away unexpectedly, and then we had to put our sweet dog to sleep.
During the long drive from my home to my parents’ on Monday, I moved between remembering, rejoicing, crying, and singing praise and worship songs that spoke deeply to my spirit. The practical tasks of Tuesday and Wednesdy—choosing a cemetery plot, ordering the casket spray, planning the service—are done. Now we’re sorting through photos and memories.
This week is hard, but it isn’t crushing me. The Father is sending his Word to reassure me—and to carry me.
When I looked back I found these were my daily verses last weekend:
Friday – the day before Dad’s passing: I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. (John 10:14-15 ESV)
Thank you, God, that he knew you and you knew him.
Saturday – the day of his passing: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. (John 11:25 ESV)
Thank you, God, that you are his Resurrection and his Life and he is ALIVE in Christ for eternity.
Sunday – the first day of grief: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6 ESV)
Thank you, God, that he has come to the Father through Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Most of us, if asked, would realize that God is carrying us — either in smaller or larger ways. I don’t know who wrote this, but it is true:
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with
the Lord. Scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In
each, I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were
two sets of footprints; other times there was only one.
During the low periods of my life I could see only one set of
footprints, so I said, “You promised me, Lord, that you would
walk with me always. Why, when I have needed you most,
have you not been there for me?”
The Lord replied, “The times when you have seen only one set
of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”
Today, may we relax into the arms of the Savior and allow him to carry us in the low places of life.
God,
Thank you for your Word that reassures us in times of struggle, grief, and discouragement. Praise to you, our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Thank you that you are the Good Shepherd, the Resurrection and the Life, and the Way, the Truth and the Life. Thank you for carrying us in times of trial, sustaining and rescuing us, and carrying us close to your heart. Help us to remain in you, trusting in your Word and your promises when we are walking through a valley of life. May that valley time bear fruit in our lives, we pray in Jesus’s name. AMEN.
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5, 8 ESV)
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 46:4 NIV)
He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. (Isaiah 40:11 NIV)
Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.(Psalm 68:19 NIV)