May 27

Christ the Great Counsellor

John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus — Luke 7:19

He was in perplexity about certain matters. There were some things that were worrying him, that he could not make out himself, and he sent to Christ to ask Him about them. That is just what every one of us should do when there arise perplexities of any kind in our lives or affairs — we should carry them straight to Jesus. Even the children have their disappointments and trials. They have discouragements. Now they ought not to worry about these matters. Of course they cannot always understand them; how could they expect to understand everything in such a vast world as this? But is it not a great thing to know that Jesus understands it all? He knows what He is doing.

So the true way for us is just to do what John did — tell Jesus whenever anything appears to go wrong or when anything happens we cannot understand. That is the rule Paul gives for keeping clear of anxiety. “Be careful [or anxious] for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Then He promises that if we only do this we shall never have worry — “The peace of God shall keep your hearts and minds.”

The meaning of all this is that we should never carry a worry of any kind even for a moment, but whenever any matter begins to perplex us we should go instantly and tell Jesus all about it, and leave it in His hands, that He may manage it for us. The leaving it is the hardest part. We can easily take it to Him, but we are so apt to pick it up again and carry it back with us, and keep it, just as if we had not taken it to Him. We should learn to tell Jesus of our perplexities and sorrows, and then commit all to Him without further anxiety. This is faith, and is the way to find peace.