November 13, 2009

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” Psalm 34:18 The New Living Translation

The God of last place …

He is First and he is Last. He knows how to lead and he knows how to find those who are lost beyond hope. He’s not afraid of losing first place or running after the last place. You’ll find him close when your heart is broken .. although most of the time you aren’t looking for his help. When you’re crushed by  life .. by friends .. by circumstances .. by living in a constantly crushing world  … Jesus is right there to rescue .. to restore .. to renew and revive. When you’ve given up … He hasn’t! Jesus became your broken heart and all those things that rob you of life and hope. He was crushed  .. life crushed .. sin crushed .. love crushed for you … so that you could be made whole in Him. So .. when you see someone walking in brokenness and crushed in their lives .. you are Christ’s ambassador to gently tell them that this same Jesus knows their brokenness and is ready to help and heal. Jesus seeks the least and calls the those in the lead to do the same. It is what the heart of Jesus looks like in our everyday world. God could be anywhere he wants to be but he chooses to make his home around the broken and crushed. And there are so many everywhere. But this is about you … no one else. It is about your heart and your spirit and the Father’s longing for you to know His constant care and filling of your life. You’ll find Him at the lead  … and He’ll find you with the broken and crushed. And then you can find others who’ve given up or given out. It only takes a moment …

Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.” Hebrews 2:18 The New Living Translation

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Broken-Made-Whole Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)