Roller Coaster of Life

 

      Do you like roller coasters?  I know they are not for everyone, but I enjoy a good roller coaster.  One of my favorites is called the Monster at Adventureland in Iowa.  It is also Judah’s favorite and I think we like it for the same reasons.  It is a smooth ride, but filled with incredible heights, multiple upside down loops, and all sorts of fun twists and turns.  The beginning of the ride is the most frightening as you climb at a 90 degree angle straight up to the sky then lean over and come straight down in a freefall.  Anyway, you should check it out some time.  Roller coasters are fun.  Do you ever feel like your life is on a roller coaster?  Are you ready to get off?  Ready for the ride to slow down, smooth out, get less frightening?  Do you ever just want a break?  Maybe your relationships are on a roller coaster of emotion with friends coming and going, trust being built then broken, up and down in this life.  The roller coaster of life isn’t always fun.  

    Today, I want to look at a Psalm written for those times when you feel like getting off the roller coaster.  In this Psalm you see the author experience the reality of life, give himself comfort and reminders of the goodness of God, but also question his own heart and soul.  The Bible is not afraid of your roller coaster; God knows what you are going through and how life is often out of control.  Let’s read this Psalm and find some balance to the chaos we are experiencing today.

Psalm 43

Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause
    against an ungodly people,
from the deceitful and unjust man
    deliver me!
² For you are the God in whom I take refuge;
    why have you rejected me?
Why do I go about mourning
    because of the oppression of the enemy?

³ Send out your light and your truth;
    let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy hill
    and to your dwelling!
⁴ Then I will go to the altar of God,
    to God my exceeding joy,
and I will praise you with the lyre,
    O God, my God.

⁵ Why are you cast down, O my soul,
    and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
    my salvation and my God.

Things to think about:

•          The author cries our for God to vindicate him against his enemies who falsely accuse him and scheme against him.  This is important for us to remember; sometimes in life the only one who really knows the truth is God…and that is okay.  Don’t let the lies of the evil one or anyone else pull you down.  God knows.  He knows your heart, your actions, your intentions.  He knows.  Lots of the dips in the roller coaster of life might be smoothed out by us remembering that simple truth.

·         I love verse 2 because it is so real.  Here is what it says, “For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you rejected me?”  God is the one we go to when we are hurting.  He is there to be our strength.  He is our shield and protector…yet the reality of this psalm is that at times we feel like God has rejected us.  Wow!  But, remember this is just a feeling.  The reality is that God has not abandoned us, he has not rejected us.  Read Romans 8 as a quick reminder that God is for you! 

·         When the light seems to be turned off and all hope is lost pray for God to send his light into your life and his truth to come overwhelm your soul.  Ask God to get you out of the current valley you are in, to walk with you and keep the roller coaster going.  Pray for God to bring you up out of that valley to join him in his very presence.  Then God will be your exceeding joy as you praise him.

·         Verse 4 is the top of the roller coaster when you are loving the Lord and praising his name, then you crash into verse 5…  “Why are you cast down, O my soul…” If God is so good why do I feel like at times he isn’t there for me?  Why do I still get sad?  Why am I still struggling?  Why is life still so difficult?  This roller coaster of life is not over and we continually have to trust in God.  This is how the Psalmist ends this psalm.  Hope in God! 

·         Wherever you find yourself of today’s roller coaster – Hope in God!  Are things really good right now?  Hope in God!  Are you at the bottom and life seems out of control?  Hope in God!  If God feels close, hope in God.  Does God feel distant?  Hope in God.  I think you get the point of the Psalm…hope in God!  May that be true of all of us today.  God bless.

Turn Your Mourning Into Joy

 

Is there anything to rejoice in today?  If you watch the news, you might not think there is much.  If you have been walking through a season of suffering then rejoicing in anything seems impossible.  But, I believe the Lord can turn our weeping into joy.  Just like he can calm a storm, heal the sick, create the world and all that is in it, Jesus can turn your mourning into joy.  (Jeremiah 31:13)  There is a fun story of weeping and rejoicing from the book of Nehemiah that helps prove my point.

History:

·         Nehemiah was leading the people of God (Israelites) after their captivity in Babylon.  Jerusalem had been destroyed, the temple burned, most of the people killed, yet a small remnant of Jews had survived in Babylon as slaves (think Esther, Daniel and his friends, etc.). 

·         Nehemiah worked for the King in Persia and asked to go back to his homeland to see how the city was fairing.  Not good was the answer.  Nehemiah lead the effort to build the wall around Jerusalem and return the people to the Lord. 

·         They had lived many years with no priests, no Word of God, no prophets, and no direction holding on by prayer and faith.  Nehemiah gathers the people in Jerusalem and they read the book of the Law (Genesis through Deuteronomy). 

·         When the law is read and the people start to have understanding a wave of sadness rushes over everyone because they saw how far they fell short.  They saw how disobedient they had been.  They were afraid of the wrath of God and the consequences to their sins.  They felt guilty, felt shame, and were certainly afraid of what would happen next.  But, the Lord had other plans.  Let’s take a look.

Nehemiah 8:8-18

⁸ They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

⁹ And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. ¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” ¹¹ So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” ¹² And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.

¹³ On the second day the heads of fathers' houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the Law. ¹⁴ And they found it written in the Law that the Lord had commanded by Moses that the people of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month, ¹⁵ and that they should proclaim it and publish it in all their towns and in Jerusalem, “Go out to the hills and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to make booths, as it is written.” ¹⁶ So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courts and in the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in the square at the Gate of Ephraim. ¹⁷ And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths, for from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing. ¹⁸ And day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the Book of the Law of God. They kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the rule.

Things to think about:

·         Have you ever told someone to stop crying?  How did that work out for you?  But, here Nehemiah and the leadership tell the crowd to stop crying, stop mourning, instead find joy for this day is holy.  How did they find joy in the midst of all that “bad news?”

·         They not only told them to stop crying, but they instructed them how to rejoice.  Go, have a feast!  Eat!  Sing! Drink wine!  Let the joy of the Lord be your strength.  I think sometimes when we are in the midst of depression or sadness it would be wise for us to take a break from the pain and rejoice in the Lord.  Sing a happy song in God.  Enjoy a nice meal with people you love.  Thank God for all the good things in life.  Our rejoicing doesn’t negate the sadness or dishonor the pain we are enduring, but it does put it in perspective.  These people had lived through a lot!  Yet, they still found joy in the Lord.  Regardless of your circumstances today I encourage you to find joy in the Lord, for he is still good!

·         I like their camping trip celebration.  The feast of booths was set up for the people as a reminder of how God rescued them out of Egypt and they had to live in tents traveling the wilderness on the way to the promised land.  They were to remember that adventure every year by spending a few nights in tents outside, a physical reminder of the experience of their ancestors and God’s faithfulness.  Here they were hundreds of years later and the text says they had never obeyed that rule up until that point.  Yikes!  That is a lot of disobedience from God’s people.  But, here is God full of forgiveness and grace.  He reminds them of his provision and forgiveness in the past to reassure them that he is a God who does not change and will be full of grace and forgiveness for the future.  That causes much rejoicing!  For a whole week they celebrated the Lord.  May we live this week in an attitude of celebration finding joy in the God who loves you, the God who delights in you, the God who forgives you in Jesus Christ.  May we rejoice in Him today.

Goodbye Friend - Hello Hope

   

  A friend of mine died recently.  I have known him for years and I am close to the family.  It was sad to see him go.  He will be missed.  I had the privilege to officiate the funeral this past weekend and one passage that I didn't include in the service but was a passage rattling around in my mind comes from John chapter 11.  In this chapter a friend of Jesus name Lazarus gets sick and dies.  Let's take a look at this passage of scripture and see if we can find some encouragement, even in the face of death.

John 11:1-44

 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. ² It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. ³ So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” ⁴ But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 

⁵ Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. ⁶ So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. ⁷ Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” ⁸ The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” ⁹ Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. ¹⁰ But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” ¹¹ After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” ¹² The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” ¹³ Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. ¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, ¹⁵ and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” ¹⁶ So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” 

¹⁷ Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. ¹⁸ Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, ¹⁹ and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. ²⁰ So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” ²³ Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” ²⁴ Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” ²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, ²⁶ and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” ²⁷ She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” 

²⁸ When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” ²⁹ And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. ³⁰ Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. ³¹ When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. ³² Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” ³³ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. ³⁴ And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” ³⁵ Jesus wept. ³⁶ So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” ³⁷ But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” 

³⁸ Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” ⁴⁰ Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” ⁴¹ So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. ⁴² I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” ⁴³ When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” ⁴⁴ The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” 

Things to think about:

• Notice how Lazarus is described to Jesus in verse 3, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." Do you think someone would describe you that way to the Lord. "Look, Lord, the one whom you love is having a hard day...Lord the one whom you love just got fired...Lord the one whom you love is crying out to you again. I think this is how Jesus sees you today, the one whom he loves.
• Jesus could have made it back in time to heal Lazarus, but he chose to stay away. He allowed him to die in order to perform the greater miracle and teach the greater lesson of bringing him back from the dead. I wonder how often the Lord delays answering our prayers or chooses not to act in order to perform the greater miracle we aren't even asking for?
• Martha had faith in the Lord, but could not see how that faith worked itself out in her situation. I have faith like Martha sometimes too. I believe God is good, I believe he can perform miracles, I believe he is at work...I just don't see how it will work out this time. May we all be in awe of Jesus who knows what he is doing and who truly is the resurrection and the life.
• The shortest verse in all the Bible is here in this passage when he sees the pain, hears the cries, and feels the hurt of loss. Two little words - "Jesus wept." When we are in our troubles and pain, when we have to say goodbye to those we love. When we are surrounded by others in grief, it is okay to weep. It is okay to cry and to be sad over the pain of death. Jesus wept and he still weeps with us in our pain.
• From two simple words of Jesus' pain to three incredible words of his authority. Verse 43, "...Lazarus, come out!" Now, we can have hope. Jesus is able to cut through the pain and provide life to the dead, hope to the hurting, joy to the depressed. He brings hope in a new life in him when we stand by the grave of a friend. Jesus is the resurrection and the life. May we turn to him today and trust in his authority to look into our grave and say, "Come out!" Oh, what a day that will be!