Prayer & Praise

by Shannon Winslow

  God is not secretive. He doesn’t hide the truth. On the contrary, he has made himself known through his creation, through the prophets of old, through his Son, through the completed scriptures, and through the testimony of his people throughout time. God’s character demands that the truth about himself be available for all to see. He invites us to behold the evidence and believe. But he won’t force anyone. People can remain ignorant and deceived if they so choose.

  Not to take our analogy too far, but consider what would have happened if Elizabeth hadn’t opened Darcy’s letter when he placed it into her hand. The evidence – everything she needed to know the truth and believe – was right there at her fingertips. Darcy had, in fact, gone out of his way to be sure of that. He had invited her to read it, but the decision was still hers. If, because of her hardened heart, she had stubbornly refused to look inside, she would have remained under Wickham’s deception and ignorant of Darcy’s true character. She would never have learned to love him, and the pair, who were seemingly made for each other, would have remained permanently estranged. Not only estranged but at enmity.

  How tragic, and yet not as tragic as people being permanently estranged from God, their loving Heavenly Father, willfully misunderstanding and rejecting him. Still, it happens.

  So what hope is there for our unbelieving friends and family members? What chance is there for the one who persecutes Christians and slanders the name of God? Well, remember that the Apostle Paul was once a persecutor of the church before God intervened in a mighty way. And many of us have seen similarly hardened loved ones saved.

  There’s always hope because God never stops reaching out to his errant children, offering mercy through the saving blood of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is constantly at work to soften and convict hearts, preparing them for the gospel. And God allows us to be part of this labor too – by praying for the lost, as modeled in today’s petition, and by following the Spirit’s prompting when he calls us to speak out: Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have in Christ. (1 Peter 3:15)

  Let Us Pray

  We thank you, Heavenly Father, for making yourself known and for offering mercy to all mankind through your Son. We pray that in a miraculous way blind eyes would be opened and hearts made receptive to the gospel. Use us as your instruments of grace to tell the story of Jesus. Amen.

  Let Us Praise

  Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see. ‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved. How precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed! (traditional hymn: “Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound,” text by John Newton, 1725-1807)

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  Ambassadors of Comfort

  Look with compassion upon the afflicted of every condition, assuage the pangs of disease, comfort the broken in spirit.

  When you’re going through a rough time, suffering some kind of affliction, you want good friends to rally round you; you want Christian friends to comfort and pray for you. At such a time, however, you may be most drawn to the particular friend who has been through something similar. S/he can honestly say, “I know how you feel.” That person’s commiseration feels most authentic and their counsel carries the weight of experience. The Apostle Paul wrote,

  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)

  God is the source of all comfort, and Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit as our counselor and comforter (John 16:7). But in addition, as this passage makes clear, sometimes God sends a human ambassador to participate in that work – to comfort those in trouble with the comfort they themselves have received from God. To my mind, Anne Elliot was such a one.

  It fell to Anne’s lot to be placed rather apart with Captain Benwick; and a very good impulse of her nature obliged her to begin an acquaintance with him… and Anne was well repaid the first trouble of exertion. He was evidently a young man of considerable taste in reading, though principally in poetry; and besides the persuasion of having given him at least an evening’s indulgence in the discussion of subjects, which his usual companions had probably no concern in, she had the hope of being of real use to him in some suggestions as to the duty and benefit of struggling against affliction, which had naturally grown out of their conversation… and feeling herself the right of seniority of mind, she ventured to recommend a larger allowance of prose… mentioned such works of our best moralists… as occurred to her at the moment as calculated to rouse and fortify the mind by the highest precepts, and the strongest examples of moral and religious endurances. (Persuasion, chapter 11)

  Captain Benwick was a man grieving the death of his beloved fiancée Fanny Harville. And although Anne wouldn’t have been able to tell him so openly, he must have sensed that she also understood the pain of that kind of loss, having lost her dear mother as well as Captain Wentworth. We’re told that her mildness of countenance and gentleness of manner soon had their effect on him.

  Anne Elliot wasn’t a trained therapist, so what did she do that was so effective? To start, she took the time and trouble to make Captain Benwick’s acquaintance. She patiently indulged him with conversation on his favorite subject: poetry. And she gently suggested things that might help him. We’re not surprised by this, because she seems a very gracious individual. And yet, there may be something more to it.

  I can’t help thinking Jane Austen meant to imply that Anne acted under the prompting of the Holy Spirit – as she obeyed the very good impulse of her nature, as she gently recommended such reading as occurred to her at the moment, her goal being to fortify Benwick with the highest precepts and examples of moral and religious endurance. Later, she found it ironic that she had so eloquently preached on patience and resignation – a point in which her own conduct would ill bear examination. I don’t think it was any accident, however. I think it was a divine appointment meant to strengthen her as much as it did Captain Benwick.

  It always feels good to be used by God. And as we minister to someone else, it takes us out of ourselves; our focus is effectively diverted from our personal troubles as we take time out to help another. In hindsight, we will hopefully see the experience as one more proof that our own suffering wasn’t wasted, for it has enabled us to comfort someone else in trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.

  Have you had this experience? – God very clearly sends you to a friend in need. Or perhaps he places you next to a total stranger (on a bus, plane, or in the line at the grocery store), and you feel him nudging you to reach out, to offer a word of encouragement in his name.

  Don’t ignore that prompting of the Holy Spirit. In fact, pray that God will give you many such opportunities, that you will recognize them for what they are, and that you will respond according to his leading. Such divine appointments – whether you’re the comforter or the one receiving comfort – may well have more eternal value than you image.

  Reread today’s prayer petition, and remember that when you pray, asking for God’s compassion on the afflicted, his way of sending comfort to them may be to send you!

  Let Us Pray

  God of all comfort, give us patience in suffering, and show us how you would use us to give comfort to others. Make us sensitive to your Holy Spirit’s leading, so that we will not miss an appointment you have made for us to minister to the distressed and brokenhearted in Jes
us’ name. Amen.

  Let Us Praise

  Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare. (Psalms 40:5)

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  Running the Race

  More particularly do we pray for the safety and welfare of our own family & friends wheresoever dispersed, beseeching Thee to avert from them all Material & lasting Evil of Body or Mind;

  We probably all regularly offer up some version of today’s prayer petition, which amounts to, “Please, God, don’t let anything very bad happen to me or anybody I love… ever.” We pray it knowing that, short of a conveniently timed rapture, God is unlikely to grant our request. As a direct result of sin entering the world, we are all mortal and vulnerable. Bad things do and will continue to happen, even to “good” people, including those we love.

  Mr. Woodhouse knew this from painful experience. He had lost his wife early and now was a very great worrier – on his own behalf and for others alike – seeing danger, especially to health, lurking around each corner in the form of everything from a piece of wedding cake to the damp of the evening.

  On such occasions, poor Mr. Woodhouse’s feelings were in sad warfare. He loved to have the cloth laid, because it had been the fashion of his youth; but his conviction of suppers being very unwholesome made him rather sorry to see any thing put on it; and while his hospitality would have welcomed his visitors to every thing, his care for their health made him grieve that they would eat. (Emma, chapter 3)

  “Oh! No,” said he; “it would be the extreme of imprudence. I could not bear it for Emma! – Emma is not strong. She would catch a dreadful cold. So would poor little Harriet. So you would all. Mrs. Weston, you would be quite laid up; do not let them talk of such a wild thing. Pray do not let them talk of it. That young man… He has been opening the doors very often this evening, and keeping them open very inconsiderately. He does not think of the draught…” (Emma, chapter 29)

  We’re told in the first chapter that as a result of his “valetudinarian” habits, Mr. Woodhouse was a much older man in ways than in years. In other words, his excessive fears over health robbed him of the sheer enjoyment of life. Sad, and yet, I can relate.

  Several years ago, there was a much-publicized prediction of the date that the world would supposedly end, according to one person’s calculations. Although I knew the prediction couldn’t be correct (because no one knows about that day or hour, according to Jesus’ own words in Mark 13:32 and Matthew 24:36), I almost wished it would be true. I wished Jesus would tarry no longer before his return. I had lived a pretty full life by then, and everybody in my family was healthy and happy. But I knew it couldn’t remain so. My parents were in their eighties, and it was only a matter of time before I would have to face their looming declines and deaths, as well as whatever other suffering would inevitably find me and my loved ones. It seemed to me a much better plan to skip over that unpleasantness, all of us happily moving on together to be with the Lord in heaven.

  The world did not end, of course. Instead, we’ve all gotten older, and some of the things I dreaded have indeed come to pass. However, some wonderful things have occurred since then as well, all according to God’s design.

  Yes, it is right to pray for the health and safety of those we love – pray and pray unceasingly. But it is not right to live in perpetual fear of what may happen to us. Fear for the future is a sign that we do not trust God and his plan completely.

  Once again, Jesus is our example. He didn’t have to wonder about the future; he knew what suffering awaited him at the cross, and yet he obediently went forward, trusting his father’s plan all the way to death and out the other side. The Bible exhorts us to do the same.

  …let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3)

  God has set the joys of heaven and the image of his son before us so that we might stay focused and never lose heart, so that we might run with perseverance the race he has marked out for each of us, counting as insignificant whatever suffering and obstacles we have to endure along the way. We defer to God’s perfect plan and timing for when and how each of our races will finish, and we long to hear him say at the end, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25:21)

  Near the end of his life, Paul wrote,

  For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

  May God give each of us the courage and grace to finish the race well!

  Let Us Pray

  Holy Father, your wisdom is perfect and your plan is right. Forgive us when we doubt and fear, and help us to trust you for the future – for our own well-being and for our loved ones – fixing our eyes on the joy before us, like Jesus did. He has set us the one and only flawless example to follow, and so it is in his name we pray. Amen.

  Let Us Praise

  Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. (1 Chronicles 16: 8-11)

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  Happy Ending Secured

  …may we by the assistance of thy Holy Spirit so conduct ourselves on Earth as to secure an Eternity of Happiness with each other in thy Heavenly Kingdom. Grant this most merciful Father, for the sake of our Blessed Saviour in whose Holy Name & Words we further address Thee.

  It seems singularly appropriate that this particular segment should bring to a close a devotional book inspired by the writings of Jane Austen, since she was all about ending her stories with a happily-ever-after. Some say that’s not “realistic.” And while it’s true that in this fallen world things – people, relationships, business ventures, careers, even churches – don’t always finish well, our spirits long for happy endings anyway, the ones that real life doesn’t always deliver. We were created in God’s image, and, unless silenced by long disregard, his voice within us cries out for love to overcome hatred, for justice to reign, and for good to prevail.

  As I reviewed the endings of Austen’s six classic novels, I came across one of my favorite lines in the final chapter of Mansfield Park. Inserting herself and her opinion directly into the text, the author tells the reader:

  Let other pens dwell on guilt and misery. I quit such odious subjects as soon as I can, impatient to restore every body, not greatly in fault themselves, to tolerable comfort, and to have done with all the rest. [then further on…] With so much true merit and true love, and no want of fortune or friends, the happiness of the married cousins must appear as secure as earthly happiness can be. Equally formed for domestic life, and attached to country pleasures, their home was the home of affection and comfort; and to complete the picture of good, the acquisition of Mansfield living by the death of Dr. Grant, occurred just after they had been married long enough to begin to want an increase of income and feel their distance from the paternal abode an inconvenience. On that event they removed to Mansfield, and the parsonage there… soon grew as dear to [Fanny’s] heart, and as thoroughly perfect in her eyes, as everything else, within the view and patronage of Mansfield Park, had long been. [The End]

  Jane Austen did what she could to set Fanny and Edmund up as well as possible. But, with
the words as secure as earthly happiness can be, she acknowledges the universal truth that happiness in this world is tenuous at best. And indeed, although Austen wrote happy endings for all her heroines, she couldn’t do the same for herself. Facing death at the age of only forty-one, she welcomed it as a release from a long and painful illness, apparently confident in her salvation.

  As Christians, we trust to the next life for the only secure and lasting happiness. We have the certain hope of heaven to look forward to, where we will live with God forever and also be reunited with loved ones who have died in the Lord before us. In that place, the love, justice, and goodness of God will prevail forever and ever. There will be no more war, pain, sickness, or death, and God himself will wipe away every tear. That’s the ultimate happily-ever-after. As John wrote in Revelation 21:1-5,

  Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death and mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”