Bonhoeffer: Prayers in Prison

Here’s one of the prayers that Bonhoeffer wrote in 1943 while in prison. He composed it, along with several others, to spiritually encourage those imprisoned with him:

“O God,

Early in the morning do I cry unto thee.

Help me to pray,

And to think only of Thee.

I cannot pray alone.

In me there is darkness,

But with Thee there is light.

I am lonely, but Thou leavest me not.

I am feeble in heart, but with Thee there is peace.

In me there is bitterness, but with Thee there is patience.

Thy ways are past understanding, but

Thou knowest the way for me.”[1]

Praise God that He never abandons His own. He has given us His Spirit to dwell intimately within us, to comfort us, and to lead us into the way everlasting. Through Him, the Father provides us with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control. He brings the fruit of His saving and sustaining grace to bear in our lives, even in the midst of dark providence and pain. And, it is His Spirit that draws us near to Christ our Advocate and Savior who intercedes for us!! May we experience joy as a result of the One who groans with us, in our deepest pain and sorrow, and leads us to everlasting joy that transcends our circumstances. Thank you, God, for the example of our brother, Bonhoeffer, and the God-ward legacy that he left in a dark and wicked world.

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[1] Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2010), 448-449.

Everlasting Pardon

“For Thy Name’s sake, O Lord,

pardon my guilt, for it is great.”

(Psalm 25:11)

Sacrifice: The Few, The Humble, The Self-Denying

I deeply-appreciated and was challenged by this post from Ray Ortlund, Jr., so I thought that I would re-post it:

“Where are the young men and women of this generation who will hold their lives cheap and be faithful even unto death?  Where are those who will lose their lives for Christ’s sake — flinging them away for love of him?  Where are those who will live dangerously and be reckless in his service?  Where are his lovers — those who love him and the souls of men more than their own reputations or comfort or very life?

Where are the men who say ‘no’ to self, who take up Christ’s cross to bear it after him, who are willing to be nailed to it in college or office, home or mission field, who are willing, if need be, to bleed, to suffer and to die on it?

Where are the adventurers, the explorers, the buccaneers for God, who count one human soul of far greater value than the rise or fall of an empire?  Where are the men who are willing to pay the price of vision?

Where are the men of prayer?

Where are God’s men in this day of God’s power?”

Howard Guinness, Sacrifice (Chicago, 1947), pages 59-60.

HT: “In This Day of God’s Power”

Flee from God by Running to Him

The only safe place to flee from God’s wrath is to run to His mercy and take refuge in Christ by faith.

Herman Bavinck, The Doctrine of God:

“When you wish to do something evil, you retire from the public into your house where no enemy may see you; from those places of your house which are open and visible to the eyes of men you remove yourself into your room; even in your room you fear some witness from another quarter; you retire into your heart, there you meditate: he [your conscience] is more inward than your heart. Wherever, therefore, you shall have fled, there he is. From yourself, whither will you flee? Will you not follow yourself wherever you shall flee? But since there is One more inward than even yourself, there is no place where you may flee from God angry but to God reconciled. There is no place at all whither you may flee. Will you flee from him? Flee unto him.”[1]

God’s wrath for sinners is a terrifying thing, and is intended to drive us toward Christ as our Mediator and Substitute. He is our propitiation–the One who absorbs God’s wrath for us and mediates God’s mercy to us. Let us take refuge in Christ…

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[1] Herman Bavinck, The Doctrine of God, translated by William Hendriksen (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1977), 164.

Audio: Sports to the Glory of God

This past weekend, Bryan Hickerson, a former Major League Baseball pitcher who serves on the “Unlimited Potential, Inc.” ministry staff (a ministry to professional baseball players and military personnel) spoke to our congregation on the topic of “Sports to the Glory of God.” Bryan is a member of Christ’s Covenant Church and has been used of God to help us see the gift of athletics rightly as an instrument for exalting our Savior rather than a means of promoting ourselves or our fellow human beings. Here are the two talks that he gave:

“Sports to the Glory of God: Part 1″

“Sports to the Glory of God: Part 2″