I started out my first day back from vacation with a trip to the bank this morning. At 8:30 a.m. this morning on the way to pick up my dog from the kennel, I stopped in the drive through window at the bank. I saw a man standing at the drive through window doing his banking business, and should have taken a hint. As I pulled up to wait my turn, it was obvious he had a business account and a whole lot to say. If you know me, I hope you really LOL. Some of you are laughing right now, I just know it. I could hardly wait to get my dog from the vet and I found myself tapping the steering wheel and checking my watch, several times. I thought, I sure am being tested early in the day today. It was obvious this was not going to be a quick stop as I had planned. I kept my cool, but I was so glad to see him walk back to his huge truck that he had parked near the bank that I shouted just a little bit on the inside. It was only 10 minutes but at that moment it felt like an hour. My adversity this morning was just a little bump in the road to start the day. Where was my patience?
As we think about preparing our hearts for the holy time before us, one of the themes I have been reflecting on is how we handle adversity. At Faith UMC where I serve, there are a number of people who are facing adversity. Big adversities, not a little bump in the road like a minor delay at the bank. The life situations vary a great deal, but there is a common thread of faith, and that is trusting Jesus Christ no matter what comes our way. The world sees our witness in the face of adversity. I see the witness of these folks I serve and I give the Lord praise for their courage and their witness. Yes, we can give the Lord praise when everything in life is going our way. We are all smiles with a good job, a happy family that is getting along, good health, friends you can count on, safe communities, and security and peace on every front. But let the smallest inconvenience break into our routine and we get cranky. When we are at our best, do we stop to give the Lord praise for helping us be at our best? When we need him, we are surely quick to ask for his help. Christ proves to us his power when we are weak. The scripture teaches he is strong. Adversity helps us understand in a personal way the strength Christ will give us when we take our rest in him.
Another thought about adversity is that you can count on it. Hardships are going to find everybody at some point in time. We cannot control "what comes our way, but we can control "how" we handle what comes our way. I know some people with the best attitude you can imagine in the face of really serious health issues among other challenges. I know that this is only possible through Christ our Lord. Who is the keeper of your peace? I know a young adult who is going through a time of great disappointment. Things have not worked out as he had hoped they would. But he is keeping his faith in Christ. I look forward to his testimony some day of how God is using this adversity in his life to be a building block. I know it doesn't feel like a building block for anything good to come for him right now, but our God is in the business of redemption. I am continuing to trust that God will bring something good from the present situation. I also talked to a grandpa tonight whose great grand daughter who is five years old had a brain tumor removed last week. She is doing well and making progress day by day. When the family stood around her before her surgery started, she told them not to cry because Jesus was with her. That is facing adversity with Christ if I have ever seen it! We serve a Savior who knows all about adversity, real adversity, and he stands ready to help us in our day to day situations be overcomers, transformers, life givers, life lovers, motivators, optimists, real resurrection people. Christ is the source of our eternal hope. Thanks be to God!
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