I don’t know about you, but sometimes that’s how I feel. “This sucks…” ‘This’ could be one of many things. It could be related to work, home, family, or health, or something else entirely. Maybe it’s looking at the world and seeing poverty or violence. But whatever it is, sometimes it’s just plain rubbish and no amount of looking on the bright side will change it.
And that’s OK. Which might sound strange in a blog about hope, but bear with me. I think I can justify it.
If we look in the bible and read between the lines, I’m fairly sure some of those heroes probably looked at their situation and thought, ‘this sucks.’ Do you think Noah, stuck in an ark for an unknown period of time surrounded by creatures of every shape and size didn’t think at least once, “this is pretty grim”? Surely there must have been a moment when he thought, “Why did we have to bring the skunks!”? And could you blame him? I mean, I know it’s better than the alternative, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t hard.
Or how about Joseph? Favourite son, dreams of stardom, bright future. Then out of the blue, thrown in a hole and left for dead. Or so he thought. Surely the golden boy must have felt pretty down then? Or later, when he got thrown in jail for doing the right thing? At the very least, he probably thought, “This is a bit naff.”
But Noah survived and walked on dry ground again, and even saw what could have been the very first rainbow (that’s a guess, I haven’t researched whether Noah’s rainbow was the first one or not). And Joseph was released from prison, put in charge of Egypt second only to Pharaoah and reconciled with his family.
OK, those are extreme examples which don’t have much relevance in my life (and I imagine in yours either). So how about a lady whose watched someone she loves die and get buried only to come back after three days and find the body taken? OK, again, a sign of the times perhaps, but the grief is something we can perhaps relate to. Or maybe the disappointment. After all, Jesus was supposed to save the world, but all Mary Magdalene knew was that he had disappeared. Alone, weeping, distraught, she notices someone approach and assumes that its the gardener. And all it takes to cut through the grief is one word. “Mary.”
I’m fairly sure at the moment Mary isn’t counting her blessings. She is being real and honest and letting it not be OK.
Fast forward a few weeks (ish). Peter, John and some other disciples are fishing. Peter has betrayed Jesus by denying he knew him, right at the moment Jesus needed him. And worse, he was warned but swore he would never do that. Even after Jesus has risen, do you think that wouldn’t be hanging over Peter? Maybe Peter was thinking about how badly he had let Jesus down, and how that counted him out, and that really sucked. So when he sees Jesus on the shore he doesn’t wait for the boat to sail in with its catch. No, he dives in a swims towards Jesus. And on the shore, over breakfast, Jesus and Peter talk, and Peter is restored. Jesus never counted him out. But he did have to address that need so Peter would stop counting himself out. Nothing is written about how Peter is feeling, but something drives him to jump out of a boat that is already heading in to short in order to get to Jesus, so something was going on in Peter’s head.
So to all the Noah’s out there, stuck somewhere that seems a grim and with no escape, remember that God was protecting Noah from something worse and Noah got to walk on dry land again. Stay hopeful, God is with you.
To all the Joseph’s out there, treated badly and not thought well of by the people around you, remember that God never left Joseph, not when he was in the hole, nor when he was in jail, and in the end God turns it all into something better than Joseph could ever have imagined (and he was a dreamer!) Keep faith, nothing will be wasted, God will see you through this.
For all the Mary’s out there, it’s OK to feel despair and grief. Whether it’s because of the loss of a loved one, the loss of security, in fact any sort of loss, its OK to grieve. Its unhealthy to try and ignore or bottle it up. Jesus wept. He grieved. So let yourself be honest and feel it. And Jesus will meet you there and offer comfort, and will help you to move forwards. He did with Mary.
And to all the Peter’s who have made mistakes which you think are unforgiveable, be kind to yourself. Making a mistake does not count you out. Jesus hasnt. Turn back to Jesus, run towards him, and he will restore you. His grace can help you move through it and try again, if you accept it.
Our worth isn’t based on our success. Our worth isn’t based on what others think of us. Our worth should be based on the knowledge and belief that we are made and loved by God.
Or to make this more personal: my worth is not based on how many times I succeed or fail. My worth is not based on how others see me, measure me or their opinion of me. My worth comes from believing that I am a child of God who is loved unconditionally.
Coming from that place, however much it sucks right now, whether that’s because of your decisions or because of external circumstances, we can get through and look to something better. Not by denying how rubbish it is, but by acknowledging it and choosing to keep moving, by choosing to turn or run towards Jesus, whatever we can manage, and knowing that his love for us hasn’t changed and something better is coming.
So yes, it sucks. Don’t pretend it doesn’t. But don’t stay in that place. God wants more for you than that. Have faith, keep hoping, God is with you.
The Reason for my Hope Blog 