Serving Rascals, Clumsy Disciples, and Physically and Mentally Ill Believers with the Unconditional Love of Jesus Christ
Serving Jesus by serving you.
“The marvelous richness of human experience would lose something of rewarding joy if there were no limitations to overcome. The hilltop hour would not be half so wonderful if there were no dark valleys to traverse.”–Helen Keller
“Towards himself a Christian should have a broken spirit, but towards God it should be one of rejoicing always in Him. He rejoices not for its own sake nor because of any joyful experience, work, blessing or circumstance, but exclusively because God is his center.”–Watchman Nee
Pain is the great nullifier of hope. When we hurt we seldom can get a handle on “mounting up with wings like eagles.” It no longer is in our spiritual vocabulary. We may “flap” our wings, but flight isn’t an option. Something is holding us down.
Eagles learn to soar by using the air currents. Utilizing an updraft they are able to ascend to great heights that they wouldn’t be able to achieve by just flapping. I know of no greater updraft than suffering.
When all we got is hope, that is where we learn to ascend. Now there is a “half hope” that many will try to take. It may seem logical to take it, but it isn’t the kind of thing that can make us mount up like an eagle.
How do we ascend when life takes what matters? What do we do when our hope is crushed?
Losing hope, painful as that may seem, is a necessary step on the road to finding the real hope. When the last shard of our old hope is removed we are now ready for the real thing…a real hope for real people.
Authenticity isn’t an automatic. It comes when healing changes you. Fortunately God through His Holy Spirit want us to be believers who soar. This is a promise for you–
“For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.”
Psalm 30:5
1 “O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?
2 How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?”
Nothing is as stretching and painful as the belief that God has given up on you. I have personally experienced this misbelief. It was like my entire nervous system was ripped out of my body. Suicide seemed a logical thing to do.
Sometimes, the struggle to remain a believer is difficult. It is a war, often accentuated by depression and sadness. It’s relentless and its arena of conflict is in our hearts. David asks five questions. They are the questions of the besieged heart when our abandonment seems possible.
3 “Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!”
Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.”
David recognizes that he needs God’s answer. He also needs meaning to be restored to him. The “sparkle”, or that joy of having a purpose is what gives life meaning. Once you taste it, nothing else will satisfy. Verse 3 tells us that David saw this as a “life or death” matter.
Furthermore, David could see that the enemies of his soul had gathered. They spoke with a common voice, reflecting a unified purpose, “We have defeated him!” We must be cognizant of the reality of evil around us. God has a will for your life, but so does Satan. It involves your corruption and destruction.
5 “But I trust in your unfailing love.
I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
6 I will sing to the Lord
because he is good to me.” ~~New Living Translation
We fast-forward ahead to David’s deliverance. He has an uncommon confidence in the character of God. David’s declaration, He rescued me and He is good to me! Both verses 5-6 illustrate that worship finds its root in times of personal emancipation.
Broken Believers 