Peace
Do you know what I really hate? Worry. Worry worms it's way into your soul and turns an otherwise perfect day into a nail-bitten nightmare. The worst part is that we so often worry about things that we shouldn't be worried about or things we can't control. We worry about our jobs, our relationships, our futures, our reputations, our budget, our faith, the list goes on and on... Basically, we worry about pretty much everything. And it can be a paralyzing fear. It can fill our stomachs with dread and sour our mood and give us many tears and sleepless nights. How many times have I let worry ruin my day? Too many times to count.
The ironic thing is that often times I will worry for hours or days or weeks about something, only to find that everything worked itself out in the end and all my worrying was for naught. I mean really, when has my worrying ever helped or changed a situation? Never. The only thing it has done is destroy my peace of mind. But normally I can't help but worry. It's simple human nature. We are scared of things beyond our control. We like to put everything in our lives inside this little box where we are god and we control everything and nothing bad ever happens. But how realistic is that? When I get on an airplane am I in control? When I'm in the passenger seat of a car am I in control? When I'm asleep am I in control? We as humans like to read the passage in Genesis where God says to "Have dominion over the Earth." But we forget where control ultimately lies. We look to science and technology and claim "Look! We have control! We know how things work and how to make things work for us!" But do we really? How much of creation is still beyond our understanding? How many more mysteries of God have we yet to unravel? How many can we never unravel?
In truth I as a person have control over very very little. In truth I don't have control over anything at all except my own body. And even then I'm not in total control. Consider how beautiful the human body is. Consider how every system in the body works together to keep you alive. Your heart beating, your lungs breathing, your blood pumping. We don't control these things. Have you ever thought about how fragile the body is? We are such fragile beings that if a few chromosomes are out of place then our bodies do not develop correctly. At any point my heart could stop, a blood vessel could burst in my brain, my mind could simply shut down. And what control do I have over this? What say do I have? None.
So many times we as humans (especially successful people) like to imagine that we are these great beings and that nothing can touch us. But when it comes down to it what separates a great leader of a first world country from a poor beggar in a third world country? Nothing really. They are both human. From dust they came and to dust they will return. The grave could claim either of them at any time.
This isn't meant to be depressing. It isn't meant to be worrisome. It isn't even meant to be scary. In fact, once you realize that nothing is under your control you can finally stop worrying. I hope you didn't stop reading here or a few paragraphs ago. Because this is where I tell you the good news.
When we understand that pretty much nothing is under our control we have two options. We can believe that everything that happens in the world is completely and utterly random. The result of natural processes and simple chemical reactions. You, me, everything, we are all accidents. Flukes. And everything we do is meaningless and after death the only thing we can hope for is that someone remembers us. I don't know about you but that seems like a pretty depressing way to view the world.
The other option is that we can believe that everything we see around us, you, me, everything. Has been created by a all-knowing, all-powerful, loving God. And He made everything with a purpose. Things physical and things mental. Emotions, perceptions, thoughts, God made it all. And better than that. He controls everything. He has His hands on you and He is directing circumstances to His plan. We don't always understand His plan. We don't always like it. But ultimately His plan is best because He is good. You might be saying "Well someone close to me just died." Or, "I'm going through such and such. How can an all-powerful, good, loving God have that in His plan?" First, I don't pretend to know everything. If we could understand everything about God then He wouldn't be much of a God. Second, The evil and pain in creation isn't the result of a flawed creator, but a flawed creation. God gave mankind a choice in the garden of Eden. And we chose to rebel and spit in the Creator's face and say "Who needs you?!?!" But now you may be saying "That was Adam and Eve! Why should we all suffer for their mistake?" But be honest. If it were you in the garden, wouldn't you make the same choice? I would. Not convinced? How many times do you sin daily? How many times do you rebel against the creator? Sin is sin. Whether you're lying or lusting or hating or eating a forbidden fruit. The truth is humanity is, at it's core, broken beyond repair. No matter how hard we try none of us will ever stop sinning. But the good news God did the impossible. He fixed what was completely broken. He loved His creation so much that He sent His son to take the punishment that we deserved. And now we are reborn. And we have a purpose. Maybe you don't think that you do. God has planned all of creation. he doesn't make mistakes. And He put you here for a reason. You're not a mistake. People used to think that the appendix was an extra organ that didn't do anything. Now we know it actually has a very important purpose. And the same is true of you. God has an amazing purpose for each and every person. Whether or not we trust Him and try to walk in that purpose is up to us. And we have a hope that one day He will come back for us! Death is not the end! It's the beginning of an eternity with the being that loves us more than anything!
So don't worry about things beyond our control. (which is pretty much everything.) God has your back. Think about that. You've got the maker of oceans and winds and mountains on your side! The Bible says "And which of you, by worrying, can add a single hour to your life?" The answer is no one can! Trust God. He has a plan and it is good. The Bible also says that He will never leave us or forsake us. So live! Live loud and free! If anything this knowledge should give us courage and confidence! Our God is over everything! He controls the tides and steers the winds! Our God is for us! So who can be against us? And when you do worry, when you are afraid, remember these words: "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." And rejoice. Let joy be your companion! Don't let the world get you down. And when it tries, remember that Christ gives us the peace that passes understanding. The peace that we have even when everything we know and love is being torn down. The peace that makes no sense at all. The peace that we have in our true love. Christ. The peace that comes from knowing that the maker of all loves us. And He is with us.
The ironic thing is that often times I will worry for hours or days or weeks about something, only to find that everything worked itself out in the end and all my worrying was for naught. I mean really, when has my worrying ever helped or changed a situation? Never. The only thing it has done is destroy my peace of mind. But normally I can't help but worry. It's simple human nature. We are scared of things beyond our control. We like to put everything in our lives inside this little box where we are god and we control everything and nothing bad ever happens. But how realistic is that? When I get on an airplane am I in control? When I'm in the passenger seat of a car am I in control? When I'm asleep am I in control? We as humans like to read the passage in Genesis where God says to "Have dominion over the Earth." But we forget where control ultimately lies. We look to science and technology and claim "Look! We have control! We know how things work and how to make things work for us!" But do we really? How much of creation is still beyond our understanding? How many more mysteries of God have we yet to unravel? How many can we never unravel?
In truth I as a person have control over very very little. In truth I don't have control over anything at all except my own body. And even then I'm not in total control. Consider how beautiful the human body is. Consider how every system in the body works together to keep you alive. Your heart beating, your lungs breathing, your blood pumping. We don't control these things. Have you ever thought about how fragile the body is? We are such fragile beings that if a few chromosomes are out of place then our bodies do not develop correctly. At any point my heart could stop, a blood vessel could burst in my brain, my mind could simply shut down. And what control do I have over this? What say do I have? None.
So many times we as humans (especially successful people) like to imagine that we are these great beings and that nothing can touch us. But when it comes down to it what separates a great leader of a first world country from a poor beggar in a third world country? Nothing really. They are both human. From dust they came and to dust they will return. The grave could claim either of them at any time.
This isn't meant to be depressing. It isn't meant to be worrisome. It isn't even meant to be scary. In fact, once you realize that nothing is under your control you can finally stop worrying. I hope you didn't stop reading here or a few paragraphs ago. Because this is where I tell you the good news.
When we understand that pretty much nothing is under our control we have two options. We can believe that everything that happens in the world is completely and utterly random. The result of natural processes and simple chemical reactions. You, me, everything, we are all accidents. Flukes. And everything we do is meaningless and after death the only thing we can hope for is that someone remembers us. I don't know about you but that seems like a pretty depressing way to view the world.
The other option is that we can believe that everything we see around us, you, me, everything. Has been created by a all-knowing, all-powerful, loving God. And He made everything with a purpose. Things physical and things mental. Emotions, perceptions, thoughts, God made it all. And better than that. He controls everything. He has His hands on you and He is directing circumstances to His plan. We don't always understand His plan. We don't always like it. But ultimately His plan is best because He is good. You might be saying "Well someone close to me just died." Or, "I'm going through such and such. How can an all-powerful, good, loving God have that in His plan?" First, I don't pretend to know everything. If we could understand everything about God then He wouldn't be much of a God. Second, The evil and pain in creation isn't the result of a flawed creator, but a flawed creation. God gave mankind a choice in the garden of Eden. And we chose to rebel and spit in the Creator's face and say "Who needs you?!?!" But now you may be saying "That was Adam and Eve! Why should we all suffer for their mistake?" But be honest. If it were you in the garden, wouldn't you make the same choice? I would. Not convinced? How many times do you sin daily? How many times do you rebel against the creator? Sin is sin. Whether you're lying or lusting or hating or eating a forbidden fruit. The truth is humanity is, at it's core, broken beyond repair. No matter how hard we try none of us will ever stop sinning. But the good news God did the impossible. He fixed what was completely broken. He loved His creation so much that He sent His son to take the punishment that we deserved. And now we are reborn. And we have a purpose. Maybe you don't think that you do. God has planned all of creation. he doesn't make mistakes. And He put you here for a reason. You're not a mistake. People used to think that the appendix was an extra organ that didn't do anything. Now we know it actually has a very important purpose. And the same is true of you. God has an amazing purpose for each and every person. Whether or not we trust Him and try to walk in that purpose is up to us. And we have a hope that one day He will come back for us! Death is not the end! It's the beginning of an eternity with the being that loves us more than anything!
So don't worry about things beyond our control. (which is pretty much everything.) God has your back. Think about that. You've got the maker of oceans and winds and mountains on your side! The Bible says "And which of you, by worrying, can add a single hour to your life?" The answer is no one can! Trust God. He has a plan and it is good. The Bible also says that He will never leave us or forsake us. So live! Live loud and free! If anything this knowledge should give us courage and confidence! Our God is over everything! He controls the tides and steers the winds! Our God is for us! So who can be against us? And when you do worry, when you are afraid, remember these words: "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." And rejoice. Let joy be your companion! Don't let the world get you down. And when it tries, remember that Christ gives us the peace that passes understanding. The peace that we have even when everything we know and love is being torn down. The peace that makes no sense at all. The peace that we have in our true love. Christ. The peace that comes from knowing that the maker of all loves us. And He is with us.
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