Storms of Life

May 29
What's So Peaceful About a River?
Excerpts taken from articles on Relevant.com

Intro

Due to recent events I thought we might take a break from our Resurrection Stories Series. We will start back up next week with Derek Holland sharing his Resurrection story.

Because of the impact of the storms in Joplin and in Oklahoma over the last week and a half we thought maybe we should talk a little about the “storms” of life and their impact on our faith. As I reflected on the recent events I had several observations:

1) Having a church home is important for lots of reasons-when people ask why should I go to church?-the response from church families this week is a great answer to that question. I can’t tell you how many calls we have gotten from church members and church organizations with offers to help.

And during the storms of life it’s also a place to be honest.

Church isn’t meant to be people who mask our brokenness with good acts. Church isn't meant to be about perfect people but about confessed people. We should be able to say these things, our secrets, our sins, our mistakes, our frustrations, and receive love and acceptance from Jesus (and church people) when we do.

Think for a moment about Jesus. About all of the confessions, secrets, mistakes and hopes He must have heard. Think for a moment of the woman caught in adultery who Jesus met from John 8:2-11. She was about to be stoned for sleeping with a man who was not her husband. Into the fray came Jesus. He came to not only save the woman from her sin but to save all the men holding stones from their hypocritical lives. Jesus came with love, tenderness and tact. He did not scream and shout – He quieted them with His love.

2) Importance of who suffers with us-Jesus Will Let You Suffer

John 11: 33-35
"When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 'Where have you laid him?' he asked. 'Come and see, Lord,' they replied. Jesus wept."

Ever since the apple incident, we are born into a state of sin, a state of living in opposition to God, a state of making decisions that can cause suffering. Remember, none of this was God's original design. He created a peaceful, perfect world. We were the ones who tainted it with our desire for independence. Remember, as Shana pointed out 2 weeks ago, nowhere in the Bible does it say “everything happens for a reason.”

Suffering becomes inevitable in a world where imperfect people aren't robots. And while I don't pretend to know the answer for every evil under the sun, I do know that God sees our suffering.

Jesus wept.

There is no suffering in which Jesus will not walk and weep with you. There is no hurt the power of God can't bring new life to. In the proper time Jesus will make His way to your tomb, roll the stone away, and bring life to the dead. And the tears formed from mourning and doubt will flow with joy and gratitude.

3) At times like these it causes us to evaluate what is really important.

When we were heading for our neighbor’s shelter as the tornado sirens were going off, I was only concerned for the safety of Shana and Max. And as I looked back at the house I thought of only a handful of things I would want if our house was destroyed-nothing of real value-all sentimental items-jewelry that belonged to my mom, pictures, scrapbooks... We have a house full of stuff and what I was most concerned about I could carry in one load.

Everywhere we go these days, big is in. My combo meal is super-sized, SUV’s have a third row, and the TV of my dreams is 62-inch plasma. We Americans are big eaters, big spenders, and big wasters. Even our churches are into big, owning big malls and even bigger coliseums in order to accommodate big crowds and enable big growth. Like the population at large, we Christians seem to have a growing acceptance of the saying “bigger is better”.

But all this growth might be creating some big problems.
Our society and our systems seem unable to handle the never-ceasing expansion of want and need. Our souls are groaning and the planet is buckling beneath the collateral damage of growth. Landfills are full, the air is thick, and we cannot drink from many of our streams.

In light of our growing problems, maybe we and the church should give small a chance. So maybe we should start moving toward living lives that are less hectic, less cluttered, less selfish, and less toxic. And maybe instead of a big ad campaign advertising "LESS!" we should start living with less ourselves. Instead of me shouting from the pulpit, maybe some small, personal choices would help slow down the growth, bring some sanity to our lives, and make the world more livable.

Give less a chance.

4) The importance of peace

"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7 TNIV

What kind of peace is this? The world has a definition of peace-no war, or like in our household with Max-keeping the peace-no conflict. Some might argue peace is the assurance or control we feel over our lives. But if Christ came to give us peace in that sense, why do we fear for our lives, health, finances and security?

In a moment we’ll sing “Peace like a river.” I like that the writer of the hymn used that word to describe the peace we have in Christ. After all, what's peaceful about rivers? This isn't a creek trickling through the land I grew up on. Imagine rafting through the Colorado as it cuts through the Grand Canyon or remember the mighty Mississippi and all the lives that she's claimed. These are unpredictable waters that destroy homes with floods and take lives with their undercurrents; there is nothing peaceful about a river.

So why would the writer use such an ironic metaphor? Maybe the writer understood that this life and this walk with Christ would be filled with painful, unpredictable and sometimes crushing experiences and maybe it is in this truth that they wrote those words.

I do not think that Jesus came to give us peace in the world's terms. No, instead I think Jesus came to give us something totally different; an inward peace – a hope in a promise of restoration. And that is something to sing about.

Conclusion
So, after a week like this, as the storms of life blow, may we reflect on what really matters, remember the importance of a church family, know that Jesus suffers with us, and that no matter what happens we can find peace in God.