He Heard My Cry For Mercy

Some find God in a foxhole in the midst of war. My pastor received Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and God in a bunker in Vietnam as death whizzed by during a full-blown rocket assault.

I wish my salvation were as dramatic. But my decisive encounter with the Lord---He absolutely crushed me---happened in the midst of inexplicable despair so deep one night I just knew I would not have been found alive in the morning.

I was not seeing bombs and bullets coming to an inch of my life. But you can make the point that the barrage of darts and arrows hell was sending my way was every bit as real. And lethal.

That night, I came to conclude that there was everything to lose in not believing. And everything to gain in believing. I told God, "If You are real, I ask for Your forgiveness. I surrender my life to You."

For the first time in years, I slept like a baby. A huge weight, it seemed, was lifted off my shoulders. And what took its place was this peace that is in every way beyond my understanding as my previous despair. A peace that has stayed with me to this day.

God heard my cry for mercy. And He delivered me.

Scripture:

1 I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.

2 Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.

...

6 The LORD protects the simplehearted;
when I was in great need, he saved me.

7 Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the LORD has been good to you.

8 For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling,

9 that I may walk before the LORD
in the land of the living.

...

12 How can I repay the LORD
for all his goodness to me?

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the LORD.

14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people.

...

16 O LORD, truly I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your maidservant;
you have freed me from my chains.

(Psalm 116:1-2, 6-9, 12-14, 16)

Observation:
He who cries for mercy is broken. A broken spirit are the sacrifices of God; He does not despise a broken and repentant heart. (Psalm 51:17) God is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. (Psalm 34:18) God saves the lost in their brokenness. He wants them to walk before Him in eternity. He keeps them from death, tears, and error. We that believe could never repay the debt of love we owe God. But because He has given our soul rest and He has been so good to us, we will lift up the cup of salvation, call on His name, and fulfill our vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people. He has freed us from our chains; we are His servants.

Application:
God calls to a fresh start. He is cutting off the chains that are keeping me from running hard after Him. God is calling to evangelism, worship, and pastoral servanthood. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.

Prayer:
Holy Spirit, please fill me. Empower me, enable me. Let me fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people. I surrender all to You, my God. I submit my heart, my soul, my spirit, my life to You. Take full control of me. Glorify my Savior, Jesus Christ, through Your work in me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.

July 2, 2007 entry to the personal handwritten journal I use in my quiet time with God.