Hope

Sweet Reunion

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Often times on this Earth, reunions are looked forward to with dread. High school and college reunions, even family reunions hold the foreboding sense of seeing people we once knew and not measuring up to their expectations. As a result reunions often motivate people to make changes in their lives – to kick bad habits, eat more healthily, change their appearance or pursue the dream that they have been ignoring. Knowing that they will “give an account” to people from whom they have been separated for a time, inspires many to alter the course of their lives so that others will not think that the time apart has been wasted.

Christians live their lives in anticipation of a reunion of a different sort – a day where we will be reunited with those in Christ who have departed this Earth in order to join Him in glory. Scripture tells us that this reunion should motivate us too – because as we look to the lives that they lived and the sinless state they know enjoy, we should eagerly work to “throw off” the sin the entangles us now (Heb. 12:1). We should be inspired to live more fully for Christ, not because we fear what they will think of us when we meet them again, but because we anticipate sharing in the glory they now enjoy and we recognize that they, as will we, consider every sacrifice for the sake of Christ’s Kingdom well worth it. Our reunion with them is not one that is imbued with dread, but instead it will be filled with sweetness as we celebrate the work of Christ in each of our lives and enjoy the beauty and awe of being with Him.

It is understandable why so many reunions on this Earth cause consternation and despair. It is often difficult to measure up to what others think of us or the impression we want others to have of our lives. However, we would be better served to focus more on our future reunion – the one we will have with those in Christ we have gone before.  Not only will it help keep things here on Earth in perspective, but it will remind us of just one part of the sweetness of Heaven that we will one day enjoy.

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Growth Hope

Everybody Hurts

“Life’s not fair.” This is a refrain with which we all familiar. It is likely that a parent or a teacher or a coach or somebody said these words to us at some point in our childhood. Depending on how old we are, we may have uttered them to somebody else. We have an innate desire for things to work out in a way that benefit us. Yet despite the fact that God is gracious and gives us more good things that we could ever deserve, in our moment of pain, we often neglect to recall His generosity and focus on the hurt that we are currently experiencing.

While there is some pain that we may never quite make sense of, Scripture tells us that there are at least two reasons that we suffer. Sometime we suffer because we are His and as God’s children, the forces of this world are diametrically opposed to us (John 15:18). Another reason that we suffer is because God is disciplining us. We’ve sinned and there are consequences for those rebellious actions (Hebrews 12:6). Sometimes, perhaps often times, the correction of our Father involves pain as He guides us back to a right relationship with Him.

However, I Peter 3:17 reminds us that while R.E.M was right and everybody does hurt sometimes, it is far better to suffer for the glory of God then as a result of His discipline. Jesus reminded us of this when, before healing the blind man, He stated that the reason for the man’s blindness was so that God could be glorified (John 9:1-3). Could you imagine the change of perspective that man had at the moment? Instead of seeing his blindness as a curse, it was an unique opportunity for God to use this man to draw others to Himself. In a way that few others could, this man could put God’s glory on display.

There is going to be pain in this life; we can be sure of that. However, may increasingly our pain not be as a result of God bringing us back to living a life that pleases Him, but may it used to bring others into a relationship with Him. May our aches and our cries be for the glory of the eternal King.

Everybody hurts, but not everyone suffers for Jesus’ sake. May we see our suffering for His sake as the privilege that it is.

Now it’s your turn…..how can we suffer well for Jesus?
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