A Juxtaposition of Beauty

-
What a tragic time. What a glorious time.

It may sound odd for me to think there is anything glorious about this current season, but I see God’s brilliance and glory during this dark storm.

You know those sunny days that suddenly find themselves assaulted by dark clouds that move in so fast and aggressively, that for a moment you wonder if it’s the end of the world? There is thunder and lightning so vicious that it shakes you to your core. That’s what the last few months have felt like.

But sometimes in the middle of those storms, it gets quiet. A breach appears in the darkness, and the sun bursts through! It’s a juxtaposition of beauty seen in the dark and the light.

During this darkness, there are still people reaching out to others, expressing their love, expressing their concern, and sometimes even their lack of understanding. Hearts are being changed.

There seems to be so many “sides” in this battle, but it’s important to understand this isn’t a battle between me and you, black and white, masks and no masks, police and everyone else. No. This is a spiritual battle over souls. Don’t be mistaken. This is war, and the evil one is out for blood.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12

The enemy promotes division, confusion, and isolation. He creates chaos of words, which ultimately results in friends and family, who once loved, or at least respected each other to fight and often become estranged enemies. He comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). Don’t you see it every day on social media?

When a heart breaks, what flows out of it will be what it has been filled with. We must fill our hearts, minds, and souls with the love of Christ, so there is no other course of action but to love each other beyond our differences. Sometimes it's hard to know what to say that doesn’t come straight from our own opinions, so we need help.

When we struggle with the words to use, remember that we can count on God to give us what we need. “The Holy Spirit will give you the words to say at the moment when you need them.” Luke 12:12

Our desire to love and please the Creator will be seen in our concern for others, through our questions, and willingness to listen and learn. Put others above yourself (Philippians 2:3). Do not allow the enemy to destroy the foundation God has laid down for your life. During this heavy and difficult time, we must make the choice to love, to be a light, and to be a part of the change.

"I [Jesus] have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Underneath the heaviness of grief and pain, a grand sense of hope is rising. I see change, I see love, and on the horizon, I see peace.

It is glorious.

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:10

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Complexity of Prayer

-
Image
Have you ever considered the complexity of prayer? Have you ever had something you needed to pray about, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to talk to God about whatever the issue was? I have experienced that many times. I will call it “Prayer paralysis.” Prayer paralysis happens when you are afraid of any answer God might give you. If He says no, then you might feel bad, or sad, or even angry. If He says yes, then your fear factor increases because you just don’t think you can handle what a “Yes” entails (which essentially means that you don’t trust Him). So instead of revealing your lack of trust (Like seriously, you don’t think He knows? ), you just don’t pray. It’s kind of like when you were a little kid, and you would sit still and close your eyes, thinking that it would make you invisible. God already knows our fears of failure, self-pride, and even our trust issues, so we might as well just go ahead and lay it all at His feet. There’s another kind of prayer paralysis that I ha
Read more

Should Someone Call an Exorcist?

-
Image
Last Friday I went bowling with some of my family. I am aware of my low skill level, so I remained humble throughout the first game, and surprisingly finished in 1st place!  The second game began and I just knew I would dominate even more. I may not have been quite as humble. I was last on the list to go. I stood up and approached my ball with confidence. I picked it up, set my eye on the center arrow painted on the lane, then took a few quick steps forward just as I had before.  As I took my last step, I swung my arm backward, then forward, and fell flat on my face. Actually, flat is not entirely accurate. I’m pretty sure every one of my limbs flew in a different direction, and the position of my head may have had folks wondering if they should call an exorcist. I also seemed to be temporarily blinded from the fall but could hear my ball bouncing its way down the lane. Let’s pause for a moment of prayer. The problem was that I had stepped over the foul line into the lane— 1. Not reali
Read more

Go Deeper

-
Image
  Anyone struggling with anxiety? I have struggled with it quite a bit. Then, I realize that forgetting to bring all of my anxiety-inducing problems to God, is a big part of the problem. Yesterday I talked about living in endurance mode. Part of that is taking all of the difficult things, and trying to wait them out.  If I really think about it, I may have subconsciously believed that struggling is just part of the journey and that I need to suck it up, because Jesus went through way more than I ever will.    But, “ Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)  He never intended for us to hold onto them. Sometimes we don’t bother saying anything to God because, well, He knows what’s happening. He can change it if He wants to. So we sit paralyzed—enduring! Is that familiar to anyone? Though He could whisk our struggles away at any time, part of the journey, part of our relationship with the Creator is rooted in commu
Read more