Good afternoon friends and family of Franklin Park Church.
Well…. the weather seems to have finally broken into more comfortable temperatures on a permanent basis. The birds are singing for our pleasure and the grass is growing so we can cut it what seems to be just about every other day.
Our family has just returned from vacationing in Hilton Head where we had at least a few days of nice weather before the clouds rolled in for the week. But the boys didn’t seem to mind much just as long as they got to spend a bunch of hours on the beach with their toy dump trucks and backhoes….and Mom and Dad. I was also blessed to spend some time with my eldest son and grandson who drove over from Atlanta to spend a few days with us. Lots of food, lots of love, lots of conversation and lots of waves….at least for my eldest son who is less afraid of the ocean than I am.
I have this ‘thing’ about the ocean. To me, it’s nothing but a wet jungle. Maybe even worse than the jungle. At least I can ‘see’ into the jungle. But the ocean is dark and foreboding….AND I am a big sissy my son tells me. My argument (which I believe at least holds ocean water) is that since I would not go into the jungle (which I can see) where dangerous animals lurk, there is NO chance I am going into a wet jungle with dangerous animals that I can’t see. And helicopters flying overhead checking the shoreline for my safety only seem to make me feel worse. Besides, if a helicopter had to fly over my bathtub for safety purposes; I would not get in THAT water either.
Of course, later that evening I learned that exactly one resort over, a ten-year-old boy had been bitten by an 11-foot black tip shark. This is what had prompted the National Guard choppers I heard only hours earlier. Case Closed! No more going in the ocean! But the news report later that evening only made me feel even more lame when the ten-year-old boy who was bitten earlier in the day proudly raised his bandages to the camera and stated to his interviewer, “The best way to deal with this is to get back into the water as soon as possible.” I think I speak for all of us when I truly thank God this kid is OK for the sake of him and his entire family….but I could have certainly done without the embarrassing reproof from a ten year old And besides, he is going to be the envy of all the boys in his class this year when all the girls swoon over his bravery.
Sometimes there are things in life that can seem to come out of the deep, out of nowhere, and interrupt what had been, only moments before, perfect sunshine and bliss on the beach. They come like an F-5 tornado on a clear and sunny day. A bad report from the Doctor; a spouse asking for a separation, a boss telling you it’s time to clear your desk. These are times when we are hurt. But sometimes we hurt others; perhaps you are caught in an affair, or your child finds out that you are an alcoholic, or that you have been gambling away the family business at the casino and light has come to shine upon your misdeeds….these are the times that test us and prove us. We are hurt by or hurt someone else deeply. How should we respond? A biblically informed worldview is the only place to turn for the believer.
The apostle and brother of our Lord writes in James 1: 2-4, Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Even unbelievers understand this concept and capitalize on it every day. Ask a successful businessman at what stage in his career he learned the most valuable lessons and he will almost invariably admit that it was during times of hardship. These are the times in which he learned valuable lessons. But the unbeliever is busy learning lessons to become better, stronger, richer and faster.
But God is about producing something else in HIS people besides a stiff upper lip and the ability to move in an upwardly mobile fashion in business or political spheres. The apostle Paul writes in Romans 5:3-4, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Did you hear that? God is about the business of changing our character, not merely our circumstances so we can improve our current station in life.
The apostle Peter adds in 1Peter 4:12-14, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”
The Bible clearly teaches that suffering is a natural part of the Christian experience. Jesus even tells us that we should EXPECT suffering, but that we should not be overcome with fear or anxiety since He has overcome the world. (John 16:33 pp) And furthermore, we are in covenant relationship with a heavenly Father because of the sufferings of this same Jesus and are called to participate in his suffering for His name sake.
Suffering and anxiety are part of the human experience. They are real hurts and real pains and we are never called to pretend like they are not happening. But only believers have the promises of a heavenly Father who is looking out for them and using suffering to produce in them the very likeness of the His only begotten son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For we read in 1John 3:2, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
Let these things marinate in your heart as you face trials and tribulations and may the God of mercy, peace and consolation reign in your hearts.
With much love and affection,
Pastor George