Life Happens

Life happens.  Really?  Life happens?  What does that really mean?  Life.  Happens.  Over the years I have witnessed one crisis after another.  There is devastation. Loss of every kind.  Brutality.  Hatred.  Illnesses.  Financial turmoil.  Marriages that fail.  Shootings.  Riots.  Pain.  And, war.

Life happens in every nook and cranny of our existence.  No one is exempt from life’s challenges.  Many ask:  Does God care?  Is he aware of the horrific happenings in our lives?  Does he not hear our cries for help?  Will God not provide comfort?  Solutions? Help?  Grace?  The rope to hang on is getting tougher by the second.  The strength it takes to grip the rope is beginning to take its toll and the fatigue is overwhelming.  Wariness has set in for the time being.  Emptiness has taken its place in the mind.  Loneliness is burdensome.  Teary eyes.  Anger has the stage.  Guilt pulls into the station for its turn. 

Is there any hope for the restless mind that’s constantly on a journey of painful memories and sleepless nights and the fear of what will happen? 

GRACE!  Where are you?  Please take your place so the soul can rest and the memories will not be so daunting and the days are not so long and the nights are met with quality sleep and the fear will dissipate into oblivion. 

There is a longing for calmness in the turbulent storm.  Conflicts are beating a continual rhythm of frustration.  And, the exhaustion from thinking about the adversity being experienced is increasingly annoying. 

Where is that place to rest?  There is a real need to catch a breath and catch up with every emotion that takes its journey through the mind.  Is there a sanctuary where one can go to be free to express hurt?  Is there that one friend who will listen and who can be trusted and who is faithful? 

Asaph was a music director in the big Israeli choir.  In Psalm 73, Asaph was opining over his life.  He compared the ways of those who lived godless and the way he had been living his life and thought that he may have lived his life in vain.  He said that the wicked are carefree and lives a troubled free life; yet, his life was banged around with trouble and strife.  Asaph didn’t stay in the pity party too long. His connection with God helped him grasp the difficulties of life.  Asaph’s sanctuary moment with God reminded him that in life, good and bad happens even to the ones who live honorably.  He also remembered that while wicked people possess an abundance of stuff and live life carefree and may outwardly seem they have it altogether, there will be a day of reckoning for those whose life isn’t in step with God’s standard.       

Life really happens and it isn’t always good.  There are bad things that happen to people whose lives are honorable in every way.  God said, I’m always there for you.  Jesus, said, you can come and count on me anytime and I will provide exactly what you need. 

Decisions to adjust ones life based on bad stuff that has happened or is happening can cost one a great deal.  The cost may be a job.  Marriage.  Financial hardship.  Friends.  And, a plethora of other things.  However, when one sets out on a course to change one’s life for the betterment of him/herself, then it is imperative that one is willing to accept the challenges from those who disagree.  The key is to allow God to lead and be willing to be patient. 

Life happens and it isn’t always good. Life happens and it isn’t always bad.  Life happens and it zaps one’s energy.  Life happens and it fills one with joy.  Life happens and it is totally devastating.  Life happens and it gives one an unforgettable positive experience. 

No matter what is happening in life, God is always on the scene.  God is always aware.  God is always working out the details to get us where we need to be.  God is always providing resources.  God is always leading us to be renewed, refreshed and revived. 

Seeing God in the intricacies of life with enable each of us to be better, feel better and live better. 

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian