Hold On Tight!

The other night I had a bad fall in the bathroom.  It was truly terrifying.  I'm ok, but bruised.  After finding myself in the floor and screaming for my husband's help, I discovered him there almost immediately.  He was there to rescue me, in my time of need, praise God!  He helped me to stand, but I held on to him for "dear life".  "Honey", I said, "I may pass out on you.  Hold on to me tight."


Now, don't miss this, because it is crucial!
I, for my part, was doing my best to hold on to him and to my wits as well.  If I had lost consciousness, there is no way I could have held on to him myself.  In the final analysis, he was the one holding on to me.

When I consider Hebrews 4:14-16, that incident comes to mind...

14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,^f Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

I always need my husband, but I don't know what I'd have done had he not been nearby the other night when I fell.  We always need the Lord, but there are some times when we REALLY need Him, you know what I mean?  Times of injury, times of fear, tempting times, times of deep grief that is unimaginable...

Life is unpredictable and can "turn on a dime", as the expression goes.

When we do encounter something we believe to be bigger than we are, we have the consolation and confidence that, no matter what it is, it is not bigger that He is.  We can reach out and with faith hold tightly to Him, because He will never let us go.  Whatever it is, He's "got this".

He stands ready, with mercy and grace, to walk with us through our heartbreak because He has been a human, lived as a human, while simultaneously and fully retaining His God-ness.  He knows us and knows what it is like ...

• to be tempted (Matthew 4:1-11)
• to be in grief  (John 11:35)
• to be in pain  (John 19:1)
• to be jeered at (Matthew 27:39-40)
• to be rejected and hated and even to submit himself to death (Matthew 27)

Because He lived through the worst this life can dish up,
He knows.

For He knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.  

Psalm 103:14

Precious Lord, what a comfort You are!  In smooth times, in hard times, You are always near me, and in me, with abundant mercy "at the ready", as soon as I call on Your name.  "Thank-you" does not even begin to cover it... In Jesus' name, amen.