C’mon, God!
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2 Corinthians 4:6-11 6. For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 7. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. 8. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9. persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10. always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11. For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
I think these verses are referring to the old adage, “God never gives us more than we can bear.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve doubted his wisdom in that regard more than once! I think sometimes his confidence in me is misplaced and mistaken! I do believe God is both wise beyond my comprehending and merciful beyond measure, but I admit I pause every so often, raise my eyes to the heavens and protest “C’mon God. Enough, already!”
I readily admit this because a friend of my agreed with my response a few days ago. She and I have had some similar challenges in our lives recently and so have shared some of the same battles of spiritual warfare. The very fact that she and I have someone else with whom we can share our sense of being overwhelmed and feeling ill-equipped for our current circumstances is reason to be hopeful and even comforted. We are part of a faith community together. We have a built-in support system because we belong to the same church.
So I wonder how does one deal with disappointment, discouragement, even anger and grief if they have no one with whom they can express their feelings. I recently was overcome with regret and disappointment regarding a particular situation. It overtook every aspect of my life. My best friend shared with me that she was concerned about the source of my uncharacteristic responses to situations and events. What was the root? What was causing me to view the world so harshly? Why was I so unsettled? Why did I feel so put upon and disgruntled?
The truth was, I felt as if God had let me down. I felt I had done my part to bring about a positive conclusion, but ultimately I doubted if I had done enough; doubted whether my efforts had been enough. Notice a pattern here? My efforts, my doing, my, my, me, me. It’s so easy to get to that point when we have a bad day, piled on top of an issue or situation we’re struggling with. Then something else comes along that throws a monkey-wrench in the whole works. It doesn’t matter the situation. We’ve all experienced those situations where we have invested time and energy, in some cases sweat and tears, only to have someone say, “Oh, I can make that right.”
What? Where was this person all along? Why wasn’t this option presented earlier? Why? Why? “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us.” Get over it! God’s plans are not always evident! Look at the life of Job? He lost everything—absolutely everything. God restored his life, gave him a new family, wealth and land and abundance that far exceeded his original life. No, he never stopped remembering his past life. Job would always miss the family he lost. That didn’t stop him from celebrating his current blessings.
I think that is the lesson. We can look back with regret, sadness, even anger. But when we do that we miss the blessings of today. Worse, we lose hope for the future. God assures us that He has a plan for us. He will take every pain, disappointment, regret, sin and event and make them into something good, powerful, reason for rejoicing. We can rejoice not because we forget, but because we remember and then realize God was in it all! And He is in our future.
"We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9. persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10. always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”
My prayer today is that you turn over all your regrets and disappointments to the God who restores us. And that you look to the future – where Christ won for you a place in heaven.
Mary
Labels: Christ, despair, future, God, grief, heaven, Jesus, regret
Despair is the Opposite of Hope
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Isaiah 19:20 KJV
And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the LORD because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them.
Psalm 40:17
As for me, I am poor and needy; but the Lord takes thought for me. Thou art my help and my deliverer; do not tarry, O my God!
I’ve been a bit of a funk the past few weeks—not depressed, really, just feeling not quite at rest in my soul. I know some of the reason is that my daughter was married recently and life has settled back into somewhat of a routine—no more spreadsheets and to do lists for the wedding! More time to ponder the state of things now! Also my son is growing up and at nineteen will be leaving for some special training and schooling in a few months. That means he’ll be independent and capable of existing without me!
I identified the other day the reason for my funk: I’m disappointed. Disappointed in the world, in the public school system that didn’t give my son the support and guidance he should have had, disappointed with the field of presidential candidates, disappointed with the local government, disappointed with the seeming moral decline of society, and well . . . I’m just plain disappointed in everything! Well, I’m not disappointed in myself or my family. Hmmm. Looks like I’m disappointed in all those things out of my control.
I shared with some friends last night that I am keeping watch over myself that my disappointment doesn’t turn into despair. Of course, I don’t think that will really happen. Despair is an absence of hope and I am ever hopeful because of Christ. I know that may sound a bit trite but it’s true. In times like these, I do call out to God continually. I ask that He reveal to me what is next for my life. I pray about what I am to do now. I’ve spent the last 22 years being a mother before all else; doing the business of mothering before anything else.
As for the world . . . I guess I’ve been too busy lately to fully grasp the disappointing state of affairs! When I checked dictionary.com for disappointment I found the words sadness and disillusionment. I think those are better descriptors of what I’m feeling. I know – everything is going relatively well in my life! I’m going to try to figure out what I can do to feel more empowered and to make a difference regarding all the disappointing situations in the world.
As for me, I am poor and needy; but the Lord takes thought for me. Thou art my help and my deliverer; do not tarry, O my God! I know I must wait for God to reveal what’s next. I just don’t like to wait! Enough whining for today! I am truly ever hopeful! I am impatient for the day Christ comes again in glory. Until then, I’m just going to have to do whatever I can to hasten that day!
My prayer today is that you cry unto the Lord—the source of all hope, the Great One, the Deliverer. And that you pray about what you can do to bring about a world worthy of the second coming.
Mary
Labels: deliverer, despair, disappointment, help, hope
