In today’s society everyone is going to need someone they can really trust and lean on from time to time. It may be physical needs, emotional needs, financial needs, spiritual needs, or it can be anything that requires someone just to talk to. It doesn’t matter from what part of society you are from everyone needs someone occasionally.
This is not something that we should be ashamed of and most of the time it helps to have someone else involved in our needs. Whether you are receiving help or giving help can be rewarding through a feeling of relief or an encouragement to others. My wife and I through our many years of marriage have been fortunate to be on both ends of this spectrum.
It doesn’t matter which of these we are going through the greatest feeling of relief or joy is to know that someone is always there for us. I have always heard and know for a fact that nothing can ever take you lower than your knees. The greatest excitement we can give is reaching high in the air, looking up, and saying “Thank You Jesus.” Of course I will get criticized for writing these statements however ask any Christian and they will give you the same answer. Always remember these words: “No Jesus, No peace; Know Jesus, Know Peace.”
There is an old hymn, even though it is not sung much in our churches today, called “What a Friend we have in Jesus.” This hymn was written in 1855 by Joseph Scriven for his mother who lived in Ireland. Scriven was born in Ireland but later moved to Canada. He himself went through troubled times with the loss of one fiancé in Ireland the day before their wedding and then the loss of another fiancé in Canada a few days before they were to be married.
Scriven used the tragedies and hardships in life to empathize with the elderly and poor. He used his time to saw wood for the stoves of those who were handicapped or elderly. During his last years of life Scriven was in poor health, faced financial struggles, and depression. No one knows if his death was natural or suicide.
Read the verses of this song and hear what they say to us.
“What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry, everything to God in prayer!
Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful, who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy-laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer,
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee, thou will find a solace there.
What joy it is for those of us that know Jesus as our personal Savior and know that He is in control of all situations. Every day as we walk this earth we are going to have or we are going to encounter someone needing help or encouragement. Even though we may or may not be able to provide help to these however, we do know someone that can and His name is Jesus. His Words of encouragement are all through the pages of the Bible.
There is no greater comfort or joy knowing that we have a friend who will always be with us no matter what and His name is Jesus.
GARY ANDREWS' devotional appears each week on the Church Pages of your Clarksdale Press Register. You can contact him at GARY@gadevotionals.com
