A Peace of My Mind

Grace at its finest…

Click. Click. Click. He could hear the heals of the guard as they drew closer and closer. Click. His palms grew a little sweaty. Click. His breath became a little shallow. Click. His heart was racing by the time the guard stepped up to the cell. With a flick of his wrist, the uniformed man unlocked the door and stepped in. He roughly undid the prisoners chains and yanked him to his feet. The prisoner, weak and tired, staggered under his own weight as he was led out of the dark, dank room. As he stepped outside, he was momentarily blinded by the light.

When his eyes focused, he was startled at the size of the crowd. They were centered on another prisoner, this one badly bruised and beaten. What could he have done to deserve such brutality?

Soon he forgot the other man’s suffering, as his own punishment was inflicted upon him. By the time he was raised on to his cross, all he was focused on was his own pain. He and another theif hung their waiting for their death. Two common criminals.

Then a third cross was lifted, bearing that Man he’d seen earlier. Upon closer inspection, he again noticed the extremity of his beating. This was no ordinary criminal.

The soldier’s gambled for His clothes below. There were rulers and jewish leaders everywhere. The crowd was crazed.

“He saved others! Let Him save Himself, if He be the Christ!” some shouted.

Others spoke directly to Him, “If Thou be the king of the Jews, save Thyself!”

Perhaps he’d had some jewish background, a praying mother, a devout grandfather, a spiritually-minded family, and that was how he knew of the infamous carpenter from Galilee.

Or maybe he had just simply heard of the news from snatches of the guards conversations as they stood in front of his cell. Maybe he’d heard of how this Man had healed the woman with the issue of blood. Or how He’d raised that little girl from the dead. How He’d opened blinded eyes with one breath and forgiven sins in the next.

I don’t know how he knew about this man named Jesus, but somehow he knew that this was no ordinary man.

And when he heard those precious words, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” he knew the Man hanging on the cross beside him could change his life.

And then came those hateful words from the other thief, “If thou be the Christ, save us and thyself!”

And something within that broken thief could take it no longer. He’d watched as the Savior of the world was mocked and bruised. But now, a fire lit his eyes as he looked at the fellow criminal. He finally had something to believe in and even if it was his last moments on earth, he was going to take a stand.

So with conviction in his voice, he asked, “Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.”

And then with a light of hope in his eyes, he looked at the only One who could help him and made one request. Not for riches. Not for fame. Not even to get off that wretched cross.

No, he quietly asked, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”

And in that moment, a dying thief on a filthy cross found grace.

For the Lord chose the cross. He chose the pain and the agony. He chose to be in the place where a common criminal could find grace in his time of need.

And today, He still chooses to be in the painful situations. To be in those moments of agony and despair. Those moments when there is no other hope, but Jesus. And in those moments, He is the grace we need.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. – Heb. 4:16

When the Living Water Comes to You…

There were so many people with so many needs. Blind. Lame. Deaf. Mute. Paralyzed.

Some looked hopeful. Some looked hopeless.

Some were surrounded by friends and family ready to help. Some were alone.

One thing connected them. The pool. Every single one of them, no matter what the need, tensely waited for the moment that could change their life.

You could tell who had been there the longest. For some of them had this hopeful, almost eager look in their eyes that seemed to say this will be my day. But there were others who blankly stared at the pool, with the just smallest beacon of hope deep back in their eyes that seemed to be hanging by a slender thread.

One man, though, his eyes would haunt everyone who saw him for the rest of their lives. His eyes didn’t hold hope. They held resignation. Resignation to his condition. Resignation to his loneliness. Resignation to spending the rest of his life in this location, seeing others getting the blessing he longed for.

After all, it had been thirty eight years. Thirty eight years. This had been no ordinary trial. This had been a prolonged testing of faith. And his faith was beginning to fail. It wasn’t that he didn’t want it. It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried before. It wasn’t even that he didn’t believe that the moving of the water could heal him. After all, he’d seen others be healed time and time again. No, he simply realized that he himself had no way of getting it for himself. He was sick and alone. And tired of seeing others have someone help them get the breakthrough he wanted. He was just tired of trying.

Maybe it was his physical condition that caught the Master’s eye. Perhaps he looked worse than the others. Maybe the Master saw that He was alone and couldn’t bear the thought. Maybe He just picked the man at random.

All of these are possible, but something tells me it was more. I can just imagine Jesus walking up to the pool wanting to help someone. And as He looks over the crowd, His eyes catch on this man. I don’t believe it was the man’s physical condition that caught His eye. No, I believe it was the man’s hopelessness. I believe that as the Master looked at this man, He saw a soul suffering from much more than a physical ailment. He saw a soul suffering from loneliness, disappointment, heartbreak and mostly hopelessness. And Jesus, He is no ordinary man, He specializes in hopeless cases.

So, He approached the impotent man and asked him one question, “Wilt thou be made whole?”

Can you imagine this man’s shock. Of course he wanted to be healed. Why else would he have set here for all these years? And so he told the Master, “I’ve tried, but noone is here to help me down. When I start to get up, someone is already there.”

And I can just see Jesus thinking, You don’t need someone to bring you to the water anymore. The Living Water has come to you.

And so the voice that would calm the winds and the waves spoke and said “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.”

And just like that, the test of thirty eight years was over. For thirty eight years, he had sat at that darkest moment just before the dawn, and suddenly the Son burst forth.

The Living Water had washed over him and he would never be the same.

The Throne of Grace

A young mother gently rocks her baby back and forth. She has nowhere to go and no one to turn to. The bills are piling up. The baby is sick. She feels afraid and lonely. And so she bows her head and she prays.

At the same moment, a young boy sits in a funeral service. He can’t believe he’s gone. His mentor. His role model. His leader. His father. Gone. In one single moment, his world has been completely shaken. He feels abandoned and confused. And so he bows his head and he prays.

In the nursing home, there sits a man. Once young and loved by many, now old and neglected by most. He remembers the days when he could take care of those he cared about. Now, he can’t even take care of himself. He feels angry and helpless. And he bows his head and prays.

The young girl mocked and bullied by those around her. The father working 3 jobs to keep his family afloat. The wife fighting for a marriage she feels slipping through her fingers. The man trying to turn his life around. All scared. All hurting. All looking for answers.

And so they bow their head and they pray.

And the One who has the answer for them takes notice.

Picture this. In the throne room of heaven sets God himself. Off to the side, a choir of angels sings praises continually. Their voices raise in perfect harmony as they worship their Creator.

Suddenly, they quiet down, their voices much softer as Jesus Christ steps up to the throne. He stands before His Father and with the voice that calmed the seas and called Lazarus forth begins to petition the Father for the souls in need.

He calls out that mothers name and asks God to be Jehovah-Jireh, her provider.

For that young man, He asks that God will give him that perfect peace that only God can give.

He calls out for the man in the nursing home and He asks that God will show Himself to be the same God in his old age that He was in the man’s youth.

Jesus humbles Himself and intercedes on the behalf of every mother and wife, every father and husband, every daughter and son that calls on him. He asks for help for the poor and for the rich. For the young and for the old. For the widow and the orphan. For the strong and the weak.

He calls out for you and He calls out for me.

The One who spoke the world into existence, speaks your name.

And the Father listens.

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. – Hebrews 4:15-16

Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. – Romans 8:34

The Question

The woman breathlessly came running down the street. She stopped at the front porches of all her neighbors, exclaiming “I’ve met a man!”

Some sighed. Some shook their heads. Some smiled and some looked on sympathetically, but they all thought the same thing.

“Oh, but he’s different. You don’t understand,” the woman continued. They may have not come out and said it, but it was reflected in each of their eyes, We’ve heard this before.

Nevertheless, the town was small and the excitement was almost nonexistent, so they settled in to listen to what she had to stay. Hopefully, it would at least be entertaining. They nonchalantly gathered around her, boredom plain on many of their faces, but that did not last long.

As she continued the story, they stood up a little straighter, leaned forward a little bit. Maybe one woman set aside her knitting. Another scolded her children for being to loud. A man set aside the work he had brought with him. And they listened.

She told them how she had gone to the well that day, at the same time she always did, expecting no one to be there. That day, however, was different. A man whom she had never seen before sat at the well. She kept her head down and eyes averted, for he was a Jew. She could just tell and she had been humiliated enough in her life to know better than to speak to him.

But then something beautiful and completely out of the ordinary happened. He spoke to her.

Here she paused, trying to comprehend the reality that he had wanted to speak to her. She just couldn’t believe it. And he didn’t just talk to her, he connected with her. He looked her in the eye and gave her respect. He listened and then he answered.

She shook her head and wonder and continued. She told how he had spoke to her of a living water that would satisfy and bring everlasting life. How he had told her everything that she had done. He knew about the past men in her life. He knew she’d been through many, but he was offering to be the last one. He was offering to be the man she needed.

She told how he spoke of the day when they would be able to worship God freely.

And then, she told them the best part. She smiled and the townspeople all leaned forward. You could have heard a pin drop as she spoke with wonder,

“Is not this the Christ?”

She had been right. He was different than the others. None before and none after have ever been like this Man.

This Man was gentle and kind. Just and fair. Loving and patient. Holy and pure.

This Man was found, waiting at the well for a broken woman who had no more hope. He was found near the tombs at Gadarene, waiting for man bound by forces he could not hope to escape. He was found in the temple, waiting for a woman who had given herself away for what she thought was love. He was found in Jericho, waiting on a blind man to cry out to Him.

He was found in drug rehabs, waiting for men and women who could not break their chains. He was found in prison, waiting on those who had long since turned away from them. He was found in homes, waiting on people broken and bruised by events they could not control. He was found in moments of despair, waiting on those needing strength.

He was found at the cross, waiting for a thief, a common criminal, in his last moments.

And He was found in the garden on the third day, waiting for a grief-stricken woman whom He had long ago set free to remind her that He was in control, that He was faithful and true to His word and that He had triumphed.

And He is found today, waiting on whosoever will come.

And I ask you, “Is this not the Christ?”