Speaker 1: Life Audio. Thank you for listening to your Daily Prayer,
Speaker 1: a podcast dedicated to helping you find the words you
Speaker 1: need to connect with your Father in Heaven. No matter
Speaker 1: what is going on in your life today, you can
Speaker 1: trust that God wants to hear from you. Right after
Speaker 1: this short word from our sponsor, we will pray for
Speaker 1: today's prayer for those crushed in Spirit Together. A Prayer
Speaker 1: for Those Crushed in Spirit, written by Kenisia Saunders Liddie,
Speaker 1: read by Kerrie Eichberger. The Lord is near to the
Speaker 1: broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit,
Speaker 1: Psalm thirty four, verse eight. The play was going to
Speaker 1: be amazing, and little Mary knew she had to get
Speaker 1: the part of playing Mary, the mother of Jesus, simply
Speaker 1: because her name was Mary and she knew the whole
Speaker 1: story about the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Mary couldn't
Speaker 1: believe her ears when her Sunday school teacher said she
Speaker 1: would play Elizabeth, Mary's cousin, who had very few lines.
Speaker 1: She smiled like everyone else and clapped, but she was crushed.
Speaker 1: She cried in her mother's arms later that day, wondering
Speaker 1: if she could do justice to a part she didn't
Speaker 1: want my friend. How many times have we experienced what
Speaker 1: Mary went through? When betrayal hits our marriage, when we
Speaker 1: lose a job we love, when a friend chooses someone
Speaker 1: else over us, and so many more experience and says
Speaker 1: this is why I'm so glad I have Jesus, because
Speaker 1: he promises to rescue those who are crushed in spirit.
Speaker 1: I think of Mary, the mother of Jesus, as she
Speaker 1: knelt at the foot of the cross and watched Jesus
Speaker 1: be crucified. She knew he was God, but I'm sure
Speaker 1: she pictured the little baby she first held in her hand.
Speaker 1: Can you imagine the agony, the crushed spirit, and her
Speaker 1: broken heart. Even while Jesus was suffering on the cross,
Speaker 1: he saw her anguish and knew she was hurting, so
Speaker 1: he told John to take care of Mary as though
Speaker 1: she were his mother. And even for John, who was
Speaker 1: very close to Jesus because he was the youngest among
Speaker 1: the Apostles, we see Jesus thinking of him as well.
Speaker 1: He said to Mary, behold John, your son. Jesus was
Speaker 1: essentially saying, now that I'm gone, because you are crushed
Speaker 1: in spirit, I will save you by leaving you both together.
Speaker 1: If you are crushed in spirit, God is near to you.
Speaker 1: He is like the wind. We cannot see him, but
Speaker 1: we feel his presence. And even when the wind is
Speaker 1: calm and quiet, we still know it's there because we
Speaker 1: are breathing. God is near to us when things are good,
Speaker 1: but when things are bad, he never abandons his own.
Speaker 1: Jesus experienced abandonment in our place so that we don't
Speaker 1: have to endure it. That is why Scripture tells us
Speaker 1: that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Speaker 1: Not height or depth, angels or demons, and not even
Speaker 1: death has that power. The Word says, if you draw
Speaker 1: near to God, he will draw near to you. Our
Speaker 1: key verse suggests that a special type of closeness is
Speaker 1: reserved for those who are broken hearted and crushed in spirit.
Speaker 1: Because God draws near on his own, he realizes we
Speaker 1: need his strength and grace to make it through the
Speaker 1: trials we are facing. Because when you are crushed in spirit,
Speaker 1: you can't see the way out. That's why we should
Speaker 1: trust in the one who can save us and walk
Speaker 1: with us through the valley of the shadow of death,
Speaker 1: the one who walks through trials or through betrayal. Because
Speaker 1: weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in
Speaker 1: the morning. The night can seem long and unending, but
Speaker 1: God is with us every step of the way. We
Speaker 1: know that morning will come because it breakthrough is on
Speaker 1: the way. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for saving those
Speaker 1: who are crushed in spirit. I'll lift up and bring
Speaker 1: to your throne everyone who has been invisible to others,
Speaker 1: those chosen last, those who've experienced betrayal, the ones who
Speaker 1: are hurting and can't envision an end the hurt. Let
Speaker 1: them feel your presence, Lord, and You're unwavering, unfeeling and
Speaker 1: perfect love. I say, gro through this pain. Keep the
Speaker 1: source of comfort close to their weary heart. May you
Speaker 1: place their hope and trust in you because you will
Speaker 1: never leave or forsake them. You promised to be with
Speaker 1: them to the end of the age, and you are
Speaker 1: not like man that you should lie. Thank you for
Speaker 1: always keeping your promises. O Lord, you are an amazing
Speaker 1: God who never feels us and always comes through on time.
Speaker 1: Thank you God for offering a way out when I
Speaker 1: am Christian spirit, and thank you for drawing me when
Speaker 1: my heart is broken. I will place my trust in you, Lord,
Speaker 1: for you are my safety. And my God in Jesus Name. Amen.
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