LIFE IS SOMETIMES DIFFICULT

 

How much do you trust God? I really
mean this, how much do you trust God? Do you believe that he cares for you? Do
you believe that no matter what happens in your life that he is right there
beside you? Do you believe that if you live faithfully he will someday take you
home to heaven? As Christians we must believe these things, because that is the
hope we have in life; that is what our faith is about!

 

Philip Yancey, in his book REACHING
FOR THE INVISIBLE GOD, tells of his father‑in‑law, a Bible teacher and
committed Christian. The older man’s faith troubled him in his final years. A
degenerative nerve disease confined him to bed, preventing him from sharing in
most of the activities he enjoyed. In addition to his own illness, his daughter
battled a debilitating form of diabetes.

 

During the most severe crisis, he
composed a Christmas letter and mailed it to family members and friends. He
expressed his uneasy feelings about many things he had once taught. What could
he believe with certainty? The old Bible teacher staked his faith on three
realities. Here is his list: “(1) Life
is difficult, (2) God is merciful,
(3) Heaven is sure.”

 

Is life difficult? Yes! It is
rarely any other way, but God's word assures us that we have a loving God who
is merciful to his children and that the promise of heaven is sure. We believe
it, because he said.

 

Jesus encouraged his disciples with
these words found in John 14:1-3:
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in
me. My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told
you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be
where I am."

 

Has that promise ever changed? No,
God's promise to us remains the same no matter what difficulties come into our
lives. The writer of Hebrews encourages us with these words. "Because God wanted to make the
unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised,
he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things
in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the
hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor
for the soul, firm and secure." (Hebrews 6:17-19).

 

What is the anchor for your soul during difficult times,
what is your hope? It must be the "unchangeable" promises of God,
because those are the only ones that really last!

What do you do with Father's Day?

Father's Day is traditionally a day on which we recognize
the efforts of our fathers to provide for and care for their families. Many
make this a special day with a special breakfast, phone calls to those who are
separated by miles or visits if you are near. Perhaps taking them out to eat
and even gifts to recognize them. That's great and I am thrilled that so many
are able to do that, it is as it should be. Deuteronomy 5:16  told the
Israelites (and the example travels on to us) "Honor your father and your
mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and
that it may go well with you in the land the LORD your God is giving you.”

 

There are inherent in this day some problems, the first of
which is that there are those of us whose fathers have passed from this life
and we can no longer let them know how much they were appreciated. That brings with
it another set of problems, as we sometimes get buried under a load of guilt
called, "I wish I had". "I wish I had been a better
son/daughter". "I wish I had told them…" We can honor them by
simply remembering them and living a life that would show honor in our own
lives.

 

Then there are some whose fathers are abusive, non-caring,
unloving or have even deserted their families. It's hard to show love to
someone like that. How do you love the unlovable?

 

And then there are some who never knew their father at all,
perhaps they died or departed or refused to accept the responsibility for them
before they were ever born. That brings about a position of choosing in our
lives. Choosing whether to love them (or at least not hate them). The Greek
word used most in the scripture for love is "agape" which literally
means to desire the best for someone. It doesn't have the meaning of embracing
or even desiring to be with someone, but to truly hope that all things work out
to their good, which of course would be for them to have their life right with
God, no matter what their situation.

 

So, sometimes even our fathers are unlovable, they are not
perfect, in fact sometimes they mess up big time and then what are we to do?
Maybe we should ask ourselves, "What would Jesus do?" You see, God
loves the unlovable; ("But God has made clear his love to us, in
that, when we were still sinners, Christ gave his life for us." Romans
5:8  BBE) Would you think then that
he would expect you and I to do anything less, not just on Father's Day, but
all days.

 

Whatever your situation, I pray that you will honor your
father while you have him with you. If you can't do that, then love them with a
love that hopes for the best for them in their relationship to God.