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And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you. I, the Lord, have spoken!” Jeremiah 1:8
The story is told of an illegal Bible Study found out in a communist country. The soldiers who discovered the Bible Study told those in attendance that they would all be shot. Then, in a moment of false mercy, the head soldier said, “I’ll let you go if you spit on the Bible we’ve discovered. One by one people approached the Bible, spit on the open pages and left hurriedly. Then, a young girl approached the now spit covered Bible. She knelt, wiped away the spit with her dress and kissed the Bible. The soldier pointed his gun and pulled the trigger.
What a brave story of heroism and love for the Lord Jesus. This young girl looked at the situation before here and realized she could not acquiesce to the man with the gun. Perhaps she realized, more than anyone else in the room that the real power didn’t lie with the gun. The real power was in God’s word and she could not deny that.
The prophet Jeremiah encountered a somewhat similar situation. He was called to be God’s messenger during a very perilous economic, political and social time in his nation. Not only that, but God’s Word was looked down upon by many in the nation and he was but a youngster.
We live in a similar time today. We’re told by society at all levels that our message is, at best, no different than any other religious message. We are accused of being out of touch, intolerant, judgmental, and a whole litany of other adjectives. The reality is, sometimes we deserve those accusations because we use God’s word and a weapon rather than the source of love, hope and grace it was intended to be.
The question for each of us today is the same as it was for Jeremiah and for the young girl who literally had a gun pointed to her head. Will you stand for God’s word when your classmates ridicule you; when you are confronted by those antagonistic to Jesus; when it would be far easier to stay quiet, but more prudent to speak the truth in love? Jesus says you can’t serve two masters. Who will you serve today?
PRAYER: Father God, I’d like to think that I would take a bullet in the head before denying you, but I confess my weakness. While no one has pointed a gun at my head, there have been times I should have spoken up but did not. Forgive me for my fear. Help me to trust you completely. Amen.
You have not seen Christ, but still you love him. You cannot see him now, but you believe in him. So you are filled with a joy that cannot be explained, a joy full of glory. 1 Peter 1:8 (NCV)
S.A.D.-Seasonal Affective Disorder-by definition it’s a type of depression that comes on people generally at a certain time of the year, usually fall. For those of us in the northern climates it’s usually caused by long nights and short days in which there may be no sunshine at all.
There’s another kind of S.A.D. that attacks us as well. Call it Spiritual Affective Disorder. If you are a Christ-follower and you’ve been walking the journey for a while you are all too familiar with this type of S.A.D. Those times when you feel emotionally and spiritually spent. You try to pray but can’t. You force yourself to read the Bible but the letters and words are just a pattern on the page with no meaning and no ‘inspiration’.
Sometimes this type of S.A.D. can be so severe it causes you to lose faith. At least for awhile. Is this all really worth it? Maybe banging your head on a wall would be more helpful! Maybe going out and getting drunk or finding a new partner or making some drastic changes in lifestyle will help.
Then you stop short. “What am I thinking?” you ask yourself. Those things won’t make the problems go away. In fact they make it worse.
So what is the answer to avoiding or curing Spiritual Affective Disorder? The cure for the physical version of S.A.D. is prolonged periods of sunshine. The cure for Spiritual Affective Disorder is walking in the SONshine.
The Apostle Peter is writing to a bunch of new believers in Christ. They were living in dangerous political times. Their lives were threatened on a daily basis and many had even lost their lives due to their faith.
Peter says “You haven’t seen Christ, but your very belief in him should bring you great joy”. In a sense Peter is saying; don’t look at the struggles around you. Don’t focus on how bad things are. Focus on Jesus. Keep him in view and the troubles of life will be less threatening.
Who but Peter would know what it was like to see Jesus? He was writing to people who hadn’t had the opportunity to see Jesus on a daily basis. He was writing to a people who hadn’t had the benefit of seeing Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. He was writing to a people who had never felt the water under their feet as they walked across a lake to meet Jesus.
Peter knew something each of us should remember. Keep your focus on Jesus. Only he will give you a joy that no one can understand. Step into the SONshine and stop being S.A.D.!
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. I remember you saying you would walk with me through the storms and gloom of life. At times it’s hard to see the SONshine due to heavy clouds of concern and worry. Empower me with your spirit to see through the fog so that I can have the joy only you can give. Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 