comfort – PJ's Monday Musings

Last week, life went sideways at our house…

On Thursday night, our 16-year old son was diagnosed with diabetes, which set off an unexpected domino of events that included two ER visits and a hospital stay in the span of three days.

“Normal” is a thing of the past for us now…but really we’re just a little ahead of the curve as we all adjust to the “new normal” ahead of us in a post-pandemic world.

Life has gone sideways for many of us for different reasons, and it will continue to go sideways as long as we live in a world broken by sin.

So, I started thinking…

(Actually, if I’m honest, I went into survival mode.)

What did I need to get through the last several days?

Really, what do we all need when life goes sideways?

I’m sure the list could be longer…even should be longer. But, I’m keeping it to five today, and I hope that these five things will help/encourage you the next time your life goes sideways.

Number one: You need to remember that the LORD is your strength.

The Bible is literally full of verses that remind us of this, but today I stumbled on this one…

“Praise the LORD! For he has heard my cry for mercy. The LORD is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.” (Psalm 28:6-7)

Number two: You need to remember that the LORD’s mercies are new every morning.

In other words, every day you get a full helping of God’s mercy…and He’s not stingy with it.

“The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

Number three: You need to remember that God’s grace is sufficient for whatever it is that you are going through.

The important thing to remember here is that you are not sufficient, but God is. And, he’s not stingy with his grace either.

“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” – the LORD speaking to Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9

Number four: You need to remember that the trials we go through are meant to make us stronger, not weaker (see number three).

The trials we go through are part of living in a broken world…yes. But they are not purposeless or even necessarily punishment for sin. In fact, we need trials to make us stronger in our faith and in our dependence on God.

“…when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” (James 1:2-4)

Number five: You need to remember that you are not meant to go through life’s challenges alone.

When life goes sideways, you need people in your life to mourn with you, comfort you, encourage you, and just be there for you. It’s no wonder that the Bible is full of verses that talk about caring for one another.

“God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

Like I said, this list could go on and on and on. But, I’ll stop at five.

As I think back on the last several days, I am thankful…

…that the LORD has been my strength,

…that I’ve woken up every day to a full helping of his mercy,

…that his grace is sufficient for whatever the “new normal” is going to be,

…that this trial is helping me depend more on him every day,

…and that my family has been surrounded by so many people who have loved and encouraged us as our life went sideways.

Comfort and safety.

Let’s all admit that we’re creatures of both.

We live in a culture where a person’s comfort and safety is seen as an inalienable right…something worth fighting for even.

At the core of every person’s views on life, religion, politics, money, relationships and everything else is a deep-down desire for their own personal comfort and safety.

And, unfortunately, this desire has seeped its way into the Church.

We idolize comfort and safety just like everyone else.

We make choices everyday based on how comfortable or safe that choice will make us feel.

At the core of religious consumerism and the “Christian ghettos” we choose to inhabit is our deep-down desire for our own personal comfort and safety.

And, the problem with that is this…

We’re actually surprised when we have to face hard things.

We’re surprised that we might actually have to take risks or to suffer as Christians…either because of our faith or simply because of the fact that we live in a world that is horribly broken by sin.

And, so we end up living risk-averse, low-impact spiritual lives in a world that desperately needs us to “turn from our selfish ways, take up our cross daily, and follow Jesus.” (Luke 9:23)

When pursuing our own comfort and safety become the driving force behind the everyday decisions that we make, we eventually become spiritually impotent people who spend more time whining and complaining about the evils of our culture instead of looking for ways to transform it.

It’s almost as if we’re surprised by the fact that it might be hard, unfair, risky, or uncomfortable to live as Christians in a God-less society.

But, the reality is we shouldn’t be surprised at all.

Suffering is part of the deal of following Jesus…our own personal comfort and safety is not.

We know this is true because Jesus said it is, and His life on earth backed it up…He really was a “suffering servant.”

It was Jesus who said, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But, take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

We know this is true because Jesus’ first followers said it too, and they also went out and backed up their words with actions.

It was Peter who said…

“Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you.” (1 Peter 4:12-13 & 19)

As we continue to face trials and suffering in this world, may we be a people who suffer well…in a manner that pleases God.

May we be a people who keep on doing what is right even when it requires us to get out of our comfort zones, take risks, and do hard things.

And, may we do these things trusting our lives to the God who created us, always remembering that He will never fail us or abandon us.