| The Joy of Service |
Chapter 16 |
Page 4 |
When two pray together, their chief burden usually is intercession. Perhaps we do not fully realize the value of intercessory prayer. Love desires always to be helpful to others; yet how little can we do one for another! We may be willing enough; but, to begin with, we do not know what our friend really needs, or how we can most truly help him. Perhaps the service we would render, even at much cost to ourselves, would do him harm rather than good. We would lift away his burden, and carry it for him. We would do the hard task ourselves to spare him. We would lessen the stress of the temptation for him, that the struggle may be easier. We would take out of his life the unpleasant things, that he may have ease and comfort.
That is the way human love usually seeks to help. We think that is what love demands of us. But it is almost certain that we thus do harm to our friend instead of good. It is better that we keep our hands off his life, not trying to make providences for him. It is safer to commit all such cases to God, that He may do what is best. He does not help in this way. He does not take away the burden, because there is a blessing in it which we would miss if the burden were removed. We may interfere with God’s wise discipline of our friend’s life if we seek always to make life easier for him.
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