Have you noticed after a natural disaster like a tornado, hurricane, or even a simple house fire, survivors make statements like, “Thank God we survived. Nothing else really matters.”
In the midst of total loss, people often find the silver lining. Jesus prayed the above prayer shortly before being arrested and crucified. Yet, in the midst of asking God to remove the cup of crucifixion from him, he also speaks of his joy. He longs for his disciples to have the full measure of his joy within them.
I’ve known many discontented people in my life, as well as a few contented folks. The stark contrast is those with little are unencumbered by this earthly life. They’re more likely to praise God for the little they have than to whine about the things they don’t have. Even when faced with more loss, or possible death, they find the words and joy to praise God.
Maybe the key is found in Jesus’ words. “…for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.”
 |
| Success? |
A book I read many years ago, These Strange Ashes, by missionary Elisabeth Elliot, records her first missionary journey as a young single woman in 1952 into the jungles of Ecuador. Her work included devising a written alphabet so a written language could be established for the Colorado Indians. She spent nine months living among them in a primitive lifestyle. She entrusted a fellow missionary to return to the city with her work and then went to another part of the jungle to study the Quichua. A short time later, Elisabeth received a letter from the missionary informing her that the suitcase carrying all of her work had been stolen. This is an excerpt from the book:
I read the
letter again and again. The filebox, the notebooks, the charts—all of it gone.
All of it, of course, in my own handwriting. There were no copies of anything.
It was,
after Maruja’s and Macario’s deaths, Lesson Three for me. Another experience of
stripping. The tenth Psalm came to mind: “Why dost thou hide thyself in times
of trouble?” And, as before, I heard no reply to that and other questions.
There was no light, no echo, no possible explanation. All the questions as to
the validity of my calling, or much more fundamental, God’s interest in the
Colorados’ salvation, in any mission work—Bible translation or any other
kind—all these questions came again to the fore.
To be a
follower of the Crucified means, sooner or later, a personal encounter with the
Cross. And the Cross always entails loss. The great symbol of Christianity
means sacrifice and no one who calls himself a Christian can evade this stark
fact…There is a certain reticence to infer that our little troubles may
actually be the vehicles to bring us to God. Most of us simply grin and bear
them, knowing they are the lot of all human beings, and our memories being
marvelously selective, we simply cancel them out, none the better for the
lessons we might have learned...
But there
was nothing to be done about it at all, no hope of recovery, and that was
that…It was only gradually during the months that followed that I saw that to
God nothing is finally lost…Loss and death are only the preludes to gain and
life…Faith, prayer, and obedience are our requirements. We are not offered in
exchange immunity and exemption from the world’s woes. What we are offered has
to do with another world altogether. (These Strange Ashes, 129-132)
Laura Hodges Poole
is a 2014 ACFW Genesis semi-finalist
and a 2012 RWA Emily finalist in
Christian fiction. She is also an Associate Editor with Christian Devotions ministry, as well as a
ghostwriter/collaborator. Her passion is encouraging others in their Christian
walk through her blog, "A Word of Encouragement." She may be
contacted at laurapoole565@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @ Laura_Poole.
©Laura Hodges Poole
“A
Woman Jumping” photo courtesy of Kongsky/Freedigitalphotos.net
“House
With Money” photo courtesy of hywads/Freedigitalphotos.net
“Autumn
Twilight” photo courtesy of Evgeni Dinev/Freedigitalphotos.net
Thank you for your wonderful post. It is greatly appreciated!
ReplyDelete