What happens in those moments? When our heads are buried in our hands we pray, we think, we worry, and we try to find solutions. Sometimes we just sigh.
I wonder in those moments if Go,d through His Spirit, ever kneels in front of us with a tender hand of comfort on our backs. I wonder if He chooses to get on our level so He can look us eye to eye and speak words of hope, reassurance, strength, and warning to us. Does He ever look us eye to eye to express His love for us.
Sometimes we bury our heads in our hands because of shame. Shame for failure. Shame for faults. Shame for sin. In those moments does God look us eye to eye to remind us, Romans 8:1 (ESV)
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
To the one so tired they can barely push themselves to keep up the pace does the Lord say,
Matthew 11:28 (ESV)
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
To the burdened does God remind us,
1 Peter 5:6-7 (ESV)
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,
7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.
11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,
7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
I am thankful for those eye to eye talks when we are tired, weighed down, shamed in our sin, sick, and overwhelmed. God meets us at our point of need. Sometimes those eye to eye talks might include chastisement and deep conviction over wrong doing.Hebrews 12:5-11 (ESV)
5 And
have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.
11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Sometimes they might include
We should be humbled and grateful God chooses to get down on our level. We should thank Him for getting eye to eye with us when we most need it but do not deserve it. Why would He ever stoop to even listen to us much less get eye to eye to communicate with us. His gaze is piercing. His gaze is convicting. His gaze is penetrating. His gaze is loving. His gaze is gracious. His gaze is welcoming to those in need.
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