You have done the very best thing. To bring your need to the foot of the cross is to bring it to the one place where every real burden finds a real answer. When you kneel there, you are not pleading before a distant throne that must be coaxed into pity. You are speaking straight into the heart of the God who gave His own Son for you. And if He spared not His own Son, will He not also with Him freely give you all things? The rent-money that presses upon you seems so heavy now, but it is not too small a thing for His notice. Our Lord Jesus, when He walked among us, never spent His power on imaginary ills. He did not heal pretended sicknesses or comfort sentimental troubles. The blind men by the roadside were truly blind. The hungry crowd in the wilderness was truly faint for want of bread. Real grace met real need. And your need tonight is just that, real and urgent. There is a sum to be paid and you cannot pay it, and the heart is anxious. This is exactly the kind of trouble He bids you bring. Pour it all out before Him, plainly, as a child speaks to a father.
And remember, the veil is rent from top to bottom. The way into the holiest stands wide open for you through the blood of Jesus. You are not crying up to a closed heaven. You are bidden to come with boldness to the throne of grace, that you may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Bring your rent-book in your hand, if I may put it so, and lay it down upon the mercy seat. Because of that sprinkled blood, no honest cry of yours can be refused. He is a Friend who sticks closer than a brother, and He is not ashamed to be called the Friend of the poor and needy. The poor among men have always had a special place in His tenderness. He redeems their soul from deceit and violence, and precious in His sight is their blood. He will not let you be crushed by want.
I know that when you look at the empty purse, faith staggers. But the fire that warms the cottage is burning inside, though the snow lies thick upon the roof. The life of faith is there, even when outward circumstances look cold and bare. The Lord has not left you. He who keeps your soul alive, and none can keep alive his own soul, will He not supply the body’s need? You are of more value than many sparrows. He who clothes the lilies and feeds the ravens is your Father. Take His promise, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee”, and let it be the hearth at which you warm yourself tonight. Wait for Him. Expect Him. The very waiting is good for the soul, for it teaches us to live on every word that comes from the mouth of God. And when the answer appears, and it will, you will see His hand so plainly that your mouth will be filled with praise.
Lord Jesus, look now upon this dear heart that calls to You in a day of trouble. You know the full sum of the need, and You know the weight of fear. Stretch out Your hand and supply what is lacking, in a way that leaves no doubt whose mercy did it. Quiet the anxious thoughts with Your peace, and turn this trial into a sweet monument of Your faithfulness. For You are our Provider, our Shepherd, and our All. Amen.