Hope When You're Hopeless

“For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!”
– 2 Corinthians 4:17

Saturday must’ve felt pretty hopeless for Jesus’ disciples. There they are – a group of men sitting in a small room, huddled together behind a locked door unsure of what the future holds. They are devastated because their leader is gone. They are scared because of fear that leaders will come after them because of their association with him. They are unsure of what will happen next. They are confused because they don’t understand how all of his teachings and miracles and interactions with others have led to what they see as the end. Yeah, he had talked about what would happen, but as Luke tells us, the disciples “didn’t understand” and “failed to grasp what he was talking about” (Luke 18:34). What hopelessness must’ve filled that room on that day so long ago.

Have you ever felt hopeless like that before – unsure of what happens next, of where to go from here, or of how you carry on? I think we all have at some point and time in our lives. Life is full of times where we didn’t see things coming or we are filled with some of the same emotions that Jesus’ disciples had in that locked room. But life – especially the Christian life – is about rising above those feelings of hopelessness and putting our hope in Christ and the fact that He is in control and His ways are higher than ours. He’s not going to leave us hopeless and helpless – His Word is filled with instances of providing us with hope – Deuteronomy 31:6, Psalm 62, Psalm 91, Philippians 4:6-7, Isaiah 41:10, Isaiah 43:2, Jeremiah 29:11, Matthew 6:25-34, John 10:27-29, Romans 8:31, and the list could and does go on and on and on.

As Christians, it’s because of Jesus’ resurrection that His hope is ours for the taking (when we ask Him). The disciples didn’t have that understanding, but WE DO! We don’t have to stay behind a locked door in despair or fear or confusion or hopelessness because we don’t know what will happen next – we can know and depend on the fact that our HOPE is built on nothing less than Christ and His righteousness! Yes, we mess up and we fail Him and yes, there will still be days where we will still feel hopeless, but we can know and trust and believe that our Savior is a gentle and compassionate friend who is there to take our troubles and fill us with His incredible, merciful, and undeserving love and hope.

If I could go back in time to that locked room where the disciples were all huddled together, I’d share with them 2 Corinthians 4, ending with the beautiful picture of hope that is promised in verses 17 & 18 – “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” What HOPE!

Forsaken for Me

"About three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 'Eli, Eli, lena sabachthani?' (which means 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?')" - Matthew 27:46

Loneliness and abandonment are situations that most people hate enduring.  Feeling like you don't belong and that you're forgotten can bring even the most strong-minded person down in a deep, dark valley full of tears, hurt, and depression.  Thankfully, we know that no matter what we go through in this life, Jesus is our constant and ever-present friend that sticks closer than any brother ever could (and maybe even would).  We don't have to fear being completely forsaken in this life because we know Jesus will be there to walk with us through ever single moment - good or bad.

Can you stop and imagine, however, if Jesus wasn't there for us during our hardest moments?  If you're like me, you probably don't want to even imagine it.  To imagine going through pain and hardship completely and utterly alone seems like more than I could ever endure.  Yet someone did just that...and it is the very person that is with each one of us during our pain and hardship - our precious Savior, Jesus.

Matthew 27 outlines - in detail - the events leading up to the death of Christ.  He endured far more than hardship...He endured torture and agony.  He was accused of lying, when all His words were complete truth.  He was mocked by those who, just days earlier, had praised Him.  He was scourged and beaten and forced to carry part of the cross to which He would soon be nailed.  As hard as all of this is for us to even read, none of it compared to the torment of abandonment Christ felt as He was breathing His final breaths.  Matthew writes that around 3:00 in the afternoon, Jesus yelled to His Father, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46).  While this was actually a portion of a Psalm that Christ was quoting (Psalm 22:1), I don't think He was saying this to "just" quote Scripture, I believe that when Jesus said this, He meant it with every fiber in His being.  The torture of having to endure this horrendous suffering alone was now a reality for Jesus - He was completely alone with people laughing at his demise, with blood pouring from his head, hands, and feet, and with death waiting right around the corner.  And God wasn't - really He couldn't be - there.  That is scarier than any horror movie could ever be.

God still loved His Son, He just couldn't be there for Him because God knew that this action and the feelings - all the feelings - associated with it were a necessary step in the redemption of mankind.  As humans, sin separates us from God, and as we learn in Romans 6:23, the punishment for sin is death - eternal separation from God.  When Jesus was nailed to the cross, He took that punishment for us which meant He had to endure it - being separated from everyone and every.single.thing.  So when Jesus was on the cross crying out in a loud voice this portion of Scripture, it wasn't just a repeating of a verse He had learned as a child in Hebrew AWANAs, it was a proclamation of how He felt at that exact moment.

My NLT Study Bible commentary states, "Jesus was not questioning God; he was quoting the first line of Psalm 22 - a deep expression of the anguish he felt when he took on the sins of the world, which caused Him to be separated from His Father.  This was what Jesus dreaded as he prayed to God in the garden to take the cup from him (26:39).  The physical agony was horrible, but even worse was the period of spiritual separation from God.  Jesus suffered this double death so that we would never have to experience eternal separation from God."

As hard as being forsaken by others may feel to us, Jesus is the one constant we have to depend on - always.  Jesus had no one.  He was forsaken so we wouldn't ever have to be.  What a friend we have in Jesus!  

As you reflect on this past Easter weekend, I hope you will continue to take to heart the sacrifice Jesus has made just for you.  He sacrificed everything - His relationships, His emotion, His identity, and His life - all so you wouldn't have to endure eternal separation from God and be alone for eternity.  He loves you THAT much.

If you are struggling with feeling forsaken or abandoned by others or someone in particular, remember Jesus' last words on earth and let them be an encouragement to you as you walk through this lonely time - "And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20b).

Below is a video clip of the song that inspired this blog post...one of my favorite songs that has ministered to me so strongly over the past few months.

Believing the Unbelievable

Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." – John 20:29

Have you ever had to just see something for yourself in order to believe it?  100 people could tell you that the sky is most certainly green, but unless you actually see for yourself that the sky is indeed green, there’s no way on earth you are going to believe them because it’s impossible for the sky to be anything but blue. 

For just a moment, put yourself in the shoes (okay…sandals) of the followers of Jesus during the time of His crucifixion, death, and burial.  Think for a moment about the wide range of emotions you would be feeling – grief and loss at the death of such a great Teacher, anger at those who had betrayed him, confusion that someone who claimed to be the Savior seemingly hadn’t saved anyone, among other emotions.  You’re sitting there wondering what to do next and all of a sudden someone runs into your house and tells you, “Jesus is risen from the dead!”  Would you take their word for it or would you have to see it to believe?

On the third day after Jesus’ death, a group of women traveled to his tomb to anoint his body.  When they arrived, they discovered that the tomb was open and that Jesus’ body was gone!  Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to them and said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee’” Matthew 28:5-7. 

Following the angel’s instructions to the letter, they rush back to Jesus’ disciples and tell them this miraculous news.  Luke 24:9-11, “When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others.  It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.  But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense.”  I’m sure those words seemed like nonsense to the disciples because they watched Jesus take his last breath and die on the cross.  Many were probably there when Jesus’ body was carried to and placed in the tomb.  To hear that Jesus’ body was gone and that an angel had stated that He had risen from the dead was just so far out of the realm of possibility that unless they saw for themselves, they weren’t going to believe an ounce of what these women were telling them.

Sure enough, a few of the disciples decided to see for themselves if what the women were saying was true.  “So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first” John 20:3-4.  I’m sure beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were running…this was virtually unbelievable.  A casual stroll to the tomb wouldn’t cut it…the faster one got there, the faster one would see if this was true or not.  The disciples made it to the tomb and what do they discover?  Sure enough, the stone was rolled away from the door and the strips of cloth that had covered Jesus’ body were lying right where His body had been!

Now was it at this moment that the disciples believed Jesus had risen?  Well, not really.  The only one that truly believed was John, “Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They [the other disciples] still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead)” John 20:8-9. As for the others, what evidence had they really seen?  Really just pieces of cloth that any thief could have set up.  No angel greeted them when they walked in the tomb.  No note that said “Hey guys, I rose from the dead!  Sincerely, Jesus.”  Nothing.  There was seemingly no factual information to back up the women’s claims that Jesus had risen….until later that night.

For some of us it takes actual proof to believe something…it was no different for Jesus’ disciples.  That same night, they got their actual proof.  Locked away in a house, confused and afraid that people would think it was they that stole His body, the disciples had an unexpected visitor that didn’t come through any window or door.  “Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you!' After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord” John 20:19-20. Okay so this had to be a moment where everyone’s mouths fell squarely on the floor.  I mean, can’t you just see this in your head?!  This was Jesus…beyond a shadow of a doubt.  It couldn’t be an imposter and it couldn’t be his long-lost twin…why?  Because He showed them the piercings in His hands and side…the same piercings they had watched Him receive on the cross.  Everything was true!  They believed! ….well, all except for one.

Good ‘ole Thomas…he didn’t make it to this particular Sunday night meeting (guess He thought He could watch it on live streaming….joking, jokin!! Ha ha!).  Anyway, when the disciples told him what had happened, he said, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in His hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side” John 20:25.  Another doubter…another “I have to see it to believe it” person.  Several days later, when they were all together again, Thomas got his proof.  “Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe’” John 20:26-27.  The look on Thomas’ face at that exact moment had to be one of surprise and also embarrassment.  Surprise because truly Jesus was risen!  Embarrassment because he was wrong, the others were right, and Jesus had just called him out in front of everyone.  But what Jesus says next to him is one of the most poignant statements of this whole evening.  Jesus says, “You believe because you have seen me.  Blessed are those who believe without seeing me” John 20:29.

This Easter season remember, fellow Christians, that you have been blessed by Jesus Himself.  How?  Because you believe He rose from the dead, but didn’t need to see Him to form that belief.  Maybe there are some of you, though, like Thomas who need to “see it to believe it.”  All I can tell you is why I believe what I believe and pray you will see how this is all the proof and evidence needed to believe the unbelievable.  For me personally, I believe because the inspired, infallible Word of God tells me so.  I’m taking the Word’s word for it if that makes any sense! :)  John 20:31 says, “These are written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.”  I also believe because I’ve seen the Spirit of Jesus shine through the stories and experiences of other believers.  2 Corinthians 4:6 says, “For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.”  I mean who else could take someone whose life was falling apart and turn it into something beautiful?  Not a dead man, that’s for sure. 

JESUS IS ALIVE!  HE IS RISEN! And you know what?!  I don’t need to see it to believe it!

...But Joy Comes in the Morning

"Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” – Psalm 30:5

The day after Jesus’ death had to have been an intensely difficult day for the followers of Jesus.  The day before, they had just witnessed their Good Shepherd/Teacher/friend be killed by crucifixion and placed in Joseph’s tomb.  Sorrow, hopelessness, and a deep depression more than likely began to settle into many of the followers.  Questions filled their minds and the One who could bring the answers was no longer there.  Heartache.  Weeping.  Mourning. 

Psalm 30:5 says, “Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”  Never would those words ring so true than on the day following this intense day of sadness.  But how on earth could things get better to the point of “rejoicing?”  Miraculously enough, however...everything did.

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. ² They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,³ but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴ While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. ⁵ In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? ⁶ He is not here; he has risen!  (Luke 24:1-6)

Rejoicing had come in the morning!  Jesus is risen!  The women immediately ran to the other disciples to share this news.  Skeptical, the disciples ran to the tomb and discovered that Jesus was indeed no longer there.  Over the course of days and weeks, as Jesus began appearing to His followers, they came to realize that the news they had heard about His resurrection was indeed true…He had defeated the grave.  He had risen from the dead.  He is ALIVE!

This week my church lost a dear encourager, prayer warrior, and friend.  Her sweet family lost their precious wife and mother.  So many of us, including myself, can attest to the fact that our sweet friend Shirl was always one to offer her prayers and support during our time of need.  Her loss was unexpected and is so incredibly heartbreaking to so many of us.  When I found out yesterday that she had entered the throne-room of heaven, I immediately thought of Psalm 30:5.  The logic-part of my mind thinks the same thing the followers of Jesus thought on the day after the crucifixion – “how on earth can rejoicing come in the morning?”  I’m sad.  I’m heartbroken.  I miss my friend. 

Then there’s my faith.  My faith in the very One who rose from the dead.  My faith in the One my dear friend is with today because she knew Jesus as her Savior.  Because of Jesus I know that although our sadness and loss of our dear friend (and loss of so many other friends and loved ones) may endure for a while, as believers in Him, our joy will come when He comes again! 

In Revelation 22:7, Jesus says, “Look, I am coming soon!”  Someday in the not so distant future, Christ will return to take His followers to heaven with Him.  We will rejoice in heaven with our loved ones and friends at the feet of Jesus.  We will be in a place where there is “no more death or sorrow or crying or pain.  All of these things are gone forever” (Revelation 21:4).  Our rejoicing will continue for eternity!

“However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen” (Matthew 24:36).  Are you ready?  Is your faith in Christ?  Have you accepted Him as your Savior?  Do you believe with all your heart that He is the Son of God?  Have you confessed Him publically as Savior of your life?  If you haven’t, He’s ready with open arms to accept you as His child.  I can’t think of anything better this Easter than to surrender your life to the One who gave His life for you.

“ALIVE!  ALIVE!  Look what mercy’s overcome!  Death has lost and Love has WON!  ALIVE!  ALIVE!  Hallelujah, risen Lord, the only One I fall before, I am His because He is ALIVE!”

"Resurrection Eggs" - An Easter Tradition

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."  - Proverbs 22:6

One of my favorite childhood memories from the Easter season are "Resurrection Eggs."  No, they aren't eggs that resurrect from the refrigerator...rather they are plastic eggs with some object inside that relates to the Easter story.  It's kind of like advent calendars for the Easter season.  So many days before Easter, you open up the plastic egg, look at the object and read the scripture that corresponds with that object.  It's basically a mini object lesson for the day, taking no more than 10 minutes.

I've seen many types of "Resurrection Eggs," but my favorite are the ones my parents created.  Many of the ones you can buy in the store today are like 10-12 days long.  My parents took that idea and expanded on it.  Instead of a 12-day "Resurrection Egg" lesson plan, my parents developed a 40-day lesson plan using these simple plastic eggs.  They searched the scriptures and found 40 different objects that relate from everything beginning with the Triumphal Entry all the way to Pentecost.  We would begin it way before Easter and end a few days after Easter Sunday. 

As a child, I remember being so excited each year as we opened each egg.  Every year the objects were the same and of course the story never changed, but I learned something new about the Easter story every year we did the "Resurrection Egg" lessons.  I can still remember some of the objects that would be in those eggs...one that comes immediately to my mind was a nasty fig (I say nasty because it never got replaced from year to year and that plastic egg stunk after a while J).  The fig represented the story of Jesus cursing the fig tree (Mark 11:12-25).  Another was a wet Kleenex representing when Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem (Luke 19:41-44).  Of course there were plastic eggs with nails in them, a stone, an angel, and so on...and you can figure what those represented.

I am so thankful for parents who valued teaching me about the Bible at home.  This can NOT be underestimated!  When I was in college, our education professors drove this home - learning can begin at school (or in this case church), but it MUST continue in the home!  I'm not a parent, but I know the value of having parents who taught me the God's truth at home.  My parents were the ones who helped me memorize Scripture, answer my questions about Christ, teach me Christian praise songs, and use object lessons to teach me about the Bible...not my teachers, not my friends, and not myself.  My teachers definitely were God-sends and helped me learn, but my parents reinforced my learning at home.  Kids are pretty awesome people, but they need the influence of godly, Christian parents (or guardians) to grow into even more awesome teenagers and adults!  Remember Proverbs 22:6 - "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."

If you've never done "Resurrection Eggs" before, I SO encourage you to do it with your children!  Kids are visual and love to be able to "see" how something relates to a story or concept...doesn't matter the age.  I'm a firm believer in using object lessons with kids and "Resurrection Eggs" are a great help in teaching kids about the Easter story. 

You can buy these in stores...but honestly you can make it yourself using common things at home too.  If you're interested in the 40-day one my parents developed, comment below and I would love to send you the plan.  I've included below an awesome DIY (do-it-yourself) below...this is one of the easiest I've seen in a while.

Parents...teachers...children's leaders....we are responsible for teaching the Truth to the next generation.  In order to impact future generations for Christ, our children have to be ready and knowledgeable about Him and their knowledge begins with us. 

Here's the DIY "Resurrection Egg" tutorial I was telling you about:

(C) Tasha Sawyer, 2013 - http://www.commissionstories.com/asia/interactives/view/resurrection-eggs-share-christ 

It's Friday, but Sunday is Coming!

You know how when you were a kid in school, you always looked forward to your most favorite day of the week, Friday?  Friday meant the weekend, Friday meant fun, AND most importantly, Friday meant no school for two days!  WhoHOO!  I know I was one of those kids!

But sometimes, Friday isn't fun.  Sometimes Friday means the close of something special.  Sometimes Fridays are completely disheartening.  You know, Jesus and His followers had one of those Fridays.  Luke 23 traces the horrific events that Jesus experienced on a particular Friday.  Nailed to a cross, Jesus bled and then died to cover the sins of all mankind.  We know it was a Friday because Luke 23:54 tells us that the crucifixion & burial, "was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation, as the Sabbath (which was Saturday) was about to begin."  Jesus' followers were probably inconsolable that Friday.  Luke 23:48 said that the crowd who came to watch the crucifixion, "went home in deep sorrow."  Here was their leader, their teacher, their Master and he was gone.

This is totally metaphoric...but I equate the second half of this summer to a disheartening Friday.  When we think of summer, we think of fun, relaxation, and happy times, but if you know what's gone on this summer in Morristown, you know that it was the complete opposite.  The sadness and hurt that so many of us have felt this summer has been probably some of the toughest and most emotional feelings we've ever had to deal with in our lives.  For some, no words can ever describe the summer of 2012.

BUT can I let you in on a secret???   This summer may have been Friday, but guess what??  Sunday is coming!

Just look in the Scriptures!  Jesus had died on Friday, people were sad, the disciples were holed up in a room just wondering what they were going to do next, but on Sunday something spectacular happened.  Luke 24:1-6: 

"But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.  They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.  So they went in, but they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus.  As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes...the men asked, "Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive?  He isn't here!  He is risen from the dead!"  

Christ had returned from the dead!  He is ALIVE!

Again, totally metaphoric, but...Sunday is coming - Jesus is coming again!  Revelation 22:7, Jesus says to John the Revelator, "Look, I am coming soon!"  Hallelujah!  As believers in Jesus Christ, we can hold to this incredible promise that Christ is indeed coming soon and as followers of Him, we will be carried up to live forever in heaven with Him!  Revelation 21:4:

"God's home [will be] among his people!  He will live with them, and they will be his people.  God himself will be with them.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain.  All these things are gone forever."  

Praise the Lord!!  When Jesus returns, Friday will NEVER exist again!  Worship will be our action, adoration our feeling, and praise will continually pour from our lips.  I.  CAN'T.  WAIT!

But until then, my dear blog readers and Morristown friends, we must live for Christ!  Right now, we must heed Christ's command to tell others about Him (Acts 1:8), serve others (John 12:26), and follow after Him (Matthew 16:24).  It's not going to be easy.  We will face more hardships and disheartening Fridays along the way, but there's a reward at the end - life forever with JESUS!  Paul said it best, "I press on toward the goal to win prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14).

Because He lives...I can face tomorrow.

Because He lives...All fear is gone.

Because I know HE holds the future

And life is worth the living,

just

because

HE

LIVES

I leave you with this song, that sorta-kinda inspired my above thoughts.  It's called "Sunday" and it's by the Christian group Tree63.  "It's Friday, but Sunday is coming!"  Amen.