06/28/2020
Who do we confide in? We say we love our spouses and families, but there are things we think, or have done, that we hold back for fear of disappointing them. We say that our friends will stand by us through thick or thin, and yet we withhold things from them that we are afraid might cause us to lose their friendships. However, God already knows who we are, and what we are. We can trust in Him, and Jesus Christ, to hear our deepest thoughts, to know our innermost secrets, and never abandon us... to love us and help us despite our darkest revelations. They are our refuge in the midst of our humanity, and from our dark places they will lead us back into the light.
“Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah”
Psalm 62:8 ESV
So who do people turn to today with their most tragic failures, their unsettling thoughts, the moments of disappointment in their lives, and all those feelings of fear, abandonment, self-hate, rejection, insecurity, and a million other realities of life that they can’t handle on their own? Well they either hold them inside as they eat away at their spirits, and destroy their hearts and minds, or they confide in strangers, therapists, or charlatans who claim they care, and can help. They turn to people who only care so long as the money keeps coming, or they think there is something in it for them.
“Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.”
Jeremiah 17:5-6 ESV
I am here to tell you today that there is a better alternative... God. Our God already knows our heart, and all that we have done, so there is no further shame or fear in confessing these things to Him, and if we are sincere in our penitence He will forgive us, and can immediately comfort us, and lead us to a resolution to all that is bothering us.
“The Lord looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man; from where he sits enthroned he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, he who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.”
Psalm 33:13-15 ESV
When we feel lost, and that there is nowhere to turn, our prayers find fertile ground in Him, and His forgiveness through the blood of Jesus Christ clears the way for our healing... He is our wise counselor, our most trusted therapist, and will love us through it all. We are blessed by our trust in the Lord...
““Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.””
Jeremiah 17:7-8 ESV
So back to our original question: “Who do we confide in?” Who will we chose to help us through life, and heal us? Will it be a stranger, a stranger, some charlatan, or God? Who of these but God can repair relationships, comfort broken hearts, and see us through every calamity in life; the subtle and the bold? Who but God keeps every secret, and maintains every tender confidence. Are you ready to make a choice today?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for knowing us as you do, and, by this, removing our feelings of guilt and embarrassment from being obstacles in seeking your help, and counsel. There is nothing we can tell you about ourselves that you do not already know, and you await only our prayer of contrition, before forgiving, and beginning to heal every broken thing in our lives. Help us Father to lean on you, and not to seek our help from worldly sources for those hidden faults and insecurities that we have in ourselves, and encounter in our lives. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who sees all we do, and knows our hearts. Great are you who sent His Son Jesus to redeem us, and reconcile us to you. Wonderful are you who breathes His Holy Spirit onto us, and thus gives us remembrance, and understanding of your Word. Praised be your name as we pray, and confess our sins before you, knowing that you have promised to forgive them. Amazing is the grace you pour over us even though we are not deserving in ourselves, but only through the blood of Jesus... who is worthy beyond all measure. Hear our voices today as we worship you, and lay every secret thought, and innermost secret at your feet... because our trust is in you, and our hope in your desire to heal them, and take us into your arms now, and forevermore.
“Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
Psalm 19:12-14 ESV
Rich Forbes