Against all hope

Times are tough. Things seem to be getting better in the economy....at least that's what we keep hearing on the news. During times of struggle it is easy to start worrying about being self-sufficient, independent, and safe. When the going gets tough, it seems like second nature to draw all our belongings and trust only ourselves. However, we are called to something different. Trust in God's providence.

We are called to put our trust in a God that we believe is able to provide for and sustain us. Could it be that our "safety nets" are actually keeping us from furthering our trust and faith in the God that takes care of even the birds and lilies? Could our independence be inhibiting our dependence on God? But then again I see the other side: it would also be foolish to not use the power of reason that we were given in order to avoid hardships.

I don't want to tell you how to deal with the current economic situation, but I do find comfort in the fact that I worship a God that has promised some crazy things (or at least it seems crazy to us) ...and made good on them:

"Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah's womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God," Acts 4: 18-20

May you hope in the God that created you and sustains you and perhaps your belief will also be "credited to [you] as righteousness." (Genesis 15: 6)

All in how you look at it.

Sitting on the back porch after dark a few days ago, something caught my eye in my peripheral. I saw movement in the dark corner of the yard. So I took a closer look, staring hard at the area where I saw movement....Nothing, couldn't see what it was. It was at this time that I remembered something from a psychology of perception course I took during college: "rods and cones"- look slightly away from the object, and.... a toad.

(Now for the technical explanation:There are basically two types of receptors in the eye that allow us to see- rods and cones. Cone receptors help us to see details and colors- cones are mostly located in the "macula" or focal point on the back of the eye. Rods capture big things, and things in peripheral, don't see color...thus making them more useful than cones as far as night vision. Rods are almost completely absent from the forementioned "macula" which is contains mostly cones... which explains why looking right at something in the dark actually inhibits your ability to see the object.) The picture above is a simple illustration I created, for more information and a detailed explanation about rods and cones, click here.

This got me thinking though. When we encounter problems in life, when things don't go our way or frustrate us, we seem to focus directly on that problem. We become determined to "figure it out" and "fix it." It can become an obsession until the problem is solved, all othere things take a back seat to the problem at hand. I'm speaking from experience. I am guilty of being encouraged to leave something alone, only to reply, "No, it's personal now."

What if instead of trying to fix every problem that comes along, we learn to roll with things- we learn to wait and see if the problem is really that bad, or maybe it wouldn't seem so bad if we changed how we looked at it? This week, when a problem comes along... try not to let it become the focus, and trying viewing it from different perspective. Take time and enjoy.

"Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat— for he grants sleep to those he loves." Psalm 127:1-2

A Crazy Thought

"Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish." Jonah 3: 9 (NIV)

The king of Nineveh suggests that the people of the great city may not be beyond saving... he calls for confession and for them to repent from their sinful ways. Maybe Nineveh won't "be overturned" (v. 4b) as the prophet Jonah had declared to the people of the city.

The thought of a merciful God is not exactly what most people picture when they think of the 'God of the Old Testament.' Usually, people think of a wrathful, warrior God in the Old Testament stories... so the king's hopes could easily be called overly optimistic. But then again, "Who knows?"

Trying to walk the path that Jesus walked can be an incredibly frustrating task, and frustrations can easily turn to guilt or hopelessness. We can start beating ourselves up over stumbles and struggles, and at these times it's easy to think that we are unforgivable. However, we must learn from the king: recognize your faults, repent, and ask for God's grace and forgiveness... for we know that we worship a God who freely gives grace to all that ask. We must stop limiting God by believing we know the limits of God's grace.

Trust in God's steadfast love, and let God be your provider.