Beware of pity parties

 

Yesterday I shared with a group of women that we must begin our prayers with praise lest we focus on our problems and forget that God is sufficient. We also pray for others because a focus on ourselves can draw us into throwing a pity party. Today I’m reminded that I need to practice what I preach. Pity parties are easy when tired, achy, and the to-do list is longer than humanly possible.

Today’s devotional begins with this line: Victory over present circumstances comes when you focus on your eternal inheritance and praise God for it. My first thought was “does it?” One of my relatives has severe MS and when her hubby, a forward thinker, talks about future hope, she gets angry — because she wants to be well again right now. For her, a future hope is not helpful.

Some days I understand that. Enduring present discomfort doesn’t seem a matter of looking for light at the end of a long dark tunnel. However, the Bible is filled with thoughts like this:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, (1 Peter 1:3–4)

God promises me a rich inheritance with a variety of dimensions. Jesus said, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34) indicating that His kingdom is a major part of it. It is also an eternal kingdom and will include all that God turns “from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” (Acts 26:17–18) I can look forward to an eternity blessed by fellowship with millions of people who have been transformed into the image of Christ. That will be a delight.

The Bible does say, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him” then adds, “these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). This tells me that if I pay attention, God will show me what I must look forward to. He knows the lure of present circumstances; they are sometimes easy to praise Him for, and sometimes easy to throw pity parties. He tells me:

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. (Colossians 3:2)

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16–18)

I’m also reminded that Peter once tried to start a pity party. Jesus said He would be arrested and killed and Peter protested saying “Far be it from you, Lord? This shall never happen to you.” But Jesus turned and said to Him, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16:21-23)

The things of man includes a powerful desire for personal control and comfort, both of which can rob me of the abundant life Jesus promised for here and now. Wallowing in self-pity will not take away that promised inheritance but it will quench the joy and peace of the Holy Spirit and ruin my ability to love and edify others.

PRAY: Jesus, the only party that makes You the star attraction is a praise party, one filled with thanksgiving for all You have done and all You have promised. When I turn my thoughts to ‘poor me’ I am forgetting that You have blessed me beyond all expectations. Please grant me the grace to say no to all self-pity and yes to being grateful and filled with thankfulness for all You have done and are doing for me.

PONDER: Read 1 Peter 1:3-7 again, praising and thanking Jesus for His party favors!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:3–7)

 

Is my ‘good life’ the will of God?

Joshua 23; Jeremiah 12; Matthew 26; Acts 3

Not sure where it came from but this quote keeps gnawing at me: “Beware that you don’t make an idol of the good life.”

This week my hubby was talking to another Christian who was bemoaning the prophetic ideas of end times. He was deeply upset over thoughts of tribulation and betrayals, persecution and the end of the world as we know it. My hubby kept reminding him that God also predicts victory — and in the end, Jesus wins. However, this good news was not received as a comfort. The man kept saying, “Yes . . .  but . . . .” Had he made an idol of the good life?

I know the danger. We are comfortable, healthy even though we have health issues, financially stable, and at peace. Thoughts of discomfort, sickness, poverty and stress hardly enter our heads. Yet I realize the danger of being so reliant on the gifts that I neglect the Giver.

I was tested yesterday. One thing that really gets me riled is computer problems. I use technology for many things and when it acts up without any explanation, tension builds . . . usually. Yesterday my email program would not open. This happened after an ‘update’ so I assumed something was changed by that update and spent several hours trying to figure out what it was. I’d opened it several times in ‘safe’ mode, but that didn’t work. Finally I did that again, rebooted the PC and the offending program started as normal with no loss of anything but time. Not my temper.

For once, I was calm during all of this. I credit the Holy Spirit and learned some lessons. One, He is adequate to give what is needed even for stuff that is normally frustrating. Two, I can survive without everything working perfectly — my peace does not depend on technology nor anything else but Jesus. Three, He can take over and show me His ability even when I don’t ask for it. Four, I did ask that the problem would be solved, but the real problem was my attitude. Sometimes spiritual lessons are learned in the classroom of life rather than from a sermon or Bible study.

Peter struggled with the same thing as the man my hubby talked to. He didn’t want to accept anything from Jesus that was going to be upsetting. In Matthew 16, Jesus told His disciples He would be killed and then rise again. Peter said, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” This got him a severe rebuke from Jesus: “Get the behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16:21-23)

The next time was closer to that fateful day. Jesus just had instituted the Lord’s Supper . . .

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. (Matthew 26:30–35)

This time Peter and the others were ignoring or forgetting their tendency to fail. As I read both incidents in terms of idolizing the good life, I’m aware of how the desire for comfort can block my understanding of how God uses calamity for His purposes. Peter did not want Jesus to die — how horrible. He did not understand the purpose of God, at least not then.

Peter also did not want to betray Him, a lesson perhaps learned from the first rebuke, but this time it was because his trust in himself had a big flaw. To remain true to Jesus requires the power of the Holy Spirit and Peter had not yet learned that this also requires a revelation from God. Otherwise, he didn’t get it even though Jesus plainly said it.

APPLY: The human heart is fickle. My heart is too. Jesus lives there yet how many times have I relied on me instead of Him! The good life is good, but the will of God rises above my ideas of good. Jesus had to die. On this side of the Cross I can see the incredible goodness of that but in Peter’s place, he was not able to — yet. Also, on this side of the end of things and the prophecies of horrors that will happen, I must always take to heart that even though it will not be good, Jesus will indeed win!