We're Not Okay and That's Alright

As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus, went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching. (Matthew 27:57-61 NLT)

The 27th chapter of Matthew is a rather depressing and sad chapter. Here is a brief synopsis:

Jesus’ death is planned out by the religious leaders
    Judas hangs himself
        An innocent man (Jesus) is put on trial
            The audience of the trial wants a guilty man set free
                An innocent man (Jesus) is found “guilty” and humiliated publicly
                    Jesus is crucified
                        As he is dying, Jesus is further ridiculed and verbally assaulted
                            Certain women could/would only watch from a distance
                                Jesus dies and is buried in a “borrowed” tomb
                                    Plans are made and kept to guard the tomb of someone dead

Ugh. Like we said, depressing.

Many Christians believe - some adamantly - that a follower of Jesus can never be depressed. After all, “the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

Yet, pulling one verse out of context does not make one a biblical scholar.

Depression, sadness, hurt, anxiety, pain, stress…these are all found throughout the Holy Scriptures and afflicted even the stoutest of biblical saints.

One of Christianity’s greatest preachers, C.H. Spurgeon was frequently plunged into severe depression. Quite a bit of his mental crises were due in part to gout. In a biography of this "prince of preachers", Arnold Dallimore wrote, "What he suffered in those times of darkness we may not know...even his desperate calling on God brought no relief. Spurgeon himself once wrote: “There are dungeons beneath the castles of despair.”

Just when you thought you couldn’t get any lower…dungeons.

In all honesty - we’ve all been there. A loss of a loved one. Loss of a job. Destruction of a friendship. Frail health. Chronic pain. Addiction. Financial stress. Impatient demands of others. All of these, plus countless other things, can drive even the sweetest of saints to a moment of mental anguish and spiritual struggle.

Chuck Swindoll once wrote: “Many years ago a young Midwestern lawyer suffered from such deep depression that his friends thought it best to keep all knives and razors out of his reach. He questioned his life's calling and the prudence of even attempting to follow it through. During this time he wrote, ‘I am now the most miserable man living. Whether I shall ever be better, I cannot tell. I awfully forebode I shall not.’ But somehow, from somewhere, Abraham Lincoln received the encouragement he needed, and the achievements of his life thoroughly vindicated his bout with discouragement. You and Your Problems Transformed by Thorns, p. 58.

Even the early followers of Jesus despaired. Matthew 27:61 - “Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.” Do you think they were waiting for his triumphant resurrection? No, more than likely, these two could only see and feel: “The One we believed in and followed is gone! Our Messiah is dead!”

We too, often become overwhelmed by life and its often relentless and choking grip…and in our limited thinking we say to ourselves: “Where is God? Why doesn’t he hear me? Why doesn’t he hear my prayers? Does God not care for me or my problems?”

Be honest - you know we’ve all done it. So, quit being ashamed of being human. After all, if you’re reading this, “Surprise! You’re human.” You are flesh. You are bone. You are blood. You are at times weak. At times you fail. This is what it means to live in a fallen world.

Instead, give thanks that God extends mercy and grace when we do fall. He gives us what we do not deserve and does not give us what we do deserve in those moments of despair.

In the midst of their pain and loss, God reached out to the two Marys. Even though it was at a tomb, guarded by the enemy, without joy and hope, God had not abandoned them. God had not left them to their own demise. God did not discard them because they were filled with sadness.

Rather God met them there. He brought forth the greatest moment of joy the world would ever know. He raised from the dead the One who could lead all the captives of sin and death to eternal and everlasting freedom. God brought to life the only One who can give us life.

Holy week is upon us. It is a tough week. Maybe you are encountering a tough time. Know this: it’s okay to fret. It’s alright to stress. It’s normal to get overwhelmed. It’s fine that you are not fine.

That is the reason for Christ Jesus.

Christ has come.
    Christ has died.
        Christ has been buried.
            Christ has been raised from the dead.
                Christ has ascended to the right hand of the Father.
                       Christ is coming again.

That’s good news brothers and sisters. We pray it brings a glimpse of hope to your burdened hearts and a smile of joy to your face. It’s okay to not be okay…because, in the end, it will all be okay.

Jesus is On Your Side

 

03-22-2022

I will praise the LORD at all times. I will constantly speak his praises. I will boast only in the LORD; let all who are helpless take heart. Come, let us tell of the LORD’s greatness; let us exalt his name together. The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time. ...the LORD will redeem those who serve him. No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned…The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and rescues those whose spirit is crushed.

 Psalm 34:1-3;17-19; 22 (New Living Translation)

You may, or may not, have noticed that we did not do a newsletter this past week. There have been three funerals this past couple of weeks and it has taken a mental toll on all of us.

Funerals tend to bring out a lot of emotions, for obvious reasons. But we want to share with you the reason Christians can go through loss and grief and still maintain their joy in the Lord.

We first want to say that grief is real. Loss hurts. And, yes, there are moments in life when you feel like you will never draw in your next breath. Life can be crushing and cruel. Yet we are often told just to suck it up and pull ourselves up by our bootstraps. Ironically, the Bible NEVER EVER teaches this flawed and fatal humanistic thinking. Indeed, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

We wish we could explain how that happens. No book, no website, no speaker can do that. And, yes, there will be times in your life when comfort seems like either an abstract idea or illusion.

Yet, we believe we will be comforted. And that is why followers of Jesus are different. In spite of the “reality” around us - we believe and trust in a greater “Reality” to guide us.

Why do we believe? What causes us to throw our lot in with an Invisible Force? The world offers nothing but temporary assistance when we are hurting - not that there's anything wrong with that, by the way. The body of Christ, though, has something “in addition” and permanent to that.

Ann Voskamp, in her book The Broken Way, states, “When the church isn’t for the suffering and broken, then the church isn’t for Christ. Because Jesus, with His pierced side, is always on the side of the broken.”

Jesus is on the side of the broken and crushed. Jesus is on your side. He is on our side.

Look at Mary and Martha and how he went to them during the loss of their beloved brother Lazarus - “Jesus wept.” Remember when Jesus “... saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd,” (Mark 6:34). In Luke, two blind men cry out to Jesus and: “Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes, and at once they received their sight and followed Him,” (Matthew 20:34).

Jesus is compassion personified. He is God’s compassion made flesh. 

 We believe in him. Therefore, his compassion is ours.

Even today, Jesus seeks out the suffering and that is where he will be found. As Ann Voskamp reminded us, the wound in His side proves that Jesus is always on the side of the suffering. Today, let us assure you that Jesus is on your side.

We do not know all of what you are going through. We cannot imagine the pain your heart may be bearing. Yet, there is something to be said about embracing the pain, the loss and the grief.

It is a sad truth that so often we try to run away from difficult situations. We try to smooth over the rough moments of our lives. We do all we can to numb ourselves, so pain and hurt do not overwhelm us.

Sadly, a lot of Christians do not want you to know that suffering, loss, disappointment and hurt are an integral part of all our lives. We speak of the joy of Jesus so much that we neglect - to our own demise - the comfort of the only One Who truly understands what we are going through.

Never forget, “Jesus wept.”

And Jesus is weeping with us on this day. He is weeping over your loss. He is weeping over your sin. He is weeping over the destruction of nations. He is weeping over the addiction plaguing you and your family. He is weeping over the fact you are not getting enough rest. He is weeping over the fact you cannot get the health care you need. He is weeping over the gossip among his children. He is weeping. Why? Because he cares…and wants to comfort you and me.

Euegene Peterson, writing in the foreword of Alan Nelson’s book, Embracing Brokenness: How God Refines Us Through Life’s Disappointments, confirms a powerful truth: 

 “Suffering is not evidence of God’s absence, but of God’s presence, and it is in our experience of being broken that God does his surest and most characteristic salvation work. There is a way to accept, embrace, and deal with suffering that results in a better life, not a worse one, and more of the experience of God, not less. God is working out his salvation in our lives the way he has always worked it out—at the place of brokenness, at the cross of Jesus, and at the very place where we take up our cross.”

It was at the cross of Jesus that the love of all loves - the hope of all hopes - was given without remorse or regret. To a planet filled with sin, pain and suffering, the God of all creation sent His one and only Son to show He alone can empathize and carry us through. As David sings in Psalm 34: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and rescues those whose spirit is crushed,” (Psalm 34:18).

It is our prayer and hope that Jesus would comfort, console and encompass you this day. May God grant you strength to endure, grace to overcome, and peace to continue living.

Steve and Missy

Where Is God?

03-08-2022

“As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God! I thirst for God, for the living God. I say, “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” I cannot eat, I weep day and night; all day long they say to me, “Where is your God?” I will remember and weep! For I was once walking along with the great throng to the temple of God, shouting and giving thanks along with the crowd as we celebrated the holy festival. Why are you depressed, O my soul? Why are you upset? Wait for God! For I will again give thanks to my God for his saving intervention.

I am depressed, so I will pray to you while I am trapped here in the region of the upper Jordan,

from Hermon, from Mount Mizar. One deep stream calls out to another at the sound of your waterfalls; all your billows and waves overwhelm me. By day the Lord decrees his loyal love,

and by night he gives me a song, a prayer to the living God. I will pray to God, my high ridge: “Why do you ignore me? Why must I walk around mourning because my enemies oppress me?”

My enemies’ taunts cut into me to the bone, as they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

Why are you depressed, O my soul? Why are you upset? Wait for God!

For I will again give thanks to my God for his saving intervention.

Psalm 42 (NET)

In the midst of all that is happening around the world currently it is somewhat surprising that we have not heard anyone asking, “Where is God in all of this?” After all, where is God?

We cannot see him in the videos coming from Sumy where Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says, “They’re turning Sumy into hell.” We do not see him in the Drug Wars of Mexico where upwards of 250,000 people have been killed. We do not hear him speaking out against the civil war in Syria where over 590,000 people have been wiped off the earth.

But, even as we do not “see” or “hear” God, does that mean he is not among us?

Oswald Chambers writes something in his invaluable work, “My Utmost for His Highest” that speaks toward this issue. He writes, “No one is ever united with Jesus Christ until they are willing to relinquish not sin only, but their whole way of looking at things.”

How do you look at the world? The events of the world? We hear a lot of people complaining about rising prices for food, gas, utilities, etc. However, what if those same people were living in Ukraine, walking away from their homes, separated from loved ones, with no water and no food - while gunfire was being aimed at them and shells were loudly exploding all around? Their whole way of looking at things…would be vastly different.

When things are going well, gas is 1.50 a gallon and you don’t have to wear a mask everywhere, we usually believe God is right there. Shoot, he must be in love with us for he is blessing us so!

It’s only when things and people are against us - when times are difficult - that we begin uttering those supposedly blasphemous words, “Where is God?” But, are those not virtually the same words the Son of God yelled while hanging hopelessly on the cross? “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?” In other words, “Where are you God?”

We like to think, in our limited way, that when things are tough God must not be in our midst. He must have just left us on our own without so much as a “Good luck!”

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Consider the following true story. A long time ago, near Niagara, New York, a tribe of North American Indians resided in relative peace and prosperity. Once a year, in order to maintain the status quo, the tribe would choose a young virgin to serve as the tribe’s sacrifice to the spirit of the Mighty River. She was called, “The Bride of the Falls.”

One year, the chief’s daughter was chosen. In the days which followed he went about as if nothing was going to happen. On the day of the sacrifice the tribe prepared the white canoe and filled it with fresh fruit, vegetables, and beautiful flowers. The young girl placed herself in the middle of the canoe which was then launched out into the middle of the river.

It was at this precise moment when a second canoe came rushing from the bank. In it was the chief - the young girl’s father. He plowed through the waters putting his back into the oars and in a very few, quick, strong strokes he made it to his daughter.

Reaching her, the chief grabbed hold of her canoe and brought his alongside hers. Then, holding her canoe close to his, the father and daughter were swept along the mighty current and over the falls. They perished side by side. The father would not let go…

And so it is with our heavenly Father. When we think we are alone, we are not. When we feel as if there is no one else, there is. At the moment we believe we are entering “the dark night of the soul” all on our own, He is there. “I will never leave you; I will never forsake you.”

Friends, consider the following words of Yahweh as he reminds us of his constant presence.

Deuteronomy 31:6 – “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 – “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Isaiah 41:17 – “The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.”

Psalms 37:28 – “For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones.”

Isaiah 42:16 – “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”

The truth is this, as C.S Lewis, in his book "Miracles" writes, "The presence of God is the most real thing we ever encounter." May the reality of God be your reality today…and may God hold the hands of those women, children, and elderly who are leaving Ukraine, and may he stand strong by those who remain behind to protect and serve the land and people they love.