The news of Jesus rescuing us should always make us wanna shout, but often it barely raises a whisper. We grow weary from the run and many times lose the voice God created for us to praise Him. Our feet are tired. Our muscles are weary. Our hearts are empty and our minds are full. We think “I don’t have any praise left in me!” That is, until we come face to face with the King.
We forget our lives are all about Jesus. From first breath till we finally close our eyes, we’ve been shaped for praise. But we get all wrapped up in the business of life and forget these things. We empty ourselves over our kids, our work and just the day to day business of surviving this cruel world. But when Jesus breaks into our emptiness, things can change quickly. Just like when I was out of fuel on the trail, meeting Jesus fills us with new hope, strong ability, peace that won’t back down and a love that refuses to abandon.
No one is born with the hope of Heaven on their lips. Instead, we are all born with the single intent of surviving. We focus all our efforts on just making it through the next day; the next struggle. But the news of the Gospel is that all our striving/running combined is not enough for us to survive. Sure, we can buy a little time, but in the end, we find, it’s all worthless. It’s like a hot breath on a cold morning. It just disappears. Jesus introduces a new reality. It’s filled with wonder and a hope of overcoming more than the troubles staring us in the face. In His presence, all our fears, anxieties, concerns and guilt just get washed away as quickly as deep running water can carry them. I can make a list of all the gifts He brings to replace the dim treasures we grip so tightly, but the list only points to Him. The greatest gift we inherit when we meet Jesus is Himself. Like a parent holding a newborn son, God presents Himself to us as One who will never let us go. He promises, against all odds, to always keep, protect, provide for, forgive and love us. And we find that He always keeps His promises.
But it doesn’t end there. Even those who’ve been in the presence of Jesus find themselves needing refilling; refueling; restoring. The effects of sin in our lives render us in need of renewal. And Jesus is the only one capable of reviving our soul. There is nothing in this world like coming into the presence of Jesus after being empty and absent for a while. There is nothing like seeing His arms open wide when we think He’d never accept us after what we’ve done. There is no comparison to hearing His voice after being empty and weary for so long.
It's so good to be at a place of shouting Hallelujah when I think about the Lord! If you are there, praise God! Don’t wait another minute to cry out to Him for hope and healing, for forgiveness and restoration! Don’t waste the precious presence of Jesus on anything less than Him. If you are not in that sweet place, do not despair. The Bible tells us that those who seek Him, find Him. It tells us that those who draw near to God will experience Him drawing near to us. So lean in! Pray to Him in a time when He may be found. The door is open now. Don’t wait any longer! Now is the time for you to know the Lord and be known by Him.