First of all, I want to say thank you for finding my website and for taking the time to read my blog. In fact, this is the very first blog entry, as I’m just beginning to explore what it means to have a website and to put thoughts out there in either a blog or a book. Speaking of which… I recently completed and published my very first book, To Those Who Overcome: How and Why the Book of Revelation Applies Today. It was a labor of love and came from my desire to learn more about the last book in the Bible. If you are interested, it is available for purchase here through my website. But for now, while I plan to share more about the book and its details in future blog discussions, I want to begin this first entry with a look at the recent past.
I am writing this at the end of a very difficult summer. The last 4 months have been emotionally, physically, and spiritually exhausting. But now, as the summer is slipping away and the leaves are changing, I’m at a place where I can look back and see things a little more clearly. Let me explain…
Earlier this summer my elderly mom had a significant stroke that left her needing 24/7 care. She lived in another state, and it was difficult managing her medical issues and needs long-distance. My older brother and I both made numerous trips to be with her and to help with her care and medical decisions between June and August. Sadly, she lost the battle and passed away in mid-August, leaving us to pick up the pieces, figure out a funeral, and then her estate. On numerous occasions, I found myself reflection on how her life—and ours—changed forever in an instant the night of the stroke. How does one handle that?
I went back and re-read part of a book that I thought gave excellent guidance on these difficult life moments. In his book, In a Pit, with a Lion, on a Snowy Day, pastor Mark Batterson says the following: “God is in the business of strategically positioning us to be in the right place at the right time. God is awfully good at getting us where He wants us. But here’s the catch: The right place often seems like the wrong place, and the right time often seems like the wrong time.” I can relate to that. The ER physician woke me up at midnight to inform me of my mom’s condition and to get permission for emergency surgery. He also encouraged us to get there ASAP, so I was on a 5 am flight the next morning. Everything about that night and the next day felt like the wrong place at the wrong time! All I could do was pray.
To that end, pastor Batterson goes on to say, “Many of our prayers are misguided. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for an easy way out instead of the strength to make it through. We pray for no pain, when the results would be no gain. But if God answered our prayer, it would rob us of our greatest opportunities. Many of our prayers would short-circuit God’s plans and purposes for our lives if He answered them. Maybe we should stop asking God to get us out of difficult circumstances and start asking Him what He wants us to get out of those difficult circumstances” (italics mine).
And here’s the kicker… Batterson concluded: “If we want to take advantage of these opportunities, we have to learn to see problems in a new way – God’s way. Then our biggest problems may just start looking like our greatest opportunities. And sometimes the biggest problems present the greatest opportunities for God to reveal His glory and work His purposes.”
I think he’s right. Theologically, I know God doesn’t always change our circumstances to make things easy for us. In fact, sometimes quite the opposite. Life is filled with difficulty and even grief. Yet God might be working something behind the scenes that you and I cannot see yet or might not even understand for years to come. Truth is, God can take a bad situation and bring something good out of it. For example, my relationship with my brother has grown stronger through this ordeal, and I am grateful for that that (Romans 8:28 in action).
So, here’s where I choose faith. I choose to trust and believe. I believe God is good and loving and present, and while He does not always remove pain from my life, He is always my strength and comfort during it. I also believe in heaven and that my mom is now there, so I take comfort in that. Likewise, I know that I do not have to be afraid. In fact, Fear Not! Is the most repeated command in the Bible. Therefore, I choose to lean on God during difficult “storms” in life and trust in Him.
So, if you can relate – perhaps because you’re experiencing a “storm in life” right now, as well — then I encourage you to stay calm, trust in God more, lean on His strength, and leave it in His hands to do what only He can do (see Luke 1:37)! Again, while God never promises to remove the storm, He does promise to be with us through it! I know this for a fact because I’ve recently lived through a recent storm and experienced His presence every step of the way.
Thanks for listening.
Darren
