A Bruised Reed: Bent but not Broken

“If things do not change, I’m going to snap.” Ever said those words? “God, I can’t take one more thing going wrong…” I’ll be honest, I have prayed prayers like this. Most of us know all too well the pressures life can bring, and sometimes God seems distant in those seasons. If you’re someone who feels that God is a thousand miles away, He wants you know about His promise in Isaiah 42.

It’s a promise of Christ’s power and an assurance of God’s care and concern in your life. Isaiah 42:3 says, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.”

Bruises Without
What does Isaiah mean by a “bruised reed he will not break”? This is speaking of when a person truly sees their need for God. It is speaking of a miserable person…miserable because they are realizing that they cannot do life a part from God. Have you come to that place in life? A place where your own strength was not enough? Your cleverness or energy, charisma or charm could not fix what was wrong? Perhaps you are faced with an impossible situation right now. Have you stopped to ask God why He is allowing you to face all that you are at the moment?

It could be God reaching out to you. Possibly God is trying to show you that you are not meant to do life alone. You need Him. You need His grace. You need His forgiveness. You need His love. You have gone this far through life on your own, but God is bringing you to a place where you cannot continue without Him. Take heart because a bruised reed, He will not break!
Guess what? That’s a great place to be. When you hit rock bottom is when you finally begin to look up! A bruised reed speaks of someone who is weak. I smile when I hear someone say, “Christianity is for weak people.” I cannot disagree with that statement. I confess that I am weak. I admit that I’m not strong within myself. I am that “bruised reed” and I need the Savior that Isaiah 42 describes. Salvation is not for arrogant, and prideful people. It is for those who will confess their need of a Savior! Do you sense your need for God’s help and for His strength?

Doubts Within
The end of verse 3 says, “…A faintly burning wick he will not quench.” I love this verse. Do you know what this is saying? This is a promise to those who are struggling and their faith is as a faintly burning wick.

You may be in a season of life that your faith is low and it is a struggle to pray. You may feel like God is angry or upset with you because you are having a difficult time trusting Him. I want to encourage you that a faintly burning wick, God will not extinguish! God is not angry with you. He is reaching out to you. Perhaps He is speaking to you through this devotional? Maybe He is speaking through a co-worker or through a friend.

We sometimes have a hard time hearing God speak because we are not listening. I remember a story Max Lucado told in one of his first books I read. A man once told God that if He would speak to him and show him His power, he would submit his life to the Lord and follow Him. “Catch fire to a bush like You did for Moses and I will believe,” the man boldly said to God. “Tear down a wall like You did at Jericho, and I will follow.” Finally he said, “Calm a raging sea like He did on Galilee and I will surrender my life to you.”

So the man sat by a bush, close to a wall near the sea and dared God to speak. God heard the man, and God responded. He did not send fire to a bush, but he sent fire to a heart that was seeking God. He did not tear down the wall by the sea, but he broke down the wall of sin in a man who repented of his sins, and God did not calm the sea, but he brought peace and calm to a person’s fearful heart.

After a day or so, the man looked up to God and said, “Have you lost your power?” God looked down to the man and said, “Have you lost your hearing?” Not only do we get impatient with God, we often miss the entire point of what He is doing because we do not understand the goal He has in mind. I’m afraid I have done this in my life. I have wanted the Lord to work in a certain way and God chose not to. Do you know why? Because He had something else in mind. Something that was to His glory and ultimately to my good.

So if you are someone who has lost faith, maybe you should ask what your faith is centered on. Is your faith on God doing what you want, or is your faith on God Himself? Is your faith on the outcome of your prayers or is your faith on the object of your prayers…God?