Out of the Depths I Cry to You (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 600)
1 Out of the depths I cry to you;
O Lord God, hear me calling.
Incline your ear to my distress
in spite of my rebelling.
Do not regard my sinful deeds.
Send me the grace my spirit needs;
without it I am nothing.
2 All things you send are full of grace;
you crown our lives with favor.
All our good works are done in vain
without our Lord and Savior.
We praise you for the gift of faith;
you save us from the grip of death;
our lives are in your keeping.
3 In you alone, O God, we hope,
and not in our own merit.
We rest our fears in your good word;
uphold our fainting spirit.
Your promised mercy is my fort,
my comfort, and my strong support;
I wait for it with patience.
4 My soul is waiting for you, Lord,
as one who longs for morning;
no watcher waits with greater hope
than I for your returning.
I hope as Israel in the Lord,
who sends redemption through the Word.
Praise God for grace and mercy!
Text: Martin Luther, trans Gracia Grindal; Music: attr Martin Luther; Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A730924
Devotion
I’ve been there. Martin Luther was also. Maybe you have too. I was in the depths of my innermost being, when there was nothing I could do but cry from the pit of my stomach in the loss of my child, and a second child. The only word I could speak was to plead for God to hear me calling out in pain, asking God to hear the distress of my soul, knowing all too well I didn’t deserve it. I had no reason to think I should be different from anyone and spared in the loss of a loved one.
“Send me the grace my spirit needs; without it I am nothing,” speaks of complete surrender of an unworthy sinner whose only hope is in the Lord. This is a hope you wait for, patiently, until you receive the comfort of knowing you will see them again. Only then are you able to rest your fears in God’s words of hope and promise. Only then do you have the strength to go on.
Prayer
Merciful God, comfort us in our waiting, as we long for the morning and your return. Hear our words of praise for the gift of faith and the hope we have in your promise of life eternal with you and our loved ones. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.