A Prayer For You Today
Pastor Joe | March 27, 2023 | A Prayer For You Today
March 27, 2023
. . . that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who, all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death (Heb. 2:14–15).
“How wicked it would be, if we could, to call the dead back! She said not to me but to the chaplain, 'I am at peace with God.' She smiled, but not at me. Poi si torno all' eterna fontana. Translation- And then she returned to the eternal fountain
C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed
God and Father, I’ve never longed more for the Day of no more death or mourning. And thankfully, I’ve never been more certain that Day is coming.
Oh, for the glorious Day when there are no more tears to wipe, no more deaths to mourn—the Day when everything sad comes untrue and everything broken will be ever new.
The Day when perpetual Hello’s will supplant every painful Goodbye; the Day when the only thing that will shock us, and take our breath away, will be greater, richer revelations of your love for us in Jesus.
The Day when we won’t gather in sadness to bury our dead, but with gladness, we will proclaim, “Father, you have done all things well; you have made all things beautiful; you have made all things new!”
The Day when our mourning will be turned to dancing; our anger will be turned to laughter, when our knowing in part will become understanding in full.
The Day of no more sackcloth and ashes, only wedding garments and feasting.
Hasten that Day, Father, hasten that Day of renewal and restoration; re-gathering and resurrection; no more clenched fists, only raised palms; no more funeral homes and graveyards, only a new heaven and a new earth.
Father may the good news of Jesus’ finished work lead to a fresh work of your mighty Spirit in the hearts of many—today and in these coming months. We trust you to bring great good out of this hard providence—lasting fruit out of this painful moment. Your name is Redeemer, and your ways are unsearchable, and your grace is inexhaustible.
We pray all of this for the glory of your Son, Jesus, and the expansion of your unshakable kingdom. Amen.
Taken and slightly abridged from Scotty Smith
God bless you this week in all things great and small, and no minute of your life left to yourself.
Pastor Joe