30 - Man of Sorrows

Man of sorrows what a name
for the Son of God, who came
ruined sinners to reclaim:
Hallelujah, what a Savior!
P. P. Bliss

The Lord is near the broken hearted. Oh what a comfort these words are when pain runs deep and sorrow fills our souls. The weight of the pain in the world is heavy these days and many of us carry much deeper more personal sorrows as well. When tragedy hits, we cannot rewind the tape, we cannot "fix" what went wrong, and we cannot claim to erase sorrows for friends and family.

Jesus can heal a broken heart and He can truly be an empathetic friend, a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on. He Himself experienced the depth of sorrow caused by the hands of evil men, the pain of betrayal, physical agony we can't imagine, the loss of friends, the slander of His name. He knows our pain. He can walk beside us in these sorrowful days and He will never leave us.

Worship Jesus, the man of sorrows

Lord, when I am feeling beaten down, depressed, or suffering, I am reminded that You have also walked this road of sorrow before me. You also were rejected by people so You understand how I feel when I face these ostracizing comments. You also were looked down upon so when I feel patronized or diminished by others, You can relate to me. You also suffered greatly, being wounded to the point of being called a man of sorrows. Your humanity in suffering draws me close to You as One who shares in the struggles I also face.

Isaiah 53:3-5

He was despised and rejected by mankind,
    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

 Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
    stricken by him, and afflicted. 
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.

Appropriate the truth of scripture as you grow in your walk of faith

When I come to You in prayer Lord, may I be reminded that You are close to those who are brokenhearted, and that Your desire is to be my comforter. May I not turn elsewhere to find my comfort, but only to You. Remind me how You never waste any pain or sorrow in this life, but You will use it to give me the understanding to comfort others in their trials. Give me a hunger for You and a reminder to put my hope in You when I am fighting depression.  Remind my soul of how You have filled me with joy in the past so that I might be able to endure the trials I am facing today.

Psalm 34:18 

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

Psalm 42:1-5

As the deer pants for streams of water,
    so my soul pants for you, my God.
 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
    When can I go and meet with God?
 My tears have been my food
    day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
    “Where is your God?”
 These things I remember
    as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
    under the protection of the Mighty One
with shouts of joy and praise
    among the festive throng.

 Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Savior and my God.

Light - Walk in the light by openly confessing your sins and need for God

I am sheep who has gone astray Lord, and I know You were the One who made an offering for my sin.  Forgive me for wandering away and forgetting what a great sacrifice You made for me to be cleansed of my sin.  You bore my punishment.  

Isiaah 53:6-10

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.

 He was oppressed and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
 By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
    for the transgression of my people he was punished.
 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
    and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
    nor was any deceit in his mouth.

 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
    and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
    and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.

Know Him more and more as you spend time with Him daily

I look forward with great hope towards the day when You Oh Lord will wipe away every tear and abolish suffering forevermore!

Revelation 21:4

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Prayers for others today:

S - Missions

M - Family

T - Church and Friends

W - Work

Th - Community

F - World affairs

Sat - Self

Blessings on your day,

Heather

P.S. If you just jumped into this blog post, you can read the first post explaining how to walk with God through your prayer life and the first day of praying through scripture here.