My wife and I will soon be celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary, over 30 years of marital bliss. 😉 Actually it’s much better than that, but we have been through a few challenging times in our relationship.
Commitment carried us through when nothing else seemed to be there. This provided us with time for our love to return. That’s the way it can be in our walk with Jesus. Something may or may not happen that we earnestly asked of our Lord but we were denied. What then? Christ’s disciples faced a similar situation which caused Jesus to ask:
“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. (John 6:67 NIV) Many left but some stayed, including the twelve.
I’ve heard it said that life is just solving a series of problems. There are times when that statement seems true. From, “Do I switch from whole milk to 2%?”, all the way to, “Dad is dead but he seems alive on the ventilator, so do we have them pull the plug?” I’ve lived both of these.
Remember, our battles, our tests, are not against people, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)
Just as in boxing, we must always face our opponents head-on. And, when we seem to be on the precipice of disaster let us stand our ground for our God is able, His right arm is not weak. God expects us to remain committed to Him and do as King David wrote in Psalms 3:3-6
A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.
3 But you, Lord, are a shield around me,
my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
4 I call out to the Lord,
and he answers me from his holy mountain.
5 I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
6 I will not fear though tens of thousands
assail me on every side.
Photo by Quino Al on Unsplash
Personal Comments:
Many of my recent posts have been about commitment, perseverance, knowing what you believe, and so forth. This is not because there’s nothing else to write about. Rather, people around the world are in a spiritual battle the likes of which haven’t been seen in hundreds of years.
Our struggle is not against individuals. We are not the “negative” group. We want to uplift people. We want morality and human rights. Our struggle is a spiritual one.
If we allow ourselves to get caught up in hating or disparaging individuals then we will lose. Only as we battle on our knees and dare to speak what is true with our voices will we be found standing with Jesus. It is a time when we all must be bold.