Helping people in need can be a daunting task. Once you make yourself available and begin to help, everything changes. Gradually, people begin to gravitate towards you with their needs. This is what you set out to do, but you struggle with reality of the life you live.
How do you help others when you struggle so much with life? For me, I wonder how I continue to teach and write as I find my difficulties to be such a challenge.
How do I find the balance?
Where is the balance?
What balance?
If I could just get over the struggles and become free from such things, I think I can be more effective in helping others.
But will I be more effective? Can I help others better? Can I teach and write more effectively? These thoughts are often just a thought, and not reality.
These struggles make up our life. The “crunch” of life that we feel on a daily basis is as much a part of life as the simple, easy, and fulfilling things.
It’s the crunch that enables us to help others. It’s the crunch that feeds our words as we teach, write, and do all that we do to help. There is no other way but to live life and face it with all its difficulties.
The Bible is clear that God comforts us in our difficulties so we can help others. The apostle Paul said: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2Cor 1:3-4).
So keep reaching out to others with your feeble hands. God’s comfort will flow through you to others.
Your thoughts?
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Category: Inspiration
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Life seems to be a rat race running after those things that will make our life better, easier, simpler, and hopefully normal. That struggle puts us in more of an emotional dilemma than we can imagine.
As we consistently pray for the sick, we see there are so many struggling with stress and unresolved issues from the past. Most of these come from unmet expectations about life, and others struggle with unresolved issues from the past.
We have an ideal in our minds about how life ought to be. That ideal is determined by various factors such as media, friends, and family. Our striving for these ideals puts us right in the middle of a rat race where we don’t belong.
When God comes, there will be a day that redefines what we consider to be normal. What we know about the various effects of nature such as light and darkness, cold and heat, summer and winter, and all other factors will be redefined by God. It will be a unique day, and God will be king of all. (Zech 14:6-9)
So what about your unmet expectations of life? Unresolved issues and questions? Let’s reevaluate the value of these things in light of the future where God redefines everything. He will be king of all.
Your thoughts?
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When we listen for God’s voice, we have the option of following him. But when we fill our hearing with lots of noise, our ears are too full to filter out the voice of God.
For this to effectively take place in our lives, I believe there are three things that are important.
First, increase our exposure to God’s voice. Make reading and meditation of God’s word a regular practice for everyone in the home including the smallest children. If they do not read yet, read the Bible to them. When they are just learning to read, have them read the first verse of the chapter, and you read the rest of the chapter to them.
Fill your home with music that exalts God and his ways. Set the tone in the home with music and praise to our God. Be jealous for God and don’t allow other voices to have more importance.
Second, develop a mindset of obedience. Make it firm in your mind that you are a man of God, that you are a woman of God. Once that identity is firmly set in your mind, you will be more apt to have a mind of obedience. Sure we have our freedom and independence as human beings. But we choose to obey because God is our everything.
Third, be intentional about obedience. One step toward this is to begin a simple process of daily writing down something that impacted you during your daily reading of the Bible. Write down even a sentence that you feel God has spoken to you. In the midst of your struggles, it may be something related to what you are facing. Just the process of recording your interaction with the word of God will greatly impact your thinking. Write that down on a small card and keep it in your pocket so you can look at it throughout the day. Put in in your phone as a constant reminder.
Once you begin doing these things on a regular basis, God will begin to impact your thinking, your behavior, and your responses. The environment in your home will begin to shift focus.
The people of God at the time of Zechariah were struggling to build the temple of God. It was left unfinished for a long time. But God wanted them to listen to his voice. He said if they would listen for his voice, he will bring people to help them build. But the key was listening and obeying God’s voice.
Listen for the voice of the Lord. He will bring you help to move forward. (Zech 6:15)
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It was too private to let anyone else know. His reputation would be completely shattered. His disciples would surely be confused and scattered. It would endanger his entire mission.
Throughout his entire life, this secret desire remained within him. It haunted him to no end. During those times when he spent entire nights in prayer alone with his Father, I am sure this desire came up as a topic of discussion. Probably a good part of the night was spent struggling over this one desire.
Then finally, several hours before his crucifixion, he went with his disciples to the garden of Gethsemane. He poured out his heart to his Father. When his heart became heavy, he took Peter, James, and John and went further away to pray. But as the evening progressed, he could stand the pain no longer. He had to open up the pain of his desire to his Father. So, he went further away from even these three to pray.
He cried out in agony…maybe not because of the torture that he was about to endure. The real agony was regarding this secret desire; the desire to disobey his Father. Doing anything against the Father’s will was completely out of the question. He knew that. He was fine with that. But still, deep within him, this desire remained.
But he never gave in to that desire. He held on and submitted himself to the will of the Father. That was his advantage above everything else. Although he could never share this with even his closest disciples, he felt free to share it with his Father.
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The things we hold dearly seem to grip our hearts more than we can imagine. Sometimes I wonder about the dilemma of the “Rich young man” before Jesus (Matthew 19:16-22). He really wanted to follow Jesus, but there was something that gripped his heart more than his desire to follow Him.
Unfortunately this young man’s wealth had a grip on his heart. But isn’t this the case with many of us? If not money, it’s something else of importance. We want to follow without any limits, but there seems to be something that pulls us back.
Maybe the young man came to Jesus with a desire to help Jesus using his wealth. He probably felt a genuine desire to help with the expenses of Jesus and his disciples. Maybe he had political intentions in the coming kingdom that Jesus talked about. Maybe he recognized Jesus as the Messiah and truly wanted to be his follower.
When Jesus asked this man to sell all he had and give to the poor, he just couldn’t bring himself to do that. Jesus didn’t even ask him for a tithe of the proceeds. He was to simply get rid of everything. But those things had a firm grip on his heart.
What if the man obeyed and began selling off his possessions? As each item of value was sold off and the proceeds given to the poor, his heart would be torn. One by one, each transaction would tear up his insides. Everything he valued in life, and those things that gave him significance would be torn away.
His friends and family would probably desert him. They would either think he has gone crazy or is simply going through some weird phase in life. But clearly, he would lose friends, status, recognition, and those things that would be seen as valuable in society.
By the time the last item is sold, he would be stripped of everything in his heart. More than the material “stripping” that would happen; his heart would be stripped of the things that have a hold on his life. The problem was not his wealth. The problem was his heart that held on so tightly to the things of this life.
Then, when he comes to Jesus, he would come completely broken and empty. At that point, he would be able to receive all that Jesus has for him as a disciple. His heart would be open to the transforming work of the one he follows.
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We have seen the powerful, confident, miracle working Jesus through the Gospels. He is to be our example…but how? How can he understand our struggles? What does he know about the problems that we face? He had all the powers of Heaven available to him.
Jesus experienced the same struggles as we do. But we fail to recognize those experiences in the Gospels. Here are some of His experiences:- Misunderstood – People misunderstood his entire life and mission. There was no one on earth who could understand the reality of his struggle. With whom could he share the struggle of being God and Man simultaneously?
- Rejected – As he spoke of his Father, the people understood that as blasphemy because he was equating himself with God. So, here was a truth that could not be spoken. He spoke it anyway, but suffered lots of accusations for it.
- Opposed – Because he was different in his approach to so many things, he was constantly opposed. He was called a drunkard, glutton, and a friend of sinners. The core of his mission on earth was for those who were broken, but that “core” caused so much opposition.
- Inner Struggles – He struggled with his personal desires and his purpose of being on this earth. In the Garden of Gethsemane, we see a glimpse of his personal struggles. So, Jesus did have the desire to so his own will separate from the will of the Father. He did struggle with such desires, but gave himself up for the Father’s will.
- Betrayed – His family and friends knew who he was and his passions, but they could not accept that reality. They simply mocked him.
- Homeless – He said, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests. But the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (Luke 9:58) That statement of Jesus was not just a neat saying, it was a reality. Possibly one of the reasons he roamed the countryside was that he had no home to call his own.
- Accused of using Black Magic or Sorcery – The teachers of the Law said that Jesus expelled demons using the powers of the prince of demons.
- Accused of being a revolutionary – Although Jesus clearly expressed that his Kingdom was not of this world, the people could not understand. They were so hopeful of the Roman power being overthrown that they could not grasp the heart of what Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God.
For those who struggle, hurt, and suffer, remember that Jesus was “A man of sorrows, acquainted with grief.” (Isaiah 53:3b)
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We were in the mountains of Sikkim, near a town called Namchi. My wife, daughter, and I visited this area for the first time. It was after being healed of chronic back pain that I had for 17 years. With every step, I thanked God for healing and restoration. I could never imagine climbing and walking like this before. The hills and mountains around Namchi were quite steep, and every step was amazing to me. In fact, one of the villages we visited required a climb of more than 260 steps (pictured below).
The mountains were beautiful and I enjoyed every minute as all my prior expectations were blown away. Before my healing, I was never be able to move my body as I used to. One by one, each MRI revealed that my back was falling apart. I could barely stand, sit, or lie down without excruciating pain.
I finally asked the doctor, “Does this mean that my back will eventually collapse and I’ll finally be crippled? The doctor struggled with that question and stumbled for words as he explained that the damage was irreversible. Then he said that an operation may help, but the success rate was too low and the risk too high.
I felt like my body was giving up on me. It was as if there is still life left in me, but my body was giving up too early. I experienced somewhat of a feeling of betrayal. My body should have stayed with me for the rest of my life. It was a deep internal struggle that was unexplainable.
When David was betrayed by his own son Absalom, he had to flee. David realized there was no one to trust except God. Thus he responded: “But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cried aloud to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy hill” (Ps 3:3-4). David had lost all hope, and in the midst of his distress, he reminds himself that God is his hope.
In my utter helplessness, God in his mercy, put me through about two years of emotional healing and finally experienced his miraculous touch in June 2012. The pain was miraculously gone and I was able to resume all my former activities. You can read about the healing at this link.
The mountains of Namchi were a testimony to God’s faithfulness and healing power. What is impossible with people is possible with God.
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Better to die than to love
At the most severe point of my mother’s struggle with Cancer, we all had many questions and doubts, but she kept all her questions to herself. Through the several years of suffering, I don’t remember her complaining or grumbling against God. It seems she took it all in stride, as part of her life. She continued to love God without any reservations.
Similarly, when Job was at the deepest level of his suffering, his love and commitment to God was questioned. “Then his wife said to him, ‘do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.’ But he said to her, ‘you speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?’ In all this, Job did not sin with his lips.” (Job 2:9-10) His love for God went beyond his physical and financial condition. His circumstances were clearly in shambles, but his love for God continued intact. The words spoken by his wife would have pierced his heart more than all the tremendous losses in life. But his wounded heart held on firmly to the love he had for his God.I’d rather die than not love
To what extent will Job continue to hold on to his love for God? We get a glimpse of the extent of his love when he said “Though he slay me, I will hope in him.” (Job 13:15a) There were no limits and certainly no boundaries to the love Job had for God. He considered it more valuable than life itself.
But really, can I be trusted? Will my love for God stay intact? What if I loose my job? What if my health deteriorates? What if my relationships turn sour? What if life itself simply falls apart? How will I respond to God?How can you challenge true love?
Paul was a man who suffered constant setbacks and brokenness, but he said: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
Nothing can separate you from true love
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present or things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35-39)
Wow. That’s confidence!
But what about me?
What about you? -
Once a man asked me: “So, you’ve done your doctoral work in Old Testament?” I said “yes.” “Wow, that means you know everything about the Bible.” I was stunned by such a statement and simply said “not quite” and smiled. I’ve had similar conversations on several occasions with people who were impressed with academic achievements.
For those of us who have preached and taught from the Bible for many years, there is the danger of thinking we know God. Some may begin to think they have God all figured out. Their knowledge of the scriptures may give them a sense of having a comprehensive understanding about God. But God has only revealed to us what our limited minds can understand. Only a fraction of the fullness has been given to us. But there is so much more.
Job recognized this reality and said “Behold, these are the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?” (Job 26:14 ESV). God’s power and capabilities are much beyond what we can understand. He has only let us in on the “outskirts” of the full reality.
In the midst of Job’s tragic life situation, he was trying to make sense of everything. His attempts to try to understand God and his ways failed miserably. Nothing made sense, and certainly God’s response was far from his expectations. His friends came and made their attempt to grasp the reality of what they observed. But they couldn’t make sense of the situation either. It was at this point that he recognized that there is so much more to God and his ways.
So, has God been confusing you lately? Have you wondered what he is up to? Maybe he has gone much beyond your understanding of him and has you wondering. Maybe that confusion you are experiencing is the attempt to understand “the thunder of his power” and his ways. But as children completely trusts their parents, let’s trust our heavenly Father. He certainly has it all figured out.
Have you had any confusing “thunder” experiences lately?
You’re welcome to share it in the comments section of this blog post.
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Several years ago we lived in a town that was adjacent to a community where they had a special place for elephants. At this place, elephants were bred, raised, and trained for various purposes. These elephants were used to carry heavy loads, and to carry people on their backs. They were also dressed up and displayed during festivals and celebrations.The strength of these beasts is amazing. Once in a while, an elephant would go out of control. Seemingly in a sort of rage. At that time, they really display their true strength – much beyond what you could imagine. People get thrown around like dolls, trees get plucked from the ground like plants, and trucks get flipped over, and complete havoc is the result.But when these animals deal with their young, they are amazingly gentle. Their great strength is set aside for a soft and gentle approach. Just to deal with their young, they are willing to come down to their level rather than expecting their young ones to come up to theirs.In the midst of his greatest struggles, Job looked to God and had an inward confidence. The confidence was that God would pay attention to him and come down to his level. Job said “would he contend with me in the greatness of his power? No; he would pay attention to me. (Job 23:6 ESV) His friends had accused him of severe negligence and sin. They said that all his “righteous” acts were just a cover-up for his sinfulness, and that his sins finally caught up with him. Now God is dealing fiercely with him according to his sins.But Job had a confidence that God would understand his weaknesses and limitations. He knew that God would come down to his level and would listen to him. Although his friends could not understand, he knew that God would.I am reminded of the concept in proverbs: “…but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24b ESV) The best one to do that, is God himself. He is the one who knows us fully. He knows all our weaknesses and sins, but continues to love us and draw us closer to him.So, in the midst of your greatest defeat or sin, remember the words of Job. “Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power? No; he would pay attention to me.” (Job 23:6 ESV) Go to him. He will certainly pay attention to you.Share your experience of God putting aside his great power to deal with you in gentleness.Share it in the comments section of this blog post.Photo by helga_ni Creative Commons license.
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