Warned, Not Prepared
After my morning prayer gathering, I attended a new member orientation for the Fort Collins Chamber of Commerce. It was well attended and was interesting to see their many activities and services they provide members. This afternoon, my mom helped me with some work outside. I did some more work on my landscaping project and got our patio furniture ready for winter.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY…Ā “Let there be a curse on the day I was born; let there be no blessing on the day when my mother gave birth to me. Let there be a curse on the man who brought my father the news: āYou have a son!ā ...Why did I have to come out of my motherās body? All I have known is trouble and sorrow, and my life will end in shame. ” Ā Jeremiah 20:14-15,18 NCV
I recall a pastor friend of mine knew that his church need to make some changes was going to be facing some challenges. He shared his heart with his deacon team and asked if they were with him and prepared for what was ahead. I remember when he told me about this event; he said, “they said they were prepared, but they really weren’t prepared for the challenges we are facing.”
The Lord call Jeremiah and said he was ordained as a prophet from his mother’s womb. But the Lord cautioned Jeremiah, “Donāt be afraid of the people, or I will give you good reason to be afraid of them….They will fight against you, but they will not defeat you, because I am with you to protect you!ā says the Lord. (Jeremiah 1:17-19 NCV)
Even though the Lord warned Jeremiah about what he would face, he was not prepared for what he would face. We see him complain, “…I tell the people about the message I received from the Lord, but this only brings me insults. The people make fun of me all day long.” (Jeremiah 20:8 NCV) People plotted against Jeremiah, put him in stocks, ridiculed him in all sorts of ways and tried to silence his voice.
He even wanted to give up, “Sometimes I say to myself, āI will forget about the Lord. I will not speak anymore in his name.ā But then his message becomes like a burning fire inside me, deep within my bones. I get tired of trying to hold it inside of me,Ā and finally, I cannot hold it in.” (Jeremiah 20:9 NCV) When he spoke he was rejected and persecuted, when he wanted to be silent he couldn’t’ no wonder he “cursed the day he was born.”
We see Job doing the same thing, “Job cried out and cursed the day he had been born, saying: āLet the day I was born be destroyed, and the night it was said, āA boy is born!ā Let that day turn to darkness. Donāt let God care about it. Donāt let light shine on it.” (Job 3:1,2 NCV)
Some of the most godly men, ones whom the Lord used the most, experienced hardship and difficulty and times of testing and the temptation to “give up.” They had to come to grips with the question, “is it worth it?”
Saul of Tarsus experienced a divine encounter with Jesus and was called to proclaim the good news to Jews and Gentiles. The Lord warned, “…I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.ā (Acts 9:16 NCV)
As Saul became Paul the Apostle we see the many hardships and sufferings that came his way as a result of his obedience to “the heavenly vision.”
Paul would later write to Timothy and give him this warning, “…everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…” (2 Timothy 3:12 NIV) Jesus himself warned his disciples, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.” (John 15:8 NLT)
It is difficult to be adequately prepared for what we have never experienced. I have learned that in my life as a pastor and as a politician. You may know, you may be warned, but when the trouble or slander or difficulties come you are never fully prepared. Some basics to keep in mind, to help you keep your mind…
1 – Hardships are hard. Whether it comes unexpectedly like Job, or whether you are forewarned like Jeremiah, Paul and even Mary, Jesus’ mother. (Remember the words of the angel to Mary? “…And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” Luke 2:35)
2 – Discouragement and wanting to “give up” is normal. Jeremiah 20 lists the prophet’s sixth complaint to the Lord. We see Elijah wanted to give up, Jonah was frustrated by the Lord’s actions and wanted to die. Paul wrote, “…about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.” (2 Corinthians 1:8 NIV) At times the way we feel when bad news comes or the crisis continues and we are having a difficult time, it can make us believe we are “failing in our faith” or “less than what we should be.”
3 – Discover the Lord’s word and work in your low places. In this midst of his struggles and confusion we see Jeremiah declaring, “But the Lord is with me like a strong warrior, so those who are chasing me will trip and fall; they will not defeat me.…Lord All-Powerful, you test good people; you look deeply into the heart and mind of a person.” (Jeremiah 20:11,12 NCV) Jeremiah also said, āThe LORD is my portion,ā says my soul, ātherefore I will hope in him.ā (Lamentations 3:24 ESV)
Job in the midst of his suffering declared, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.“ (Job 19:25 ESV)
When Paul despaired of life he said, “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” (2 Corinthians 1:9 NCV)
The Lord works through His Spirit in our lives and through others. Paul said, “…[at] Macedonia, we had no rest, but we were harassed at every turnāconflicts on the outside, fears within. But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus…” (2 Corinthians 7:5,6 NIV)
We may or may not be forewarned about the troubles and challenges of life, but we can be assured, when they come they will be more difficult than we can handle. But as we look to the Lord and His strength, He gives us the encouragement to keep moving forward with our eyes on Him.