By Pr. Paula Lawhead
It is the third week of Lent. Is it just me or does it feel like it’s been the longest year this past week? Every time I write a post for this year’s Lenten blog, I have made the same comment: the season of Lent helps us remember that we are people in need of a Savior. Boy, am I feeling that truth!
Those that know me well will not be surprised to hear me say I like to have control of things. I like lists; I like order and processes; I like to know how things are going to go; I like knowledge and informed decisions. I do not like quick and drastic changes or spontaneous events that materialize out of nowhere. I prefer ample time to thoroughly think through all the ramifications of each possible decision I need to make, thank you very much. (I also like alone time, so I have that going for me.)
It makes me chuckle to confess these things to you in light of the rapidly changing events of these days. I am feeling myself stretched far outside my comfort zone. I’m sure I’m not the only one. Like many humans from the beginning of time (Ahem… Adam and Eve) I want to be in the driver’s seat. I want to be able to secure for myself the circumstances I might find myself in and I want to be able to find my own solutions to my problems so that I can feel secure. It’s human nature. But what do we do when the circumstances are not just our own? How do we find security when the issues before us are seemingly bigger than anything we’ve faced before? What if everything is changing at once?
Well, this week I have been drawn back to clinging to my Savior in every area of my life. I have been drawn in by God’s Spirit to hold tightly to the promises our Lord has made to you and to me. You are beloved and held and not without hope. We are called in this moment to trust that as God has given us a spirit of power and love and sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7); we can exercise this spirit to adhere to recommendations set before us to protect the most vulnerable of our neighbors. We can exercise this spirit to speak words of hope and love to those who are despairing. We can exercise this spirit to trust that though we may be afflicted; in Christ, we are not crushed. We may be perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Cor 4: 8-9)
In Matthew 6:25, Jesus says to us, “Do not worry.” Easy for you to say, Jesus, we may think. But there is promise in that command. For who in any situation can truly say, “Don’t worry?”
Only the one who has the solution.
We serve a powerful, faithful, loving God who has not deserted us to the troubles of this old world. In fact, just that opposite is true. As we face realities that are perplexing and unnerving and even scary sometimes, we do not face them alone. God comes near to all who despair and hedges us in from all sides. God sustains us with all we need for daily decision making and care for one another. And ultimately, God enters into our suffering for the mere purpose of bearing it on our behalf. Continue looking toward Easter. New life is yours and you will be sustained until that new life is realized here and now.
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