I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.
I believed, even when I said, “I am severely afflicted.”
– Psalm 116:9-10
And since we have the same spirit of faith in accordance with what is written, I believed, therefore I spoke, we also believe, and therefore speak, knowing that the One who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and present us with you.
-- 2 Corinthians 4:13-14
If you read the verses that precede the ones I’ve quoted from Second Corinthians, you will see that Paul is talking about going through a great trial. He speaks of being pressured, perplexed, persecuted, and pounded.
Every trial I have gone through in the last twenty-five or so years, I have come back to this chapter and read those earlier verses over and over again because, despite being troubled, we don’t have to be distressed. Though we are confused, we need not despair. Even in persecution, we are never abandoned, and being knocked down doesn’t mean we are wiped out. This is endurance. I think of myself as a person who can endure, endure almost anything. Endurance is a virtue – those who endure to the end shall be saved, the Lord tells us.
One who can persevere is like a deeply rooted oak facing the fierce gales of life, remaining strong and in place. Yet there is another way, for it is not only great trees that survive the winds, so do the birds that nest in their branches. Moreover, I have seen the great winged creatures, the hawks, vultures, and eagles face the storm winds and not simply endure but rise higher. A storm that is strong enough can often take down trees, but no wind can bring down the eagle that spreads his wings on its currents.
Endurance combined with an understanding faith enables us to not just survive life’s trials but to rise higher through them. As a kite needs a tail to conquer the winds, our perseverance needs to tie on faith in the face of challenges. That is what the Spirit of God adds to us here in this passage. The Apostle – unlike many who quote his words – knew the context of the statement, “I believed, therefore I spoke”. In the midst of great trouble and affliction, the Psalmist says, even then I believed.
I find that difficulty and stress leave me feeling drained, sometimes bitter, and often angry. This is especially true when the problems come piled one upon another upon another in a series that may repeat but never ends. Sure, I get through it. I endure because that’s what I do. But it is like punishment. I wonder what I’ve done wrong. I have no faith in the midst of my affliction. I know that because I have no joy. I am not rising. I’m not moving forward. I’m just locked down, holding my ground, hanging on and waiting for the tempest to pass but wondering if it ever will.
Is that enough? God says it is not. He says I can learn, if not to welcome, to still rejoice in the trial of my faith, to laugh when I used to growl. As much as I may doubt it at times, my Father wants my days to be filled with joy – not necessarily happiness. That’s only in the pursuit. Joy is the constant. I can live an abundant life – not the same as a life of abundance -- but not if I am just hanging on to a hair by a broken fingernail with my sanity in shreds, cursing my circumstances and misfortunes.
How do we get the tail on our kite? It begins by facing our afflictions and speaking the truth, in prayer, in song, out loud or in a whisper. Even though I am afflicted, I will say, “I still believe.” And the Lord lets out a little more string.
7 comments:
Even though I am afflicted, I will say, “I still believe.” And the Lord lets out a little more string.
Yes, every time.
Endurance, man do I need that at the moment. Most timely - thanks, Mushroom.
Exactly, I needed it the last couple of days or three days -- I've lost track. I had to ask what day it was yesterday.
And, Julie, if you drop back by, I read your "dear Mom". I was going to say that it was kind of like being on holy ground, but my screen went all blurry, and I had to back out.
Thanks, Mushroom. I almost said earlier that your post resonated with mine. I'm not sure why I was compelled to actually post the Dear Mom, only that maybe some other people needed the same message.
My mom and I had a really good talk yesterday about some bad times. Most of all, I don't want her ever to think that's all I remember of those days. Some others in my family, the bad is all they take out of the past, and it keeps them from living. They just get by, and the drama never ends. As much as possible, I try to take it all as it was, beautiful and awful and everything in between. I'm not perfect at it, not by a long shot. But in accepting all that as part of this holistic gift of life, I have been enriched beyond all imagining. I only wish more people I love could do the same.
Drama -- you know we use that almost like a cliche sometimes, but it reflects a profound reality. GB was talking about the theo-drama a while back, but people do so many things to try to add melodrama to life. It's silly.
My MIL took a little fall -- yes, she's pushing 90 so it's big deal, but nothing fractured. She's a little bruised up and sore. It takes a little longer to go away that it did when we were 30, or even at my age now.
The funny thing is she's moaning around and in Full Woe-Is-Me mode. I think she's almost disappointed that a bone didn't snap. That would have been some drama.
I got off track.
Yes, I was really moved by what I read. The idea that so much good can come out of very difficult circumstances is a truth I really need to hear right now.
We used to sing Isaiah 61:3 as a chorus:
He gives us beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise
for the spirit of heaviness;
That we might be trees of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord,
that He might be glorified
We give Him the ashes of our old suffering, and He gives us all the beauty of life.
You have my sympathies re. the melodrama, though I do hope she's feeling better soon. Of course, depending on the motive behind the drama, I guess that doesn't necessarily mean she'll be any easier to be around.
Sometimes it's hard, if not damn near impossible, to see the good in the midst of the bad. But there's almost always something. If you can just find that one thing, and give it a little tug, sometimes it starts to reel out like a loose bright strand from a piece of dark fabric, and bingo: there's your kite string.
Seems like this year has been a major rollercoaster for almost everyone in the raccoonosphere, one way or another. All of you guys are in my prayers.
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