Isaiah 42:3

A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.

We have a lot of plants in our house, but one we periodically forget about. We have nothing against the plant. We just forget about it from time to time. Thankfully or not, it’s a pretty hardy plant so it survives our neglect. However, it does have a little wear and tear from time to time. It will have a couple leaves that turn brown or maybe even get a little damaged. That means it’s time to prune. I don’t bother to nurse leaves back to health. I just snip them off and throw them away.

Thankfully, Jesus doesn’t do that to us in our faith life.

Let’s face it. We all have times throughout our life when we feel like a damaged, brown leaf. We feel like the “bruised reed” that Isaiah describes. We can get worn down from guilt we might carry or difficulties we face. Living in and among the evils of this world leaves us damaged. Sometimes we just hurt for whatever reason. And because of all that and more, (be honest) we don’t always feel very alive for Christ or close to him. Damaged. Bruised. Living in this broken world can have that effect. Don’t think for a minute Jesus doesn’t know where you’re at in life and how you feel. Isaiah tells you what Jesus does to damaged, broken faith.

Jesus doesn’t go through and prune you away nor does he cut you off. He gave too much to rescue you and loves you too much to just cut you off. Jesus knows it’s hard and sometimes people aren’t as “on fire” for him as he wants. So he goes to work encouraging, strengthening, and tending you to make sure you stay close to him. Praise the Lord, your salvation and standing with God isn’t based on how close you are to him, but on what Christ has done for you. Jesus redeemed you for eternity and so he’s with you for the long haul, all the way into eternity.

Don’t lose heart when you find yourself spiritually bruised. Jesus will do the tending to strengthen you back to health.

Pastor Jeremy Belter