Tag Archives: despair

Into the Wilderness

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“Into the Wilderness”

Matthew 4:1-11 (4:1) – February 26, 2023

            The program of recovery has a great deal of wisdom in it, including the wisdom of how addiction happens in the first place. Addiction and its close companions craving, habit, dependence and desire depend on “more.” If one is good, eight or ten is much better! One more, just one more. Does this sound familiar? One more, just one more. One more time. One more cookie. One more tv show. Does anyone here have that craving and that problem?

            Let’s take a closer look at today’s Scripture reading. Here, Satan, the devil, the Tempter tests our Lord Jesus immediately after John baptizes Jesus in the Jordan River. Matthew tells us specifically “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.”

            This is not comedy or a stand-up joke, like Flip Wilson used to say in the 1970’s, “The devil made me do it!” He would regularly get belly laughs and applause from the audience as a result of this ”hilarious” joke. No, the devil and his ways and wiles are sneaky and persuasive and seductive. The devil came to Jesus in the wilderness on purpose, for this exact reason.

            We can listen to lectures, lessons, speeches and even sermons. So often, all they are is words. Words, words, words streaming over us, without anything to hang them on. However, if you really want to make an impact on your audience, tell them a story. Why do you think the Rabbi Jesus used parables and stories so often? He wanted His audience to remember!

Our Scripture passage for today tells us about the early part of that greatest story ever told. This is one of the first major conflicts recorded in the New Testament. The temptation of our Lord is a really significant event that happened to Jesus. It’s huge in His life experience. And, we can gather lots of spiritual principles and several excellent biblical examples for our hearts and lives. This temptation is a heckuva story! 

            One on one, in the wilderness, these two characters from the Bible are involved in one of the classic exchanges in the whole Biblical record. It’s happening right here, right now. Jesus is fasting, all alone, sent out into a wild, semi-arid place some distance from the place where He was baptized. This story has tension, drama, conflict! And, this story has a resolution, too. But more about that, later.

            Let us consider that after the baptism, the Holy Spirit led Jesus out into the wilderness. Imagine, being in the wilderness all alone. I am not sure whether a lot of people today could survive in the wilderness, especially if they grew up in an urban area like Chicago. Perhaps Jesus was especially hardy or good at basic survival skills. We are not told much else, except that He was out there for a good long time. At some point, Jesus was tempted by Satan, the adversary. And all of us, like Jesus, have to deal with difficult times and wandering in the wilderness.

I have a really important thing to bring up, though. What about our internal difficulties? Approximately one in four Americans suffer from some sort of mental illness or mental difficulty like depression, anxiety, or some sort of compulsion, if not the more severe kinds of affliction like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. That’s a lot of people. And, those people often feel like they are all alone. All by themselves. These people are in a great deal of internal pain.

These times of sadness, anxiety, fearfulness, even downright despair sometimes threaten to overwhelm us. These are truly times of wandering in the wilderness. 

            In the Lord’s Prayer, we specifically pray “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” One of the newer translations of this same petition is “save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil.” The key thing is that we often know very well what temptation is, and how seductive and persuasive and even sneaky temptation can be. How have you experienced temptation? Has it come back, again and again, and have you had difficulty facing it?

What did our Lord Jesus do, when He was tempted? For each of these three temptations that the devil mentioned, Jesus answered each one with a pointed quote from Scripture to answer the specific temptation that Satan brings up. Giving us a good example, Jesus shows us an effective way right here, in our Scripture reading.

We can also get familiar with the Word of God. We can read it on a regular basis, and get so well acquainted with it that we will also be able to answer the little and not-so-little temptations that come up each and every day. To quote from Psalm 119:11, “Your Word I have hid in my heart, that I may not sin against You.” Plus, reading God’s Word, the Bible, is a wonderful way of building a close relationship with our Lord. This is another tool that God gives to us, to help us along the wilderness way.

Different temptations appeal to (and tempt) different people. However, when people in recovery tell their personal stories, there is something about those stories of falling, hitting bottom, and recovery that resonate. They stick, deep down, and people can relate.

I suggest that you (and I) consider a spiritual practice for Lent, like bible reading or prayer. We can participate in prayer walks, works of service or acts of kindness. What might you do in Lent, the next 40 days plus six Sundays, to prepare for a deeper experience of the reality of Good Friday and a more joyous celebration of the truth of Easter?

            Notice, the Holy Spirit is the Comforter and Sustainer who remains with Jesus throughout His time in the wilderness. Just so, the Holy Spirit can be with all of us through our times in the wilderness. Indeed, God can be at work both for us and through us during our wilderness wanderings and difficult times.

  Certainly, we all have our own stories. Each is a day-by-day story, one day at a time. The best part is that Jesus is always by our side. That’s a promise, too. Even though life continues to happen, even though tough times continue to come, Jesus travels with us. As our personal stories continue, that’s a promise we all can trust.. Amen, and amen.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

(Thanks to Carolyn Brown and her website Worshiping with Children for the 1st Sunday in Lent, http://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2014/02/year-first-sunday-in-lent-march-13-2011.html . And thanks as well to Mark Roberts and his devotion from the series Life for Leaders, “The Dustiness of Lent,” https://depree.org/life-for-leaders/?mc_cid=37497859c9&mc_eid=6effffadbb )

See How Jesus Loves!

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“See How Jesus Loves!”

John 11:32-44 (11:36) – November 7, 2021

            What happens when you and I get discouraged? Disheartened? Anxious, upset, and grieving? I know, in my life, it is difficult for me to get up and get going when I feel this way. It’s so hard to continue doing the normal, everyday things that need to get done in my life.

            Have you ever experienced this kind of an invisible wall? Or, has someone close to you ever come up against something like this? These kinds of deep feelings happen with sad regularity among people who have just lost a loved one, a dear relative.

            We take a close look, up close and personal, on an encounter our Lord Jesus had with some dear friends. His friends Mary, Martha and their brother Lazarus often extended their hospitality to Jesus when He came through Bethany. Lazarus has become very ill. His sisters are very much concerned for their brother! Plus, they all know that their good friend Rabbi Jesus is not far away. Can’t they send a message to the nearby town? Where is Jesus? Can’t He come?

            So many people let us down, here in this world. Either on purpose, or accidentally. Even unconsciously, sometimes. I know, it still happens. We get let down, time and again. It feels like a punch in the gut, sometimes! It hurts! Oh, the disappointment, the discouragement, even the despair, as good friends have a family member in intensive care. Or, a relative gets a serious diagnosis. Or, another close loved one is involved in an accident. Whatever happens, it is not good! Where is Jesus? Can’t He be here, right next to us?

`           “We are invited to find our own story within these pages of Scripture, for who has not become personally acquainted with sickness and despair or known of someone who has. The hard facts are laid out in earlier verses of this chapter.” [1] Martha and Mary send a message – an SOS, distress call! – to their good friend the Rabbi Jesus, in a town nearby. “Lord, the one You love is sick.” Jesus’s response? “This sickness will not end in death.” As the messenger dashes back to Bethany to relay the response, can you hear the collective sigh of relief? “Ahh! Jesus knows that Lazarus will not die. Even though he is very sick, at least we have the assurance from our friend that Lazarus will stay here with us.”

            We all know what ends up happening. Sadly, Lazarus does die. Oh, the despair and devastation of Mary and Martha! Didn’t Jesus promise us that Lazarus wouldn’t die? Where, oh, where is Jesus just when Mary, Martha and especially Lazarus need Him most?

            Can you remember sitting through the darkest part of the night, with darkness and despair closing in around your heart? A vigil in a hospital, or in a care center. Or with a loved one at home, next to the bed. Crying until you don’t have any tears left to cry. Where is Jesus?

            That is how it was with Martha and Mary. Except, their brother died. They buried him, several days before. And now, days too late, the Rabbi Jesus finally arrives.

            We read Martha’s resounding testimony of belief in Jesus, just before the reading Eileen did for us today.. Martha met Jesus on the road near their house, and she confirmed what may people of that time were thinking. When Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again,” she responded “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.“

            Amen! Martha, you’ve got it exactly right! Yes, we all shall rise at that last day! That is our blessed hope. That is consistent with what is preached in the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament. Plus, Jesus is not done with this conversation. Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will never die.” And, Jesus presses His point! He asks Martha a follow-up question, “Do you believe this?”

            What a roller coaster of strong emotions and deep feelings Martha and Mary have been riding, for the past week! What can they possibly be experiencing right now? We know Martha makes the ringing statement to Jesus: “Yes, Lord. I believe You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” Oh, glory be! What a testimony, Martha!

            And then, wonder of wonders! We see Jesus openly weep. Weeping, letting deeply held feelings out is something that anyone, that all of us can do. It’s okay! It is permissible to weep, we realize – because – our Lord Jesus did. Even though Jesus knew the rest of the story.

            Where is Jesus? Ah, the gateway to hope! Jesus takes charge, and commands Lazarus to come out of the tomb. Just as the risen and ascended Jesus Christ will call every person to rise on that last day, from all four corners of the earth and under the sea, so Jesus did with authority and power. “Lazarus, come forth!” And, wonder of wonders, Lazarus does exactly that! This miracle is a preview, promo, coming attraction of what the returning Jesus will do at the end of all time.

             In today’s sin-sick world of anxiety, grieving and despair, we need more than feel-good remedies and cheery “spirituality-lite” can offer. In the end, these surface remedies are no substitute for deep believing faith and relationship with God. God’s wellness “can come to help us to participate in God’s healing agenda in the word. In our poverty, a gracious hand is working out even the smallest details of our lives.” [2]

            As we depend on our relationship and faith in God, we find that much in this world is redeemed. As we lean on relationship with each other in this life, even when faced with death itself, we see with eyes of hope that new life can spring up, through faith in Jesus Christ.

Yes, there is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin-sick soul, to make the wounded whole, and His name is Jesus. Amen, alleluia!  

(Thank you to Kenyatta R. Gilbert and her commentary on John 11L28-44. I took several expanded ideas from this excellent commentary for this sermon.)

[1] http://www.theafricanamericanlectionary.org/PopupLectionaryReading.asp?LRID=64

Commentary, John 11:28-44, Kenyatta R. Gilbert, The African American Lectionary, 2009.  

[2] Ibid.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

Great Faithfulness, Indeed!

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“Great Faithfulness, Indeed!”

Lam 3-23 faithfulness, clouds

Lamentations 3:19-26 – October 6, 2019

About twenty years ago, I attended a church with a pastor who preached very powerful sermons. This pastor would occasionally mention that he prayed his preaching “would comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” That sounds very like the Bible book we read from this morning. The little book of Lamentations was written at a complicated time in the history of the nation of Israel, and the prophet who wrote it was conflicted at the time he wrote.

I wonder, can anyone here relate to being sad, troubled and conflicted, sometimes? Does anyone here have bad or sad or troubling things happening in their lives right now, either in their lives or the lives of their loved ones? I know many people do have all kinds of things raining down on their heads.

Perhaps it’s health concerns. At countless hospitals, chaplains or nurses or doctors can tell us about patients with very serious health concerns like heart attacks or strokes. Or, what about continuing health conditions like kidney disease, COPD, multiple sclerosis, or Parkinson’s disease? I am certain that everyone here today knows at least one friend or family member who suffers from some difficulty, disease or condition like these.

Let’s look at some other concerns, like lack of finances. Loss of employment can certainly affect not only individuals, but whole families as well. What about floods or hurricanes? How many lives in the United States have been devastated by these horrible happenings, just in the past two or three months? The number is astronomical.

Add situations such as “your house has burned to the ground,” or “your family member is getting a divorce.” In these situations, what kinds of things would be going through your mind? What are the feelings of the people in these situations?  What are some of the things these conditions make you want to say to God? What are some of the questions you’d like to ask God about these situations?

That is exactly the problem our prophet and writer of Lamentations has. This little book is a series of laments, asking God about the serious situation the nation of Israel is in, asking—in a word—why? That is a question that so many people are asking!

We know the prophet Jeremiah, the probable author of this book, was no stranger to despair.  Consider how he opens in verse 1: “How lonely sits the city that once was full of people” (Lam. 1:1). His city—Jerusalem—has been ransacked by the Babylonian army and left for dead. It seemed God’s very purpose and people had been abandoned. [1]

As commentator Carolyn Brown tells us, many places in the Hebrew Scriptures have “people talking back to God.  These are deeply hurt, terribly sad, and totally angry people, and they are willing to tell God so.  We talk to children often about telling God the happy things, confessing our sins to God, and asking God for help.  But, we also need to give them permission, even encourage them to tell God when they are angry, when life seems unfair, when it looks to them as if God isn’t doing God’s job the way it should be done.” [2]

I would like to stop right here, and let us consider this particularly important task of allowing, of permitting children to grieve. We all need to grieve and mourn, from time to time. Grieving is an important thing to do. We as adults do, indeed, need to model for children our way of dealing with difficulties, problems, even catastrophes. Otherwise, many more people would pull their heads into their shells, like turtles, to escape from these serious difficulties.

And yet—and yet—amid all of this sorrow, suffering and despair, the prophet writes of how blessed he finds the present difficult situation.

What a contrast! What a puzzle! How can this be? Great question!

Commentator Steve Godfrey goes further, “From the depths of his despair Jeremiah turns to something he has come to know well, the loyal love of God.  The Hebrew word used here, hesed, is a constant theme throughout the Old Testament.  It is sometimes translated ‘steadfast love’ or ‘faithful lovingkindness.’”  [3]

What a marvelous thing to have faith in! After so many awful descriptions of horrible things during the past poems of distress, the prophet gives us a ringing endorsement of faith in God’s steadfast loving-kindness in chapter 3 of Lamentations.

Commentator Steve Godfrey has more than the usual difficulty with sad or disturbing things. He has low-grade depression, and he would like for us to know about his occasional mental condition. “As someone who has managed low-grade depression for 31 years of his adult life these are words that encourage profoundly. They don’t minimize or avoid the issue….

“These words don’t mean that Christians should never get depressed.  The Prophet Jeremiah got depressed and I’ll put his character up against depression deniers any day of the week!  The beauty of the gospel is that it embraces both anguish and hope.  Paul had a thorn in the flesh; low-grade depression is mine.  By God’s grace I manage it through diet, exercise, medication, and counseling.  It’s something I inherited through genetics, and that’s okay.” [4]

Praise God for such a constructive attitude. I doubt very much whether I would be able to maintain such a positive attitude and expression. Knowing that God is there with me, through it all, is so helpful to me when I am going through difficult, even traumatic times. I can share a testimony of God’s presence, of God’s chesed, “steadfast love” or “faithful lovingkindness,” with those who are also having difficulties in life.

But, let us shift our focus from our reading today to why we gather this morning.

We celebrate World Communion Sunday today. This sacrament has been celebrated in good times and in bad, during war and during peace, during times of turbulence and trial as well as times of great joy. Communion has also celebrated by many different people groups in many, many different places throughout the globe. Whether we call it the Lord’s Supper, the Eucharist or Communion makes little difference. The unity between various, diverse ministers leading and coordinating observances of this meal our Lord Jesus commanded us to observe is a wonderful glimpse of what this world can be.

Whether we are glad, mad or sad, whether we have only a little or have a lot of goods in this world, whether we are in good health or not-so-good, our Lord Jesus bids us join together in this meal, to be unified and one body, celebrating our diversity. He welcomes each of us to His table, no matter what.

Praise God, what a welcome! Our Lord bids us, come! Thank You, Lord Jesus.

[1] https://churchintheworld.com/2013/09/30/navigating-depression-2/

“Navigating Depression,” Steve Godfrey, Church in the World, 2013.

[2] http://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2010/09/year-c-27th-sunday-of-ordinary.html

Worshiping with Children, Ordinary 27C (World Communion Sunday), Including children in the congregation’s worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2010.

[3] https://churchintheworld.com/2013/09/30/navigating-depression-2/

“Navigating Depression,” Steve Godfrey, Church in the World, 2013.

[4] Ibid.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my regular blog for 2019: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and my other blog,  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

Hope of God’s Good Promises

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“Hope of God’s Good Promises”

Jer 33-14 God fulfills the gracious promise

Jeremiah 33:14 – November 29, 2015

“It just isn’t fair!”

How many of us can remember children saying that? Either when we were in school, on the playground, or when our children or grandchildren were bickering or fighting together. “It just isn’t fair!”

Lots of things are unfair. One child gets a bigger helping of pie or ice cream at Thanksgiving dinner. One child gets more Christmas presents than another, under the Christmas tree. Let’s go one step further. One child gets a bigger treat than the others. Or even, one child gets punished more times than all the rest.

“It just isn’t fair!”

I will be preaching through the Old Testament scriptures this Advent. Yes, this is the first Sunday in Advent, the time of preparation, when we pray and get ready for Jesus to be born in Bethlehem. But—we are not there yet! We need to prepare for four Sundays.

Our Scripture passage today comes from the book of Jeremiah. The prophet Jeremiah lived about 350 to 400 years after King David and King Solomon. About 600 years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Just to give you some idea of the time line. The situation Jeremiah and the other people in the kingdom of Israel found themselves in was not good! Israel had been conquered. Again. (Yes, they had been disobedient to God, again. And, that was a large part of why they were in exile, far from their homes.)

I can see why the people of Israel might think they were being treated unfairly. “It’s just not fair!” Because, God had repeatedly said the nation of Israel is God’s special possession. God’s much beloved children. Just imagine a list of all the things that were not fair for Jeremiah’s listeners and their children – forced to live in a foreign land as servants, not enough food, no chance to go to school, soldiers who told you where to go and what to do, and then some! How on earth did the nation of Israel get into this mess?

Jeremiah was a prophet to the kingdom of Israel during the sixth century before the birth of Christ. The time in which he wrote, the place where he wrote, was conquered—again! Not very safe or very peaceful. There were wars and rumors of wars, as well as a lot of military oppression, from all sides.

Some context helps me out, when I read the Bible. This explanation comes from an Australian online commentary. “The context of Jeremiah 33 is important. In terms of the story in Jeremiah, the city of Jerusalem is under siege by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar and the people will shortly go into exile (Jer 32:1-6). Jeremiah is in prison (Jer 32:2; 33:1). The people are about to lose everything that has given meaning to their lives – the temple, the city, king, priesthood, their homes, family, etcetera. God seems to be silent, absent, and preoccupied with judging the people for past wrongs.” [1]

Time jump! I can see how the people of the first century, when the Gospels were written, felt a lot the same way! The Jewish people were a conquered people. Again! The Roman empire kept very close watch on the Jews in Israel. They knew the Jews to be a stiff-necked, stubborn, rebellious lot, so the Roman government was quick to stamp out the least little sign of outbreak or rebellion among the Jewish people. And, the Roman occupation had gone on for decades.

Is this very different from today? Wars and rumors of wars, conflict, destruction, despair and darkness. Just turn on the evening news or check the morning newspaper, or read the news online, and these are common headlines. A sad commentary on our times. Or any time, when this is the situation.

Here we are, on the first Sunday of the new church year, the first Sunday in Advent. Our Scripture lessons from the Old Testament and from the Gospel of Luke serve two purposes: they are a combination peek ahead, and also a reality check. Jeremiah’s prophecies are often of doom and gloom. Real downers. But sometimes, God gives the prophet some positive message for the people in exile. This paragraph today is just one such message.

Jeremiah knows his people in exile feel worthless and useless, like an old stump. But he tells the Jews that God is not finished yet! God is going to raise up a Leader from the line of King David. Imagine a fair, just leader who was one of them, a Jew, rather than a foreigner. This righteous Leader will bring about justice and restoration! These are words of hope! Good news! Glad tidings for the future!

Then, we have the passage from Luke, where Jesus tells us exactly how bad it is going to get. We know! The world is truly in an awful state! Sometimes, it seems like nothing is going to bail us out of the awful mess we are in. Bad leaders, awful people, horrible plans happening all over the place. But—there is hope. God gives us good news! Glad tidings for the future!

God promises that in the end they will not win.  God will.

Jeremiah’s promise—God’s promise is that a righteous Leader will sprout. Will arise. Even though things look black and hope is almost gone, God gives us good news! In the reading from Jeremiah today, the last word is “Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: ‘The Lord Our Righteous Savior.’”

Yes, we have hope! Yes, hope for the present, and hope for the future! God’s own words and actions, and God’s challenge to present us with visions of what is to come.

We know Advent is not just about sitting, twiddling our thumbs, passively waiting for God to fulfill God’s promises. It is also about our being transformed through waiting. Expectant! Eagerly looking for God to show up!

Yes, God gives us good news! Glad tidings for the future! Yes, we have hope! Hope for the present, and hope for the future!

Yes. Hope of God’s Good Promises.

Alleluia, amen!

[1] http://hwallace.unitingchurch.org.au/WebOTcomments/AdventC/Advent1Jer33.html

@chaplaineliza

Suggestion: visit me at my daily blog for 2015: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. and my other blog,  A Year of Being Kind .  Thanks!