A Cry of Love

/ kwameowusubaafi

Today’s Reading:

Tuesday, 12 April: John 13–John 14; Luke 22.

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1).

The cry of our Savior on the cross! (Matthew 27:46). It was a cry of agony and despair—the cry of One who felt deserted by His Father.

He did not feel this way when His people rejected Him (Jn. 1:11). Jesus did not feel so lonely when His disciples fled from Him in Gethsemane. (Matt. 26:56), or when Peter denied three times that He knew Him (Luke 22:54-61). Those were human beings He knows so well and would not entrust Himself to (Jn. 2:24). But from His Eternal Father? That was too much to bear.

Never in eternity had there been a space between the Father and the Son. But when Jesus bore our sins on the cross, the Father turned His face from Him, and He felt the loneliness.

Don’t we feel that way sometimes—the times when everybody deserts us, and we feel lonely and crushed under the weight of our circumstances? The worse of it is when those we love so much turn away from us when we go through times of financial crisis, health challenges, marital struggles, job loss, etc. We lose our peace and cry out in desperation, needing a firm and comforting hand to hold us up—a sense of calm that can restore peace.

Jesus knows that cry. He feels our pain and empathizes with us in our agony. That is why He is our Great High Priest (Heb. 4:15). So, approach His throne of grace today and lay your request before Him with a thankful heart (Phil. 4:6). His mercy and grace will uphold you and give you the peace you need in Christ Jesus (7). Amen!

Prayer Focus:

  1. Cry out to the Lord for help and experience His grace and warmth in your crisis.
  2. Pray for the world in crisis—wars, immorality, identity crises, distressed economies, natural disasters, refugees, etc.
  3. Pray for those who feel lonely and deserted, especially Ukrainians.
  4. Pray for the displaced who need support to survive.
  5. Pray for the church in persecution and the crisis of faith, among some.
  6. Pray that the Gospel will advance despite these problems.

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