Joy in Trials?

 
Last night I dreamt about eternity that included visits with people that I have known. Each of them had a quilt-like collection of memories that pertained to their relationship with me. Not one detail was forgotten and their thoughtful remarks showed great kindness. When I woke, it seemed to me that all negative memories were absent from that dream, and of course the Bible says that…  

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4)

This morning, several readings talk about trials. One focused on the love of God being eternal, not depending on my performance. He loves because He is love. Love is His very nature.

Another reading talked about God’s goodness in trials. It referred to the stones on “Pebble Beach”  on the California coast, telling how a long line of white surf comes up, roaring and hammering among  the stones on the shore. These stones “are caught in the arms of the pitiless waves, and tossed and rolled, and rubbed together, and ground against the sharp-grained cliffs. Day and night forever the ceaseless attrition goes on — never any rest.”

Tourists come from around the world to gather the round and beautiful stones, treasuring them as souvenirs. However, around the point of a nearby cliff that breaks off the force of the sea, there is a quiet cove sheltered from the storms. Lying in the sun is an abundance of pebbles that are never chosen and taken home. Having escaped the turmoil of the waves, they remain in quiet peace and are left without that trial — but they are rough and not at all beautiful.

This is timely. I’m being tried with challenges never before faced and these trials feel like the relentless pounding of a high surf. I’d like some peace and quiet, yet Jesus had something to say about my situation, and a warning about thinking the Christian life should be an easy one:

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. (Matthew 7:13–15)

Another reading makes the comment to be thankful that God gives me difficult things to do. It says that  salvation is a glad thing, but also a heroic, holy thing that is testing me and also refining me, like those pebbles on the beach. Trials are part of the process whereby Jesus is bringing many “sons unto glory” (Hebrews 2:10) and God will not shield me from the wild surf of life if that is what it takes to transform my life. This is God’s grace. He wants me to ‘ornament’ His glory, not remain in my ‘rough and angular’ ugly state.

Verse 15 is a warning: beware of those who preach what is called ‘the prosperity gospel’ that Jesus wants me to be healthy, wealthy, and comfortable, for this is not a description of the life of Christ nor what Christians experience.

Not that He was sick, but Jesus persisted under suffering, as these verses say: “…for the joy that was set before him (he) endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood” (Hebrews 12:1–4) Also, remembering that sin is various forms of wanting my own way.

PRAY: Jesus, Your love is more than that mushy elation when someone makes a person feel like the center of the universe. How vain I can be. Trials remind me of who I am, a creature who needs Your grace to even breathe, never mind face the wind and waves of life. Forgive my selfish complaining and enable me to also live for the joy that is set before me… Amen!

Expectations

 

 

Coming home from a vacation to a long list of catch-ups lowered my expectations for Christmas. Then small things lifted it: a foot of snow, online shopping, lunch with friends whose home could be in a magazine with an incredible array of Christmas décor in every room including several large trees and a nativity in the front yard, an afternoon in the mall filled with happy people, and Sunday’s worship service focused on the love of God in sending His Son and giving us the Holy Spirit so we can love each other like He loves us. We listen to carols and wrap gifts. Christmas letters arrive from friends. My EXPECTATIONS are rising and it now feels like Christmas.

Expectation is a word about people. God already knows what’s next and does not wait with hope that certain things will happen. Yet this Bible word fits this year’s word studies because it puts my focus on the Lord with an inner excitement. Expectation is like faith; God often surprises me. It is also like gifts under the tree; I might know what some gifts are, but most are a surprise. We also have expectations for a yummy meal together and a time of reflection and thinking about the importance of this celebration that relates to our trust in Him.

In the OT, Genesis 48:11 is one example of God’s surprises. Joseph’s father said to him after he was brought to Egypt thinking his son was dead, “I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.” Christmas is like that with its expectations.

On the other hand, the Bible warns against false expectations. We cannot second-guess God, but in many cases we can know what to expect from Him by understanding what He says. For instance, Proverbs 10:28 says, “The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.” In other words, walk with God and expect joy but those who refuse to walk with Him cannot expect that their hopes will be fulfilled.

The OT warns about false expectations coming from false prophets. Ezekiel points to those who “have seen false visions and lying divinations” and say they are from the Lord when “the Lord has not sent them.” They expect Him to do what they say when He has not spoken to them. Therefore He says:

“Because you have uttered falsehood and seen lying visions, therefore behold, I am against you, declares the Lord God. My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord God.”

Even today, many expectations are not based on “God said” but on the supposing that we tend to do. How many ‘theologians’ have date-set His return in defiance of what Jesus said in Matthew 24:44? “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

The NT shows that His first arrival was not what they expected either. They looked for a leader to free them from Roman rule, not a Savior who could free them from the dominion of sin. Since only God can do this, and since Jesus claimed to be God in human flesh, they crucified Him; He didn’t meet their expectations.

No matter. His death and resurrection changes lives, sometimes unexpectedly. Paul didn’t expect the sacrificial actions of certain Christians; they surprised Him.

2 Corinthians 8:1–5. “We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. “

Paul was thrown in jail for his faith, but he wrote to other Christians about his expectations — based on what He knew about the plan and faithfulness of God:

Philippians 1:19–21. “For I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. A pessimist always expects the worst. Knowing Jesus changes that, not to mere human optimism but a godly expectation based on knowing the promises of God and His track-record. He changes thoughts of doom into hope. Keeping my focus on Him instead of all my I-wants also makes a difference in my attitude toward Christmas and toward everything else. For this, I am joyfully grateful.