The Crisis Moment
Scripture: “And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg'” (Luke 16.3).
Major Point: Life’s crises force us to confront who we really are and what we truly need.
The narrative pauses here, giving us a window into the manager’s internal struggle. He’s been found out. His wasteful practices have caught up with him. Now he faces the terrifying question: what will I do? This isn’t just about losing a job—it’s about facing a future without security, without respect, without the identity that work provided.
We all know these moments. The phone call that changes everything. The diagnosis that reframes your entire future. The relationship that crumbles despite your best efforts. These “come to Jesus” moments strip away our pretenses and force brutal honesty about our situation.
Paul reminds Timothy that we should pray “for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life” (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Yet even in peaceful times, we face internal storms that reveal our fundamental need for something greater than ourselves. The manager’s crisis is really every person’s crisis: we cannot save ourselves, and we cannot maintain our own security forever.
These moments of crisis, painful as they are, can become moments of grace when they drive us to honest self-examination and dependence on God rather than our own schemes.
Reflection: Crisis moments reveal our desperate need for God’s intervention in our lives. What crisis in your life has helped you see your need for God more clearly? How did God meet you in that moment of desperation?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, when life’s storms overwhelm us, help us turn to You rather than our own understanding. Use even our crises to draw us closer to Your heart. In Your holy name, Amen.
Responses