There is no other hope, nor need there be. To have Jesus Christ as your sole confidence is to stand upon the Rock of Ages, and though the floods of pain and crisis beat against you, that foundation shall never move. Your very cry, “I have no hope but Jesus Christ,” is the language of one whom the Spirit is drawing to the mercy seat. That mercy seat is a well of refreshment indeed, and the Lord delights to meet sinners there. He is not far from you; He dwells between the cherubim, waiting to be gracious. When you are drawn there, all fear must vanish.
You speak of pain and plead for mercy, wisdom, and strength, that the Heavenly Father would rule your thoughts, words, and decisions. This is a right prayer, for deliverance from sin and trial is solely by the power of God. It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. When there remains no strength in you at all, when you are without might, then it is that He giveth power to the faint. Fling yourself, therefore, upon divine strength. Cry not merely for strength, but cry for life; for while you are yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. That is your ransom. Already the clock of mercy has struck; the eternal purpose has decreed deliverance for all who look to the Lamb. He hath found a ransom, and the voice of mercy cries, “Deliver him from going down to the pit!”
Mark well, this pain of yours, though it seems a lion, may be sent in tender mercy. God often begins with stern discipline, bringing the soul low, making its bones to ache, so that He may teach lessons which could never be learned in the wantonness of ease. Even physical anguish can wrap up within itself great mercy; it drives us from the broken cisterns to the fountain. And now, in the midst of your crisis, the Lord will be inquired of. Wait upon Him. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. It is not your own straining that will win the day, but the silent, patient, expectant looking to Him. That strength, when it comes, will be fitly infused and wisely balanced, not your own fragile power, but the omnipotence of God made perfect in your weakness.
Yet remember what a sound hope in God’s mercy is. It is never a hope that clings to mercy while loving sin. The mercy that saves is a mercy that makes new. If your hope is truly fixed on Christ alone, it will make you a new creation, giving new loves and new hatreds. The first evidence that mercy is yours is that it has divorced you from every other confidence, your own strength, your own righteousness, your own pain-doings, and made you rest wholly upon the free grace of God. You say you have no hope but Jesus. That is well. But let it be so indeed. Let your heart be content to be washed in His blood, clothed in His merits, and ruled by His Spirit. Cry to Him to govern your thoughts, words, and actions; He will do it, for He is the author and finisher of your faith.
The Gospel asks nothing of you but what it gives you. It demands no payment; mercy is gratis. It requires no strength; it bestows it. It seeks no wisdom; it is the wisdom of God. Only lie low at the foot of the cross, where we see His wounds still fresh, and pledge yourself wholly to Him without reserve. He will deliver you from the archers of doubt and the host of despair. He will bring you forth with health and strength; not one feeble person shall be found among His people.
Therefore, let your crying be turned into waiting. Pray on, for the mercy seat is near. The Lord readeth the heart; He knoweth the groanings that cannot be uttered. He will yet say unto your soul, “Deliver him!” and you shall march out of this crisis with songs of deliverance. Only keep your eye upon the brazen serpent. Look and live. Amen.
Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. 
