Rarely do I have problems sleeping, but last night was one of those nights when, as a Star Wars character might say, there was a “disturbance in the force.” Monday and Tuesday were not days for good news.
My remaining great aunt, a spunky lady, finally gave in to death. Our daughter’s closest friend lost an employee and long-time friend to suicide. Another friend struggles because her mother is dying. Another’s older brother died suddenly, without any warning. Another friend struggles with a severe injury—a horse fell on her leg and crushed it in several places. Several people in my writing group have serious health problems in their families. On a larger scale, the war between Israel and Lebanon intensifies, and because of Bible prophecies I wonder what this means for the rest of the world.
Sometimes I don’t know what to do. Going through this list, plus other burdens, makes me thankful that, even though I’m not on the ‘front lines’ for most of these things, I can at least pray. And the oddest thing happened this morning; I woke up with a song in my heart.
For today: the Apostle Paul wrote, “We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything” (2 Corinthians 6:3-10, NKJV).
My troubles are nothing compared to Paul’s, yet I notice how he had that same dichotomy between trials and blessing, sorrow and rejoicing. He was beaten up, couldn’t sleep, working hard, and at the same time loving others, at peace, and enjoying the power of God.
In chapter 12 of 1 Corinthians, Paul wrote how Christians are strong in weakness. In our humanness, the stresses of life seem impossible. We cannot fix them or make them go away. But in our weakness, and without removing the sense of that weakness, God gives us strength. It might be joy, an inscrutable elation that makes others think we have slipped a cog. It might be peace, again a deep calm that cannot be explained. It might be incredible ability, or wisdom, or loving actions (where hate would normally prevail), or the deep assurance that everything is going to be okay, even when there are no signs that it will.
Faith is not ‘the power of positive thinking’ nor merely clinging to God’s promises. Faith is a “both/and” experience, where Christians have the negatives in one hand and the promises of God in the other, then live with and in that tension.
My life is tame compared to Paul’s, but today is one of those days.
No comments:
Post a Comment