Invitation to Helplessness
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“I wish there was something I could do.” That statement hovers in our minds whenever we think of someone who is dying. Yet, are we, who are so anxious to help, willing to become helpless, as dependent on Christ alone as they are?
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (Hebrews 4:6, NIV).
Humility is the ability to acknowledge our short comings, to recognize our true position before God. God alone holds the power of life and death. There comes a time when we must acknowledge there is nothing that the doctors can do. There is nothing anyone can do. There is nothing I can do.
We don’t want to face that stark reality, but only when we do can we assist them. God spoke to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV).
Letting go of sin: Exhale sin, inhale the Holy Spirit
Needing a timeout with God?: Take our Life Lesson
God’s power works in our weakness.
Therefore, I encourage you to acknowledge before God your helplessness, how you long to fix your loved ones’ trouble but know that you cannot. Then cry out to God on their behalf, because He alone can help them.
“He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken” (Psalm 62:2, NIV).
“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (Isaiah 40:29, NIV).
“[He] gives grace to the humble” (Proverbs 3:34, NIV).
“Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress” (Psalm 71:3, NIV).
You can personalize these verses into a prayer for your friends:
God, be (your friend’s name)’s rock and salvation; be her fortress so that she will never be shaken. God, give strength to (your friend’s name) for she is weary; increase her power for she is weak. God, give her grace for today for she knows that You alone can help her. Give the command to save her, O God, for You are her rock and her fortress.
Questions: How has admitting your helplessness been a good thing? Why is humility so essential in times of trouble?
About the Author Suzanne Benner
Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, He is my Helper, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Tags: anxious, Christ, death, doctors, God, helplessness, humility, prayer, Suzanne Benner, weakness
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Thank you very much for the great devotional you have sending to me. I now have enough strength to pray and trust God as my protector in time of trouble. I have realised how good it is to have faith and hope that GOD will help me heal and help me accept every situation in my life. And I also thank God for the family that He gave me and He is so great and I appreciate every thing that He do for me.
Suzanne, thank you for the devotional. Admitting my helplessness was a good thing in that it brought me to Jesus Christ. I need to be humble in times of trouble because if I look around me, there is always someone worse off than me and it makes me appreciate the blessing I do have. And that someone worse off could use a kind word, a helping hand and re-assurance that the Lord is always there for them.
thanks for this great devotional
Thank you for devotional it re-affirm my faith in GOD for he is my rock my source my reason for living I press toward the mark it is a pressing with faith believing thanks for devotion God bless you Angela.
I also found this to be such a timely devotional as I just found out a friend has breast cancer and it looks like it has spread. One feels so helpless but I am so Thankful we can pray for one another and ultimately try and give it over to Jesus. I say the word try as it is so easy to say give it over to Jesus but sometime very difficult.
Dear Heavenly Father I come before You right now asking for prayer for Julie that You would be her strength and comfort during this time in her life where her daughter-in-law has decided that her and her husband can no longer visit with their grandchildren. Jesus please move in Jana’s life and heart. Lord You see what all is going on in her mind and I pray that You will touch her, wrap Your loving arms around her and help her to realize that cutting the grandparents off from seeing their grandchildren isn’t going to help her or her children. Send a close Christian friend to be an encouragement and support for her and drawer her close to You.
Jesus I also pray for Chritsy’s friend Please reach out your healing hand and touch her, heal her from the top of her head to the tip of her toes. Just let her feel your Love and presence with her as she is in the ICU. Comfort and encourage her husband send Christians friends to be supportive of him too as he is going through this trying time. And then Lord Jesus I bring Mugs before You asking that you would reach out and touch her, heal her aching body, take the pain away from her completely, 100%. Just let her feeling your Loving Arms wrapped every so tightly around her. Lord fill that void she has from the loss of her Aunt whom she used to visit with so often and comfort her as it brings back memories of the loss of her mother a year and a half ago. I pray that she too will have Christian friends for support and encouragement as she is going through this difficult time in her life. Heavenly Father I bring all these request before You and Pray In Faith Believing That You will reach out and Minister to each and every life In Your Holy Name I Pray. Amen & Amen! Hugs, Linda!!!
I have struggled at times with physcial limitations. Recently my aunt passed away! I have stopped travelling because i find it difficult to travel! I felt compelled to be at this aunts funeral. My husband was working and the other ralatives were going the long route to where the Funeral was! So with prayer and wtih an attitude I can do it with Christ strength I drove the 4 hour trip to the boat myself. I managed to walk the stairs and get on the boat. I was weary but I kept praying!
At the funeral I broke down and cried.and cried for a couple of days non stop! It brought back memories of my mom. Healing came as I worked through my emotions emotionally. It is okay to miss your loved ones! You are not wishing them back but you can say I miss them and without feeling guilty! I was able to heal some more! My friend prayed for me recently and I have been walking and moving all over the place. I still have pain and my husband will pray and the pain goes away! The Joy of the Lord is my strength and I have been renewed in my spirit! You have to depend on God to comfort you and be your strength. It is only God who can do it! People can listen and pray but the healing eessentially has to come from God!
You cannot relive the anniversary you have to move on and forward!
I received a messge this morning that my best friend who is 26 and has already had a liver transplant and has been in and out of hospitals for two years now was back in ICU and not looking good, when her husband sent me the message I was saddened and this is the devotion I received today and I can not tell you what a perfect time is was to have received it!!! God trully works in miraculous ways, I forwarded this on to my friends husband and just wanted to share this amazing circumstance!!! I prayed the prayer for my friend Beth and thank you guys for allowing God to work in lives and your hearts and your words!!!!
It’s so fitting that this was the devotional today. It’s God, of course. My mantra the last year has been Paul’s words that God’s grace is sufficient for me. And then last night my daughter-in-law, Jana, informed me that I’m not to have contact with my grandchildren. She is a Christian woman going through some deep emotional/mental/physical struggles right now and taking it out on me. Please pray that she will use God, and God alone, as her rock and her strength. Pray for my son as he deals with his wife, with his two small children, and with the pressures of his job. And pray for me and my husband that we will continue to seek God’s words, God’s love, God’s actions in how we deal with this situation.
Thank you, CWT, and thank you, God, for giving me this devotional on this day.