I Believe! Help My Unbelief!

Origin Unknown

"And they brought him [the demon possessed boy] to Jesus. And when the SPIRIT saw Him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he FELL on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.

And JESUS asked the boy's father, "How long has this been HAPPENING to him?" And he said, "From childhood. And it has often CAST him into the fire and into water, to destroy him. But IF you can do anything, HAVE COMPASSION on us AND HELP US."

And Jesus said to him, "'If You can! All things are possible for one who believes." Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I BELIEVE! HELP MY UNBELIEF!" (Mark 9:20-24)

*  *  *

When the father prefaced his petition for Jesus to help his boy with the phrase, “If You can do anything…” he didn't mean any harm. But Jesus responds by repeating the father’s words to him, thereby making the man's unbelief glaringly clear for all to see. If? IF??? IF?!! What do you mean "if"? This is the Son of God you're talking to! Jesus was there when the world was created! He was born of a virgin! He raised the dead! He healed the sick! He calmed storms with a single word! What do you mean "IF He can do anything?" He can do everything!!!

Can’t He? Sometimes it’s easier to believe that God can’t help because it hurts too much to believe that He won’t. Perhaps this poor father was preparing himself for disappointment. Who can blame him? It was possible that not even Jesus of Nazareth would help his boy―nevermind could. Sometimes it’s easier to not believe than to believe and be let down. ...but sometimes "help" doesn't mean what we think does. 

When we're sick, we pray: “If it's God’s will, we'll get better,” but who among us isn't disappointed when it's not God’s will that we should get better? (Yeah, I'm fairly disappointed with that one myself). When a loved one dies, we pray, "It was God's will," but who doesn't cry because God's will was that they were taken from us too soon? When horrible things happen like earth quakes, terrorist attacks, and kindergarten massacres, we pray, "Please, LORD, help the victims," but which of us isn't wondering why God didn't help them sooner by stopping that terrible thing from happening in the first place?

Thank God our belief is the work of the Holy Spirit, not of our own. We believe as best we can, but it's painfully obvious that we need help. The Holy Spirit strengthens our belief through Word and Sacrament, through prayer, through worship, and even through these awful trials of ours and all our doubts and questions. The father of the possessed boy couldn't have known that, after his slip of the lip that included the tiny word "if," he would then utter one of the truest, most profound prayers in the Bible: "I BELIEVE! HELP MY UNBELIEF!"

Belief is a gift, but like all gifts, it's tainted by sin, and doubt is something we'll continue to fight until Jesus returns and all things are made right. So, in the meantime, we too must pray, “I believe! Help my unbelief!” trusting that our slips of the lip (and of the heart) are forgiven, and our ultimate prayer is already answered. We have already been helped.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Mark 9:24b:

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"I believe; -------> 5 count inhale

Help my unbelief." -------> 5 count exhale

For more on a lack of healing, click here.

Pausing on the Way to Salvation

"A great crowd gathered about JESUS. Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing Him, he fell at his feet and IMPLORED Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” And He went WITH him. ...And Jesus, perceiving in Himself that power had gone out from Him, immediately turned about... While He was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only Believe.” (read Mark 5:21-42 for full text)

*  *  *

There's another side to the Grasping at Hems story, that of a man named Jairus. Jairus was pulling Jesus along, trying to get the Lord to his house in time to save his daughter's life. Can you imagine Jairus’ anxiety as Jesus paused on the way to save his dying little girl? Can you imagine trying to pull Jesus through a crowd of thousands ― every single person among them wanting something from Him just as desperately as you do ― trying to get Him to your house in time to save your dying child?

And then Jesus pauses to save someone else. And while He's addressing this someone else, the little girl dies. It appeared to everyone as though Jesus was too late. The only one who wasn't worried, of course, was Him. He turns to Jairus and says, "Do not fear, only believe." When we read on, we see that, upon seeing the brokenhearted lament over the little girl's death, Jesus asks them quite earnestly why they were crying. After all, He knew that the little girl, though she had stopped breathing, was only sleeping.

That little girl died. And so do ours. And so do we, but Word and Sacrament work together so that we needn't fear, only believe. Jesus says to each of us at our child’s funeral, "Why are you weeping? Your child is not dead but sleeping." The same as He says to each of us on our chronic sick beds, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your disease."

We have to wait a while longer than Jairus and the bleeding woman did to see that beautiful promise completely fulfilled, but we needn't fear. Only believe. Jesus is just pausing on the way to your house. He knows you want Him to hurry, He feels you tugging on His arm, He sees you sobbing, but He also knows the proper time better than you do. Satan, sin, and death cannot hold you or your child forever because He’s defeated them all. He will return one day to set all things right, and until then, we have to wait, feeling all the anxiety and devastation of Jairus, but also his tearful belief as we look for the Resurrection of the Dead, and the Life of the World to Come. + Amen +

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Mark 5:36b

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"Do not fear, -------> 5 count inhale

only believe." -------> 5 count exhale

Grasping at Hems

"A GREAT CROWD followed JESUS and thronged about Him. And there WAS a woMan who'd had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had SUFFERED much under many physicians, and had spent ALL THAT she had, and was no better but RATHER grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind Him in the crowd and ToucHeD His garments. For she said, “IF I touch even HIS GarmenTs, I will be made well.” And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she FELT in her body that she was HEALED of her disease." (Mark 5:24-29)

*  *  *

I know this woman. I AM this woman: suffering under many physicians, spending all that I have and not only not getting better but getting worse, desperately following Jesus as one of thousands in a huge crowd, grasping for the hem of His garment, feeling as though my prayers go unheard in the din of thousands of others and all I want is a scrap, some minuscule shred of His attention so badly that I'm even willing even to steal it.

When I read this story, I'm so jealous of that woman who was healed completely on the spot that words fail me. Bitter tears come quickly when praying turns into wishing and believing turns into wanting. I WILL BE MADE WELL. I have to tell myself that every day. No, not perfectly, not yet. But "being made well" can mean a lot of things while we're stuck in this limbo of simultaneous sinners and saints, and wellness doesn't have to include a physical cure.

So in the meantime, I'm grasping at every hem Jesus offers. In our BAPTISM, we are covered in that wonderful healing garment of His: completely restored and made new, right with God the Father, forgiven, and healed. In the EUCHARIST, Jesus gives us His own body and blood for the forgiveness of sins: an opportunity to partake of His all-atoning sacrifice of an innocent life out of love for us. Through SCRIPTURE, the Holy Spirit works His faith in us so that each of us can say with absolute confidence, "If I touch even His garments, I will be made well."

Do I want to feel in my body that I am healed right now? So badly that despite all my pretty words, those bitter tears still sting these exhausted eyes of mine from time to time. But I am content to follow the throng a little while longer. I just need to be reminded of that now and again.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Psalm 126:5

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"Those who sow in tears -------> 5 count inhale

shall reap with joy." -------> 5 count exhale

ABOUT THIS BLOG

And the Truth Will Set You Free

"So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered Him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, "You will become free’?" Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." (John 8:31-36)

Being a "slave to sin" doesn't just mean that we can't help but do bad things and think bad thoughts. We can't, but it also means that every single one of us who practices sin (i.e. every single one of us) is a slave to the results of sin. We are slaves to our ill-working bodies, to pain and suffering, the pangs of broken hearts and the agony of rejection. It's a fact made all too clear to me as I find myself once again shackled to this wretched I.V. filled with $8,000 worth of medication that creates nearly as much pain as it cures while I endure 5 hours of blood pressure spikes and leg-migraines. And as I watch this liquid that's literally worth more than gold make its way into my reluctant veins, I wonder: Do I have to wait for death to be set free?

Yes and no. Yes, I will be cured in heaven, but right here and now, I am as free to be miserable as I am free to be content. I am free to hate this stupid life of mine and everything that's gone wrong in it, and I am free to love it AND all the suffering it's heaped upon my shoulders.

That's Christians for you: free to be happy in misery. Who else can boast of that quality?? ...who else would want to? Suffering is a factual part of everyone's life, Christian or not, and I'd rather be happy with it than miserable because of it. Of course, it doesn't always work that way. Fortunately, I'm also free to be reminded that for crying out loud, my life isn't that bad. Lots of people have to be tethered to I.V.'s several times a week. Haven't you ever heard the saying, "I cried because I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet"? It's not from the Bible (Wikipedia claims it's either Persian or Russian in origin), but it's a good adage to ponder nonetheless.

Yeah, I should be content no matter what my lot, and not just because my lot could be worse. Jesus has secured my salvation, and nothing else should matter. SHOULD. As my college debate coach so often scolded in his best I-love-you-but-you're-kind-of-an-idiot tone, "Don't turn an ought into an is." If nothing else did matter to me, I wouldn't need Jesus in the first place. But the truth is I am a slave to sin. The truth also is: for the times when I'm not content, for the times when I so foolishly cling to the old, comfy security blanket of "Woe Is Me" and glare at my I.V. with tears in my eyes, there is forgiveness.

That's the TRUTH that sets us free. So, feel free to cry about your lot now and again. After all, it still hurts to have no shoes, I don't care how many feet you've been blessed with. Things are other than they ought to be, and that reality hurts enough to make the Son of God Himself cry (see the post "Lord, If You Had Been Here"). Today, I will open up my Difficult Day Box and wait for the good feelings to gradually replace the bad like they always do. Free? Indeed.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from John 8:32b

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"The truth -------> 5 count inhale

will set you free." -------> 5 count exhale

First in Rags

“And as Jesus was praying, the appearance of His face was altered, and His clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were talking with Him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His departure, which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:29-31)

For that fleeting moment, Jesus looked how we would expect the Son of God to look: dazzlingly bright, standing in a cloud with Moses and Elijah while God's booming voice commanded that we listen to Him. Peter wanted to stay there. He didn’t know what he was saying because he didn't understand the departure Jesus would accomplish at Jerusalem. He didn't understand the necessity for Jesus to give up His throne in heaven, His glory, in order that we all might be transfigured.

Peter didn't understand that this beautiful, dazzling Messiah had to die a sinner's death. Who would? Peter wanted to stay on that mountain because there was the God he expected. There was the God we all expected.

I tell you what: I don't look saved. Inside or out. I don't feel like an heir to the Kingdom of God. I don't look like someone the Son of God would die for, someone God the Father would give His only Son for. I don't feel like someone God loves.

Appearances (and feelings) can be deceiving. I am someone God loves. You are someone God loves. But for the time being, our true baptized selves are hidden in rags of our own: a body that's ravaged by crosses just like Jesus' was. Because He was ravaged, we too will be transfigured into dazzling bright, beautiful people of God one day and for good, but like Peter, we have to wait a little longer before we can stay in that heavenly cloud.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Romans 5:6b

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"Christ died -------> 5 count inhale

for the ungodly." -------> 5 count exhale

The Potter and the Clay

“We all fade like a leaf,

and our iniquities, like the wind,
take us away.

There is no one who calls
upon Your name,

who rouses himself to take hold of You;

for You have hidden
Your face from us,

and have made us melt
in the hand of our iniquities.

But now, O Lord, You are our Father

we are the clay, and You are our potter;

we are all the work of Your hand.
(Isaiah 64:6b-8)

It is easy to forget that God made us, especially when we hate the body He made for us. Then again, Adam and Eve had perfect bodies, and that didn't work out so well for them, did it. They had God’s love and all the wonderful things that go with it: food, total safety, complete health, happiness, each other. No worries. No stress. They knew God face to face. They had conversations with Him, walked with Him and talked with Him like that old hymn says ("In the Garden" by Charles Austin Miles, 1912), and they probably laughed with Him, too. And they threw it all away because they wanted more. Don't make the same mistake.

God turned Adam and Eve out of the Garden for their sin against Him, but He didn't turn them out of His love. His love is Christ, and His Love came to save us all from that very same sin of wanting more than Love, of good enough not being enough. Jesus died for that sin: the sin that belongs Adam and Eve, the sin that belongs to the world, the sin that belongs to you and to me, the sin where we all forget what's RIGHT and TRUE and PERFECT and seek something more... something that doesn't exist.

We'll never get it exactly right. I know I'll never be “happy” with this diseased body of mine, gift though it may be. And so we thank God above all things for the sacrifice of His one and only Son because here in our imperfect world with our imperfect bodies, that alone gives us peace and contentedness, along with the knowledge that God's unshakable LOVE for us made the sinners saints, the weak strong, the dead live, the blind see, the hungry eat, the lame walk, the sad laugh, the sick healthy, and our broken hearts whole again.

God's LOVE made a poor baby born in a manger King and clay is something to be loved. I'm not a mistake. I'm not meaningless. I'm not disgusting. I'm living proof of the Gospel of Christ. How can I hate that?

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay,

to show that the surpassing power belongs to God

and not to us. For we who live are always

being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that

the life of Jesus also may be
manifested in our mortal flesh.

So death is at work in us, but life in you.” 

(2 Corinthians 4:7, 11-12)

Sinking Like the Rock

"The boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid." Peter answered Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." Jesus said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.

But when Peter saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him, saying, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped Him, saying,“Truly You are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:24-33)

*  *  *

I love it when we see that the disciples were ordinary people. A ghost. Seriously? Ha! And then they screamed. Silly Apostles. Jesus truly was the most patient man on earth. To be fair, He was walking on the water, which is a fairly ghostly thing to do, I suppose.

But in all seriousness, how much are we like Peter? We know all of it, don't we. The whole story: Jesus died for our sins, baptism saves us, the Eucharist gives us the forgiveness of sins, love undying, life everlasting... Yet, how often do we begin to sink with fear as the troubles of the world engulf us like a raging, dark and uncontrollable sea? And there's Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God Himself, standing right in front of us as plain as day, but it still feels like we’re drowning.

Jesus knows that about us. He died for that part of us. He knew that about Peter before Peter even stepped out of the boat. That's why, when Peter began to sink in his own fear, "Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him, saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" (Matthew 14:31). Peter's faith wasn't any more perfect than yours or mine is even though he saw the Christ in person. He believed enough to get out of the boat in the middle of the sea, and even enough to take a few steps--which is remarkable in itself--but his doubt crept in nonetheless, and he started to sink.

And even though, at the end of this whole ordeal, the disciples in the boat worshiped Jesus and confessed that He truly is the Son of God, it wasn't the end of their doubting. Eh, Thomas? Remember what Peter does to Jesus at the crucifixion. He denies Him three times. STILL. And still, he is forgiven because Jesus died for that sin, too. Our faith waxes and wanes because we're sinful. Period. Thank God Jesus' faith never fails. That's why Peter's confession, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!" (Matthew 16:16) is the foundation on which the church is built, not Peter himself. 

So take heart. Jesus isn't going to let your head go under either. He's got you, but sometimes in order to know who the Son of God really is, we have to sink a little first.

Suggested verse to repeat when you feel like you're drowning is from Isaiah 43:2a

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

“When you pass through the waters,” -------> 5 count inhale

I will be with you.” -------> 5 count exhale

Great Weakness

"And they came to Capernaum. And when Jesus was in the house He asked them, "What were you discussing on the way?" But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. Jesus sat down and called the twelve. And He said to them, "If anyone would be FIRST, he must be LAST of all and servant of all." And He took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in His arms, He said to them, "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but Him who sent me." (Mark 9:33-37)

Silly disciples. If you're too ashamed to tell Jesus what you've been talking about, odds are you shouldn't be talking about it. Scripture tells us—as well as shows us—that true greatness is unrecognizable to the world. When the greatness of God came to earth in the form of a poor, infant boy, not even those closest to that greatness recognized Him for who He was. When Jesus said His greatness would be found in torture and death, no one believed Him. In fact, most of them left Him at the idea of it. It didn’t make sense. How can the greatest power in the heaven and earth be so weak as to die?

Likewise, we look around at the glimpses of heaven on earth today and don’t recognize them for what they are. The BODY & BLOOD of Jesus in plain everyday bread and wine at the Eucharist. The FORGIVENESS of SINS is given through plain everyday water and the Word of God. We are SAVED by God but remain poor, weak, sick, lonely, and sad as we ever were. We are REDEEMED but still sinful; HEALED but still sick; MADE WHOLE but still so very empty.

Greatness doesn't come from some innate quality of our own, just like salvation doesn't come from being happy and comfortable. And thank God for that because after nearly 10 years of on-and-off (mostly on) illness, there is objectively nothing great about me. And yet, some of the sickest people I've met have also been the strongest. That was the mistake the disciples made. Greatness isn't being the smartest, the best looking, the most eloquent, or the healthiest. True greatness is freely given to us by God alone, and in that greatness we are all EQUAL: from the richest king in the world to the lowliest orphan to you and me. God loves us all equally and completely.

So, which one is the greatest? Jesus is, so thank God for that and relax.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Psalm 54:4a

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"Behold -------> 5 count inhale

God is my helper." -------> 5 count exhale

Such a Worm as I

Alas! And did my Savior bleed, and did my Sovereign die? Would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I? Well might the sun in darkness hide and shut His glories in When God, the mighty Maker, died for man the creature's sin.

"Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed"

a hymn by Isaac Watts, 1674-1748

A worm? Really? That's a little harsh. We all make mistakes, but... I suppose I have days when I feel a bit more wormy than like a person. Usually after a few sick days in a row, I start to feel pretty worthless. Sickness and injury aside, we've all lost a job or been denied one, been dumped unexpectedly or blindsided by a divorce, yelled at by someone, or made some mistake that still causes our stomachs to lurch. 

Remember: Jesus loved you before you were redeemed. Otherwise, why would He have bothered to redeem you? 

So, if you should happen to feel more worm than man today, remember what you're worth: the Son of God. Feel guilty that such an innocent man and God had to suffer for you. We all ought to because we all are. But know you are loved no matter what. We all ought to because we all are.

God commands us to forgive as we have been forgiven (Colossians 3:13), and that means understanding that we've been forgiven, too.

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 

For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—

though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—

but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us."

Romans 5:6-8

Divine Whac-a-Mole

"IS ANYONE AMONG YOU SUFFERING? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. AND THE PRAYER OF FAITH WILL SAVE THE ONE WHO IS SICK, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. THE PRAYER OF THE RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS GREAT POWER AS IT IS WORKING." (James 5:13-16)

"Grace," 1918
by Eric Enstrom

Before I got sick, I worked in hospital emergency rooms as a deaconess. My job was to stay with the family while doctors and nurses rushed to save a loved one who'd either suddenly gotten sick or had been in an accident. I'd sit with them, bring them tissues, water, blankets, and coffee, call other family members for them, and I'd keep them updated on their loved one’s progress as best I could. But mostly, I'd PRAY. I'd pray that their loved one would be all right, and I'd listen as they fervently begged God to spare the life of their loved one, as they pleaded with Him and offered Him anything in return for their loved one's recovery. Sometimes the payers worked, and sometimes they didn't. The unending circle of tragedy and prayer seemed more like a game of Divine Whac-a-Mole than anything else, as my husband has so colorfully put it.

My prayers didn't have any more effect over the dying person's fate than the doctors and nurses seemed to have. In fact, it's very safe to say I had less. So all the times my prayers didn't work... Was I doing it wrong? Eh, James? Wasn't I faithful enough for my prayer to reach God's ears? Should I have meditated a little more on God's word before I asked Him for a favor? Did I need to go to confession first? Was my lack of faith the reason these people died??? Me, me, me, I, I, I... I'm just not that important. Nothing I can do, be, or say will make God do what I want Him to do, I don't care how “full of faith” I am. That's not what James is saying: God is not a vending machine.

Think about it: what's at the heart of all our prayers? Save me. Spare me. Give me five more minutes with my Mom. I need my Dad. I can't live without my wife. Help me keep my home, my job. Heal my brother, my child... Help me, O LORD. SAVE US. (Psalms 30, 38, 40, 70, 109...)

You guessed it. He did: on the cross. Unfortunately, in order to be raised up, we have to die first, just like Jesus did. So, is it possible that perhaps "to save" doesn't necessarily mean "to heal physically"? Yikes. That was a hard one for me to accept. I want to define everything: healing, salvation, help, love, peace... as being synonymous with comfortable because I want to be comfortable all the time. I don't want to be sad or to suffer, and I don't want anyone else to either, especially those I love. But like a child with an affinity for Mountain Dew, what I want isn't always what is right.

So, why bother praying at all then? Well, don't bother if you think you can change God's mind with the right combination of words and lack of doubt. That would not be a righteous prayer. Pray because God invites us to. He invites us to ask Him for what we want and to let Him know how it kills us when we don't get it, but He also commands us to remember that He is God and we are not.

When we're sick or hurting, we can think of nothing better than to not be sick or hurting anymore. When our loved one is dying: our child, our husband, our wife, we can think of nothing better than them getting better and remaining with us here on earth. God knows that about us. Jesus died for our narrow minds, but Scripture tells us continually that there IS something better than physical health and physical life: the love of God, safe and secure because Jesus died to secure it for us. So, when God's answer to our prayer is “no,” we have to bite our lip, nod resolutely, and with all the tears and disappointment in the world, we have to remember the only prayer that really truly matters has already been answered with a great big “YES!” The prayer of the faithful WILL save us. The prayer of the faithful HAS saved us: “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.” (Jesus in Luke 23:34)

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is Luke 22:42b

Pain Rehab buddies, remember to breathe!

"Nevertheless, not my will, -------> 5  count inhale

but Yours be done." -------> 5 count exhale

ABOUT THIS BLOG

The Slippery Places

"Truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
But as for me: my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had nearly slipped,
For I was envious of the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
They have no pangs until death;
their bodies are fat and sleek.
They are not in trouble as others are;
they are not stricken like the rest of mankind.
When I thought how to understand this,
it seemed to me a wearisome task,
Until I went into the sanctuary of God;
then I discerned their end.
Truly You set them in slippery places;
You make them fall to ruin.
How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept away utterly by terrors!
Like a dream when one awakes."
     Psalm 73:1-5, 17-20a

I wouldn't wish my situation on anyone, but I don't know that I would trade it for an easier one either. What would I think of God's love if I didn't suffer? ... I don't know that I would think of it at all.

It's probably a useless thing to ponder because, in any event, where I would be without my suffering is nothing compared to where I would be without His.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Psalm 73:28

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"I have made the LORD God ------- 5 count inhale

my refuge." -------> 5 count exhale

The Enigma of Job #2

“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man! I will question you, and you will answer ME! Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?!” (Job 38:3-4a)

Poor Job. In the middle of his demands to talk to God face to face and plead his case of innocence, God actually showed up. Can you imagine? If God actually showed up every time I demanded answers from Him... *shudder* ...I don't even want to think about it. And boy, was God ever angry.

Don't get Him wrong: it wasn't Job's lamenting of, "This hurts! I can't do this! Please take the pain away!" that got to God. We're invited to "by prayer and supplication make our requests known to God" (Philippians 4:6b). No, it was the whining of, "I don't deserve this," and "God's wrong for doing this to me," that necessitated an intervention. We can see Job's point, can't we? His suffering was the product of a bet between God and Satan. How much less deserving can you get that that? I've been driven to that same point once or twice. It's a natural(ly sinful) place for our hearts and minds to go when we're bombarded with bad luck, hardships, and suffering: WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS??? NOTHING!!!

...um, everything? Job's assumption that he was blameless was a sin. No one is righteous apart from Christ. Me? Oh, I'm certainly not assuming I'm anywhere near blameless, believe me, but am I really this much to blame? Well, yeah. On the one hand, we all deserve suffering, and to what degree is notwithstanding: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 2:23). But on the other and more important hand, what we deserve isn't the point. And thank God for that. God is not punishing us. He doesn't work that way because Jesus died for the sin of the world and the sins of everyone in it. God wasn't punishing Job. On the contrary, Job got a much-needed chance to repent, and repent he did. He realized that he needed a savior just as much as the next guy (see The Enigma of Job #1). But that wasn't the only point to Job's suffering.

Pierre-Paul Prud'hon 
"Crucifixion"
1822

Do you think Job—all covered in boils and ashes and being yelled at by God—ever dreamed he'd be in the Bible? But he is. He's part of that beautiful Means of Grace and a comfort throughout the ages. And of course, there is Jesus: the number one point to all suffering everywhere. Yes, Jesus died for Job, too. (We can get into the whole retro-activity of the crucifixion, which occurred both within time and outside of time some other... er time). That means Jesus took on Job's suffering, and Job then participated in a small part of Jesus' suffering in his trials.

I don't know what our individual lessons are or if there are any. I really don't, but I do know that God promises our suffering isn't for nothing. No, none of us will end up in the Bible: that's already been written from beginning to end. But God knows what comfort, what hope, what peace we can bring when people look at us in our sorry states and we simply point to the cross, and we know it too. So, maybe the chance to repent isn't the point for you. Maybe your suffering has nothing to do with you. Maybe your hardship is for the sake of someone else altogether, for a purpose greater than you can even imagine.

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is Psalm 119:169b

PRC buddies, remember to breathe!

"Give me understanding -------> 5 count inhale

according to Your Word." -------> 5 count exhale

For more on Job, click here.

Left Imprisoned

origin unknown

"Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because John had been saying to him, "It is not LAWFUL for you to have her." And though he wanted to put him TO DeaTh, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet. But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter." And the king was sorry, BUT because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. He sent and had John BeHeaDeD in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. And his disciples came and TOOK THE body and buried it, AND they went and told Jesus. Now when Jesus heard this, He withdrew to a desolate place by Himself..." (Matthew 14:3-13a)

*  *  *

John seems to have gotten the seriously short end of the stick here. Let’s think back for a moment to Luke 4:16-19 where Jesus promised to free the captives. Well, no one was more captive than John locked up in Herod's prison, and he wasn't set free. What's more, John was on a first name basis with the Christ; they were friends even while still in the womb! (Luke 1:39-45) While in prison, John heard of Jesus' miraculous works, and he sent messengers to Jesus, asking, “Are You the One who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Jesus’ answer? His answer was to perform more miracles for others, to heal people who were sick, proving that indeed He was the one to come, that the Kingdom of God was finally present on earth (Matthew 11:2-6).

All the while, John remained right where he was: in prison until Herod finally killed him.

John did everything he was supposed to do. He was the man who baptized Jesus. He paved the way for the Savior, preaching a baptism of repentance. He didn't take the glory for himself but rather reminded people that he was not the one to come, but One greater than himself was coming, whose sandals he was not worthy to carry (Matthew 3). But Jesus, who has all the power in the world at His very fingertips, did nothing to save him.

...or did He? Sometimes I feel like I'm left imprisoned while those around me are healed and set free, just waiting for some floozy to demand my head be served to her on a platter. Then I remember that John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin and friend, was also left to suffer. And I remember that Jesus, who has all the power in the world, did everything to save John, and He has done everything to save me, even unto death.

And so, just as He died to save us, being "saved" by Him likewise doesn't mean that we're spared the pangs of death. Jesus took on the sin of the world, and although John the Baptist did what he was supposed to do, he was not sinless. Jesus took on John’s sin, too. Jesus took on my sin and yours. He died for John, for you, and for me willingly because He loves us. John was captive in almost every sense of the word, but he was also free in the only way that matters: his life, like ours, was ransomed by Christ. And when our heads are served up on those platters, literal or proverbial, Jesus withdraws to a desolate place by Himself. In sadness? Perhaps. But most certainly in joyful anticipation of a conversation with us face to face, His brothers and sisters whom He died for.

So, how can someone be simultaneously free and imprisoned? Why, the same way we can be simultaneously saint and sinner of course: temporarily. We were all of us set free on the Cross of Christ. Upon Jesus' return, John the Baptist, too, will be raised up, alive, head intact, and free, and I shall have a little golden colon. :)

Suggested verse to repeat if it's a difficult day is from Romans 8:25

Pain Rehab buddies, remember to breathe!

"We wait for it -------> 5 count inhale

with patience." -------> 5 count exhale