suffering

The Good News

The Good News

Perhaps one of the most frustrating parts of the Gospel or good news of Jesus is that God didn’t choose to rescue us by ridding the world of evil, but rather ridding us of evil. We would like the suffering, the struggle, the darkness to go away and leave us in peace. Peace is defined by the absence of chaos, rather than trying to define peace in the middle of the mess. We also decide that God is acting only when the situation turns out as we wanted it to, with the least discomfort.

The truth, though, is that God ached for relationship with us, relationship that we had rejected in Adam and Eve way back in the garden. We want to blame Eve quite often, and think we would have made a different decision. But at the heart of every person is the desire to be their own god, controlling their own destiny and being powerful in their own right. They rejected relationship with God. I want to think that I would have chosen walking with God in the garden over the fruit that would make me like God, but in reality, God knew I wouldn’t have. None of us would have.

So, He sent a part of Himself in Jesus to make a way, and to make a different decision. He chose to humble Himself. He was God, but chose to empty Himself of that power, and become a human—the opposite direction of the humans trying to be god unto themselves. Everything that Jesus did on earth was because of His connection to the Father and the Spirit—the union of the Godhead was perfectly demonstrating the union He wants with us. He wants to participate in each part of our lives, empowering us through dependence and connection to Him, rather than us empowering ourselves through intelligence or independence. It feels all backwards for the American culture of pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps. But it’s a relationship that God desires—not a dictatorship or slavery.

Problems and Compassion

Problems and Compassion

The problem isn’t the problem. That’s something Mike Wells used to say a lot. It’s easy to get distracted, though, by whatever tough situation is in front of you and figure that if you could “fix” it, then you’d be happier. And don’t get me wrong, I’m all about getting problems resolved, but not at the expense of growing in relationship with Jesus.

Problems have a purpose, and their purpose is to draw us closer to Jesus and allow us to realize that we need His Life for dealing with them. When I treat them as burdens that need to be sorted out, I miss Jesus calling me to Himself. I miss casting my burdens on Him.

We don’t grow in a deepening relationship with people if we go hide out every time there is a problem and don’t allow them into our lives in vulnerability. With God, it is the same. When we push Him away and decide we need to figure this out ourselves before we reapproach Him, we miss the sweetness of the shared struggle. And we miss the power of His Life within us to handle the issue.

Celebrating in the Brokenness

Celebrating in the Brokenness

I really hate cliff-hanger endings. I know some people consider it an art form, but I just get frustrated and want everything wrapped up and sorted out. I wrote a post a couple of years ago on the hardship of being in the middle of a story with no idea what the end will be. We like to listen to those who have completed that part of their journey—the cancer is gone, the marriage is restored, the kid has returned to the family. But right now, there is so much that cannot be tied up and completed. I feel that my most common answer to questions is “I don’t know.”

I battle with the part of me that wants to make plans, schedule things, get excited about whatever is coming next. And God keeps calling me back to moment-by-moment of walking with Him, and entrusting the ending and the future to Him. And frankly, I don’t like it.

The revelation I’ve been having, though, is how there is such a sweetness to that simplicity and smallness of the moments lived hand-in-hand with Jesus. I am weary, and it’s because I keep trying to run ahead and sort it all out for God. In taking a pause, I am reminded that it isn’t my responsibility to do God’s job—I get to follow.

Walking in Dependence

Walking in Dependence

My son and I were talking yesterday and I watched him finally confront the sadness that he had kept at bay for the last couple of weeks. He was sad he wasn’t going back to school for the foreseeable future, that he wouldn’t get to enjoy days with his great teacher and friends. And he asked me how long the sickness was going to last. And I don’t know. So, we talked about how we do hard things, and find the joy in them. And we talked about how it’s okay to be sad and miss things, and then also okay to enjoy the day in the way we could.

The reactions from many of the people I work with in counseling have been similar—how do we do this season when everything has been uprooted and made raw?

I was thinking through practical tools I’ve been giving people, which I will talk about later in this post. But first, God reminded me this morning we do this season of life just like we do every other season--in dependence on Jesus. Every morning we can wake up knowing that the day is too big for us, and ask Him to be all we need for it. That hasn’t changed with the magnitude of the situation, or the radical difference many of us feel in our lives. God hasn’t changed. He is still more than enough for all the pieces of our lives, even the ones that look like pandemic, shelter-at-home and remote everything.

Courageous Peace

Courageous Peace

I often misunderstand God’s peace. I want it to be an absence of hard circumstances, or not being uncomfortable. Sometimes, it’s equated with happiness. But the verses in the Bible about peace don’t view peace like this at all. In fact, it’s often talked about in the middle of hard things. And Jesus says that it’s not a fragile peace like the world gives, but perfect peace. Unexplainable peace.

I have realized that I generally want peace to be tied to circumstances, but that’s comfort. No, peace doesn’t come from what surrounds you, but from Jesus Himself. To me, that’s actually quite a relief as that means I don’t have to have great circumstances to find peace. (Although, don’t get me wrong—I’d love to not be in the middle of suffering.) But that means that anywhere, and in anything, Jesus can be my peace.

God's Blessing

God's Blessing

A friend of mine gave me the Passion translation of Genesis that just was released, and I was struck immediately in the introduction by something that was said about blessing. Genesis is full of talk of God’s blessing, and yet I realized I had a bad definition of blessing. I had always thought of it as the “good stuff” like riches, power, freedom, etc. You know, sort of like the opposite of a curse. 

Walking in the Impossible

Walking in the Impossible

When I wake up to the limitations of the same old day with the same problems as yesterday, Your joy is my encouragement and inspiration.

When I look ahead to the overwhelming work needing to be done, You remind me it isn’t all up to me—that I can entrust my life and all it contains to You.

When I seem to be running from the demons of my past as they frighten me and threaten to keep me locked up in prison forever, You free me and show me how to fly.

Rescue

Rescue

I came across a name of God that I had not heard often before, possibly because it only appears in the Bible once. It is El Roi, the God who sees me. (Genesis 16:13-14) Hagar, servant of Sarai, has become pregnant because she has been offered to Abraham by her mistress. Sarai has developed some serious jealousy and is lashing out at Hagar, even though the whole thing was Sarai’s idea in the first place. Hagar escapes to get away from the torment, and God meets her in the desert. And my expectation for the next part of this story is that He rescues her, carries her off to a new land and allows her to prosper in comfort and happiness. But that’s not what happens. 

Baby Steps

Baby Steps

There was a movie many years ago called “What About Bob?” in which the two main characters are a psychiatrist and patient. The patient proceeds to drive the psychiatrist totally crazy by following his “baby steps” right into chasing the therapist down on vacation. The idea of baby steps for everything—small movements or decisions in life that add up to bigger strides to a goal—were supposed to help Bob (the patient) to overcome some of his anxiety. As funny as that movie was about the whole thing, there is something to be said for baby-stepping your way through life.

The Difference from Giving Thanks

The Difference from Giving Thanks

You wouldn’t think a little shift in perspective would change your life, but I have experienced exactly that. When we obsess on all the things we think are wrong or how we don’t have enough of something, we move to the negative and live in that mess. When we recognize Jesus even in the hard of life, we can move forward with a totally different mindset.

Comfort, Rest and Temper Tantrums

Comfort, Rest and Temper Tantrums

Sometimes I throw temper tantrums about my life.I might as well be a 2-year-old with the fits I can have concerning all the things I feel I should not have to be experiencing, the comparisons I make to find myself lacking, and the struggles of others I want to wish away. I get mad at God, at the situation and at myself. It’s really hard for me to understand rest in the middle of struggle.

Floating not Drowning

Floating not Drowning

Sometimes it feels like drowning.Like the abyss is swallowing you up.Sometimes your feet find no foundationAnd your mind wanders in frantic search.The waves threaten to cover youLeaving no trace of life behindThe fear seems to choke youAs you wait for a rescue that seems far away.

Recognizing God in the Struggles of Life

Recognizing God in the Struggles of Life

My friend and mentor Mike Wells used to talk about recognizing God in everything a lot. He probably taught it often because all of us needed the reminder constantly. When things happen in our lives that seem bad, it’s really hard to recognize God in them. We want to get an answer to why circumstances are the way they are, and usually we want to lash out at God for allowing the particular problem. Or even to doubt His existence because we don’t see His hand in caring for us in the midst of the suffering.

When God Seems Silent

When God Seems Silent

Do you ever feel that you are the only one who endures days, weeks or months of what feels like silence from God? The valley of the shadow of death stretches long in front of you, and it looks like a tumultuous relationship, or anxiety, or unemployment or just the mundaneness of it all making you feel insignificant and unimportant. And it seems God has taken a lunch break and is unavailable, or worse has decided to punish you for something while He remains aloof?

How Do You Find the Strength for Today?

How Do You Find the Strength for Today?

This morning, so many people woke up and couldn’t dream up the strength to get out of bed.  I can think of ones who face chronic pain and illness, ones who woke to support loved ones at yet another doctor’s appointment, ones who see an uncertain future for a rocky relationship, ones who approach what seems like an insurmountable obstacle.

From Fear to Freedom

From Fear to Freedom

It is amazing to me to look back over my life and see the hand of God at work all throughout to reveal/ uncover Christ in me. Early in my life, I would fight the tools He would use. I still do, but much less often and with less intensity. It’s in those struggles, the very tools that I used to see as the enemy, that I am now seeing the tender invitation of God to a deeper relationship with Him and a life of freedom.

Walking with the broken to find hope in Jesus