Comfort in Sorrow 5

1 Corinthians 15:54-55

With all the recent movies about super heroes that are available now we can sit and fantasize about what super powers we each might want. Do we want to be able to fly? Do we want to be able to have x-ray vision? Do we want a suit that makes bullets harmlessly bounce off of us?

It can be amusing to speculate what we would do if we had these powers. It can be fun to spend some time in wishful thinking. But what about the realities of life? What if we could cheat death?

While we may not be able to live forever as we are, we can live forever. We may not be able to retain our way of life, our homes and all of our possessions there is a way for death to have no hold on us, a way for the fear of death to be conquered.

Just as the super heroes must put on their special suits and rings and capes to become those super heroes, we too must put on what it takes to become immortal. We must put on the imperishability, the immortality that comes with our faith in Jesus Christ. When we have clothed ourselves with Jesus – that is, when we are deeply immersed in our faith in Christ and we have accepted Jesus as our Savior – we are made into immortal beings.

Death has no victory over us. Death can bring no fear to us. We know in our hearts that the experience of death – for ourselves and for others – is a transitional step from this world into the kingdom of God.

Death has been swallowed up in victory. Death has been removed, canceled out, its powers taken away through the resurrection of Jesus. And in that trust and faith we can have confidence and hope. We can face our losses and sorrows with the joy and gladness of knowing that Christ has readied a place for us all in the presence of God’s love.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How can you clothe yourself in immortality?

Comfort in Sorrow 4

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

“Into every life a little rain must fall.” This is an old adage you may have heard in your lifetime. Life is not completely filled with happiness and bliss. Now and then there will be rain – those moments of sadness and troubles. And sometimes that rain can take the form of a loss of a loved one.

Life is said to be a mystery. And death is considered by most to be a journey into the unknown. Many fear death because they do not know what awaits them on the other side. At the very least it can be a topic most people do not want to discuss and something almost everyone wishes to avoid.

But Paul has some confident words about the death experience. What is his purpose in what he has to say? What does he remind us about our faith? What is our hope?

While it is true that most people would rather have days of sunshine rather than rain, rain is essential to life. It gives us the ability to grow. It renews and cleanses. And so too can be the experience of a loss.

When we are faced with grief and sorrows we must remember our faith. These times of sadness can be a time when we renew our strength in what we believe. They can be times when we are reminded of the hope we should all hold. Times of loss can be turned into times of hope and optimism.

Whenever we lose a loved one, when we encounter a sudden emptiness in our lives, we can be reminded all over again of what we believe. As Paul says, we believe Jesus died and rose again. And that resurrection was meant to be a promise to all of us who believe.

While it may not be fitting to say that we should rejoice in a death, we can be glad in the confidence we have. Death is not an end of things. It is simply a transition from this life into a new and brighter life with God. And in that knowledge we can have gladness and hope.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How will you find hope in sorrows?

Comfort in Sorrow 3

John 14:1-3

I remember going to visit some friends of our family in Cleveland when I was fairly young. They were all prepared for our visit. I remember being given a tour of their house – we had never been there before – as we arrived. We could tell that they had cleaned their house from top to bottom. The place was spotless.

Besides making their house clean and tidy the two sons had given up their bedrooms so that our family could stay. My parents would be sleeping in one bedroom and my sister would stay in another. My brother and I got to share the family room with the two brothers.

It was a wonderful thing to be welcomed into that house. Our parents had known each other years ago, but my brother, sister and I barely knew the two boys from the other family. But we had a great visit. It was so nice that they worked so hard to make us feel welcome.

As Jesus is preparing his disciples for the inevitability of his crucifixion he reminds them of what he is doing for them. What comfort does he offer? What does he say about his Father’s house (heaven)? What will Jesus do?

We can find comfort in the words of Christ. He tells the disciples and he tells us not to be troubled. We simply need to trust in God and in Jesus. We need to trust that there is a great deal of room for everyone in the house of God. Heaven has room enough for all.

But we must also see that there is more than just comfort in knowing that there is a place for us. We need to see that Christ has prepared a place for us. We are anticipated. Our presence is desired and sought after.

And more than that. If Christ has prepared a pace the n he will be returning to get us. Jesus will come to gather us up in his arms and welcome us in this place he has readied for us.

DAILY CHALLENGE: What can remind you of what Jesus has done for you?

Comfort in Sorrow 2

Isaiah 61:1-3

It is part of the job as a pastor to be available in times of grief and loss. As the pastor I make myself available to those who are facing end of life decisions, and I pray that God might work through me to give comfort and assurance. But there are times when I encounter those individuals with enough faith and confidence in the Lord that they actually minister more to me than I to them.

There have been times when I have been with church members who were so strong in their faith that they faced their own death with great calm and confidence. In those times I was witness to what true faith and belief is all about, and I was taught how I should act when my time comes.

Just as Jesus used the words from Psalm 22 at his crucifixion, Jesus read this passage from Isaiah when he began his ministry in Galilee (see Luke 4:16-21). What is said about the brokenhearted in verse 1? What will God do with those who mourn according to verse 2? What changes will come about to those who grieve according to verse 3?

Nowhere in these words from the prophet is it said that our lives will be free of sadness. In fact, although this passage is an expression of hope and optimism, there are many problems that are mentioned. Isaiah speaks of the poor, the brokenhearted, prisoners, mourners and those who grieve.

The hope comes in knowing that in spite of all these afflictions God is present. The Lord will be there for every person who weeps and suffers. Jesus will be with all those who grieve and mourn.

The Lord has promised to make changes for us. We will go from those who suffer and cry to those who celebrate and have joy. Our ashes of suffering will be replaced by crowns of victory. Our mourning will be replaced by gladness.

As we face the possible losses in life we must go forward in confidence knowing that our Savior is with us in all things. We must go through life with the confidence of knowing God is with us to take away our sadness and replace it with joy.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How do you know God is with you?

The Carpenter's Son 4

John 11:35-36

A very early childhood memory of mine is the morning I awoke to the sounds of my mother in the kitchen crying. I went out into the kitchen. My father sat at the table silently and my mother was trying to keep busy at the sink and stove, all the while weeping and sobbing. Without a word I began crying too.

It wasn’t until several minutes later that I was told my mother’s friend had passed away. I simply knew that my mother was sad and I joined in with the grieving.

When grief and distress enters into our lives there is often very little another person can do to help resolve the situation and make the sorrow go away. Sometimes the only thing that can be done, and the only thing that really helps, is to join in the grieving. Such is the situation for Jesus when he discovers that his friend Lazarus is dead. What does Jesus do? What does that say about Jesus?

I have often made jokes about John 11:35. It is the shortest verse in the Bible and I have made comments and claims that it is the only verse in the Bible I am able to memorize.

In truth, however, the tiny verse is very significant. Even though it is the shortest verse in the Bible, I believe the two words speak volumes. They indeed tell us that Jesus loved his friend, Lazarus. But I feel they say more than that. They show us that Jesus – even though he is God – has the very deep and real ability to have sympathy and tenderness for each of us.

Jesus wept for the loss of his friend. I believe Jesus joins us in our weeping as well. When we suffer a loss, when we experience pain, when we feel sorrows, we can turn to our Lord and know that he completely understands what we are going through. He joins in our sorrows, and that is a great comfort to us.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How can you grieve with those who are grieving?

Joyful in Hope 5

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

I remember quite clearly when my father died more than 25 years ago. Our family, especially my mother, fell into incredible despair at his sudden passing. Those were dark days, a time when we felt abandoned and alone. We grieved for some time.

But eventually time moved on and we were able to go about life as best we could. In time I became aware that there was indeed a hope that we could all share. Although gone from this mortal life, my father had passed into an immortal life with Christ.

This passage from the first letter to the church at Thessalonica offers hope to those who may grieve or despair. What is the purpose of this writing? What do we as Christians believe?

I find it interesting that the comment is made that this proclamation of faith is intended to dispel any ignorance. Those who do not know Jesus are ignorant of the hope that we can all have.

The comment is made that we should not “grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” It does not say that we should not grieve. Grief, sorrow, sadness, times of depression are part of life and when we suffer a loss or are in distress we are going to experience this pain and sadness.

But our grief should not be a hopeless grief. Our grief should be a temporary state from which we rise with a hope. That hope is in the knowledge that Jesus died and rose again. And it follows, then, that if Jesus died and rose again, all who believe in him will also rise again, rise into an eternal life with God.

And that hope applies to all our worries and distress. We may need to spend some time being concerned over what is happening around us. We can feel discouraged by the financial turmoil of our society. We may be distressed over the attitudes and behaviors of people we see. We may even be experiencing the sorrows of losing a loved one.

But we must remember this feeling can be overcome. Our distress and troubles are overcome by the mercy and love of God. And that should present us with hope.

Having such hope should turn our sorrows and our worries into joy. It may be difficult to achieve, but we should be joyful because our hope is based on the firm, unshakable truth that we are loved by God and we are beneficiaries of Christ’s great mercy and sacrifice.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How might you still have hope even as you grieve?

Praotes 4

Isaiah 61:1

Sometimes when facing the difficulties of life, we don’t need a solution as much as we need a sympathetic ear. I have heard so often that when a person loses a loved one there is no way to stop the grief, but what is appreciated is when you grieve with them. So often gentleness – praotes – takes on small forms but has profound effect.

This passage from Isaiah is the passage Jesus read in the synagogue to let people know that he had come as the Messiah (Luke 4:16-21). What power is at work? For what purpose is he anointed? What is he sent to do?

This passage is not a prophecy of war and conquest. It is not a prediction of overwhelming change. The Spirit of God anoints so that good news can be preached. Freedom and release will be proclaimed, and those who are suffering sorrows – the broken-hearted – will not have their troubles removed or solved, but will be bound up, supported, encouraged.

All of these actions seem so simple, yet they will have an everlasting effect. This is the essence of praotes. Living out gentleness means doing the small, courteous things that God has taught us to do. Praotes is expressing God’s love in small ways, supporting, caring, and persisting in the agape love we share.

Praotes is being strong when others are weak. It is being a leader when others feel lost. But most importantly it is letting God be the One who is in control, rather than ourselves. Then we will know that the gentle things we do will truly help those in need.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How can you bind up the broken-hearted?