Spurgeon: January PM
* 01/14/PM
"Beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me."
--Matthew 14:30
Sinking times are praying times with the Lord's servants.
Peter neglected prayer at starting upon his venturous journey,
but when he began to sink his danger made him a suppliant, and
his cry though late was not too late. In our hours of bodily
pain and mental anguish, we find ourselves as naturally driven
to prayer as the wreck is driven upon the shore by the waves.
The fox hies to its hole for protection; the bird flies to the
wood for shelter; and even so the tried believer hastens to the
mercy seat for safety. Heaven's great harbour of refuge is
All-prayer; thousands of weather-beaten vessels have found a
haven there, and the moment a storm comes on, it is wise for us
to make for it with all sail.
Short prayers are long enough . There were but three words
in the petition which Peter gasped out, but they were sufficient
for his purpose. Not length but strength is desirable. A sense
of need is a mighty teacher of brevity. If our prayers had less
of the tail feathers of pride and more wing they would be all
the better. Verbiage is to devotion as chaff to the wheat.
Precious things lie in small compass, and all that is real
prayer in many a long address might have been uttered in a
petition as short as that of Peter.
Our extremities are the Lord's opportunities . Immediately a
keen sense of danger forces an anxious cry from us the ear of
Jesus hears, and with Him ear and heart go together, and the
hand does not long linger. At the last moment we appeal to our
Master, but His swift hand makes up for our delays by instant
and effectual action. Are we nearly engulfed by the boisterous
waters of affliction? Let us then lift up our souls unto our
Saviour, and we may rest assured that He will not suffer us to
perish. When we can do nothing Jesus can do all things; let us
enlist His powerful aid upon our side, and all will be well.