Sitting quietly in my pew listening to the solo, my eyes traced the serif font of the song’s title on the screen. I couldn’t even tell you what it was now. All I remember was being deep in thought.
I was sad. It was a deep sadness that began last night. I had hoped waking up this morning would have eased it since it really didn’t have a source I could identify, but here I sat, unable to come out of it.
Singing about how great God is hadn’t transferred from my head to my heart, no matter how hard I tried. Finally, as I traced the last letter on the screen, I gave up. Without really thinking, I prayed, “Jesus, please meet me down here. I can’t seem to find my way up to you.”
At that moment, my heart’s eyes opened to something so simple that God wanted me to understand. So many people are lost in their brokenness and their pain, and they can’t find their way up. Yet, sometimes I think we Christians expect them to “come up” on their own.
If they’d just come to church. If they’d just start praying. If they’d just read their Bibles. If they’d just get involved in a small group.
These are good and necessary things. And we know that the broken would find Jesus in each of those places. That’s why we encourage them.
But Jesus didn’t set that example, did he? He descended and met the broken where they were. He knew they didn’t have the strength or resources or abilities or vision to move themselves up on their own. So he went to them and brought them up with him.
I’m so glad Jesus didn’t expect me to pull myself out of my sadness by my own strength today. I’m so glad I could come to him as I was and know that he would meet me there.
Shouldn’t I do the same to others?
Instead of seeing someone in need and handing them the tools to find Jesus, Jesus’ example tells me to go to them and love them at their point of brokenness. There, I believe, they’ll see Jesus.
They’ll see the Jesus who gave up his high position and descended to meet each one of us at our point of need.
They’ll see the Jesus who didn’t offer a lifeline but became the lifeline.
The way I minister to others has got to change. The way I love has got to change. And it starts by emulating the one who meets me at my point of brokenness and makes me whole.
Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death–even to death on a cross.” Philippians 2:5-9 HCSB
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