Month: October 2024

“Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.”

Acts 20:9-12 (NIV)

This is an unusual story, containing a bizarre montage of scenes. Paul was preaching to a church full of people on a third floor level of a building. A young man named Eutychus, was sitting in the window, and fell asleep during the sermon. He fell out of that window, three stories down and died. Paul ran downstairs to the dead boy, and while holding him in his arms, he assured the people that the boy will live. The boy came back to life and all the people were grateful.

While everyone was still in a stunned state of mind, from the traumatic, but miraculous sequence of events, Paul returned to the third floor congregation and finished by serving holy Communion to all of them. Then he continued teaching and preaching until daylight the next morning.

The name, Eutychus, is pronounced as Uticus, in English, and it means fortunate, in Greek. Eutychus had the good fortune of being brought back to life after a deadly fall, and it happened just in time for Communion. There must be a message for believers in all of the strange, but wonderful events in this story. 

The story began with drowsiness. Maybe Eutychus’ drowsiness is a metaphor for spiritual drowsiness. There are repeated warnings throughout scripture, that we need to stay awake, keep sober minded and be vigilant, so that we are not misled or distracted by the things that can shift our focus or dull our spiritual senses. (1 Peter 5:8)

Eutychus got drowsy and fell to his death. Paul prayed for him and he was miraculously raised to life again. Drowsiness preceded his death, as spiritual drowsiness robs us of our joy during certain trials. Eutychus woke up in the arms of Paul, and we also will wake up from our drowsiness, in the arms of Jesus. 

Whether we or a loved one is facing a serious illness, or whatever is causing some kind of grief, it’s very tempting to withdraw from others and isolate ourselves. I did this while I was a caregiver for my sick husband in 2019. I couldn’t get to church much at all, so I eventually cut myself off from church life. I became spiritually drowsy, and lost my focus on God. I barely prayed, lost my joy and was about to fall out of that same window that Eutychus fell out of, when Jesus woke me up one day, and I realized His arms were around me the whole time.

There is something therapeutic in telling God how we really feel, whether we feel angry, sad, fearful or hopeless. Instead of saying all the proper words and reciting prayers that we think He wants to hear, inner healing begins through honest conversations with God. 

Even Jesus was honest enough to ask the Father if the cup of suffering could be removed from Him. David lost his focus several times, but his honest conversations with God, led him back to a sustaining intimacy with Him.

After bringing Eutychus back to life, Paul returned to that third floor church and served Communion to his congregation. The element of our redemption, that is most valuable in helping us to live an abundant life, is the blood of Jesus. By His blood, we are delivered from all evil, and we are continuously cleansed and renewed. Holy communion repeatedly brings that reality to us. 

Like Eutychus, we will have times of spiritual drowsiness and lose focus, but we will also have many spiritual resurrections in a lifetime, being awakened in the arms of Jesus, and renewed by the Holy Spirit. Nothing can ever separate us from the kind of love that awakens, resurrects and sustains us, because we are all being embraced in the arms of Christ. 

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

(Roman’s 8:38-39)

Lord, help us to stay alert and sober in spirit, so that we may always know that the your arms are around us. We will trust in your precious blood, and as we share our honest thoughts with you, renew our hearts and restore to us the joy of our salvation. Amen

“Arise and go down to the potter’s house; there you will hear my word.

I went down to the potter’s house and there he was, working at the wheel. Whenever the vessel of clay he was making turned out badly in his hand, he tried again, making another vessel of whatever sort he pleased. Then the word of the Lord came to me: Can I not do to you, house of Israel, as this potter has done? Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, house of Israel.”

Jeremiah 18:2-6 (NAB)

God called Jeremiah to go to the Potter’s house and observe him in action, working with clay and creating at his wheel. He saw that the Potter reshaped the clay works of his hands until it was pleasing to him. God told Jeremiah that He is the Potter and His people are like that clay.

The Potter is a metaphor to remind us that we are continually being molded and re-shaped, and whether we are 7 or 70, God is not finished with us yet.

Clay is best shaped through heat  and pressure. During those trials, when the heat is highest and the pressure is most intense, we can be confident that we are in the Potter’s hands, being re-shaped. Whether we have drifted from our faith, or face new and difficult tests of faith, we are all being prepared for greater things. The process of being in the Potter’s hands, may not be pleasant or comfortable at the moment, but it offers us fresh opportunities to find the path God has destined us to be in, that path that is according to His will.

God is working at His Potter’s wheel, to reshape us into the image of His son, by using us to encourage someone else who is going through a similar test or problem. Every believer is called to be imitators of Christ, and to live in love, as He did when He handed himself over for us. (Ephesians 5:1-2)

Since God wants us to be imitators of Christ, we are asked to hand ourselves over to Him, trusting Him  through whatever is happening in our lives. Even when we don’t respond to God as He desires, He never gives up on us, but patiently keeps working and molding the clay. 

He tells us throughout scripture that we are His beloved children, His sons and daughters, yet He isn’t finished with us yet. We are all at the Potter’s wheel. Every one of Paul’s letters says something to remind us that we are in a constant process of being molded and re-shaped to become more like Christ.

“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren.”

(Romans 8:29)

I lost my way of faith and obedience more than once over the years, but God, who is rich in mercy, took me back to His Potter’s wheel over and over again. In some cases, He sent His heat and pressure my way, to redirect my path and I was inspired to live for Him again. In looking back I see His many mercies shown over a lifetime. 

The Potter has brought all of us to the place we are at today, and for all the faith and trust we have in Him, it is by His grace and the multitude of His mercies shown to us over the years.

There’s a good reason that the only Hebrew word for mercy is in a plural form, “Rachmim.” A Hebrew word that ends in “im”, is plural. God’s mercies are plural because they are endless, and last a lifetime. No one is more generous in mercy than God. 

He molds and re-shapes us with the passion of a devoted father, not an eccentric artist. We are His beloved sons and daughters, His unique and creative designs, with distinctive traits, which were placed in us, by Him. He loves us as we are. He sees the beauty in what we can become, and is not distracted by our flaws or failures. He is making us become more like His son each day.

Isaiah speaks of His steadfast love, to the degree that God tells us,

“I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”  (Isaiah 49:16)

If we are engraved in God’s hands, then the Potter’s hands are the nail scarred hands of Jesus. Since He once handed Himself over for us, we can securely yield ourselves into His hands.

Lord, we thank you for your many mercies and for who we are and have become over time, in Christ. It was your Potter’s hands that have re-shaped us through heat and pressure over the years. We yield our whole self to you and ask that you make us whatever you want us to be. Amen 

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”

2 Corinthians 2:14-15 (RSV)

Twice in this chapter, the apostle Paul tells us that we are a fragrance and an aroma of Christ to others. He told the Corinthians that God wants us to live in the awareness that we carry the scent of His son with us everywhere we go.

Since God is love, and Jesus is God incarnate, then the fragrance of Christ is the aroma of love.

His aroma is a spiritual scent with the same effect that a physical fragrance has. An aroma or a fragrance lingers in the air, long after a person walks away. Anytime we meet someone who leaves a lasting impression on us, of love, peace, joy or kindness, it’s the aroma of God’s love emanating through them.

God wants everyone to be saved, and to spend eternity with Him, so He spreads His fragrance through us and among us for His divine purpose. He uses ordinary people to touch the hearts of others with His love. We each carry His aroma according to our own unique personality traits. It’s amazing to meditate upon, but we are those ordinary people, who carry the fragrance of Jesus, the son of God, with us wherever we go.

The powerful effect of the aroma of Christ, is that it brings life to all those who need it. It’s a spiritual scent that  causes someone to pause and think about God. I remember once, never having a single thought about God, but one day I began to wonder what He expects of me. 

Someone left His fragrance with me,  and though I have no idea who, I have a hunch that it was two women I worked with briefly at a department store, during college. I never heard them speak about God, but they had an aura of kindness and love, and seemed different from others. I knew that they were Christians, involved in their church, yet we never had a conversation about God. 

A year later, I no longer worked there and never saw them again, but my thinking started to shift. It eventually changed my life, and Jesus touched and transformed my mind and soul. Perhaps they prayed for me, I may never know, but I believe they left the aroma and fragrance of Christ with me.

Without taking a narcissistic view, we should probably consider that God sends us to others for a divine purpose, just as He sends others to us, since He is always working out His divine purpose and plans. 

Imagine if every person we meet is a part of God’s plan and design, and there are no coincidences? 

Life becomes very exciting when we live with that perspective.

Some people might not listen to words of wisdom or persuasive arguments, but they will respond to love. The aroma of Christ is easily breathed in, and it gently permeates a person’s soul. It’s a fragrance that can subtly transform a life and affect their eternal destiny.

My son’s brain injury seems to prevent him from fully understanding or expressing speech. Although he tries, he mostly communicates in jibberish that cannot be understood, but I have learned that in spite of this, his soul is alive and well within him. There is no doubt that he responds with emotion to expressions of love. 

He could go for hours without talking or answering, maybe not even fully comprehending the words said to him, but as soon as I hug him and say “I love you”,  he begins to cry uncontrollably. The aroma of love touches a part of him, deep in his soul, which proves to me that if nothing else, he understands words of love.

Yesterday, I had a moment like that with him, and his nurse assistants were walking by and saw him crying.  When I told them why he was crying, they immediately reacted, showing compassion, and surrounding him with love. I quickly snapped a picture of that moment, and what a sweet picture it made. 

Love is a language that every soul understands, whether they are able to speak or not. A brain injury limits cognitive ability, but it doesn’t affect the ability to show and receive love. That’s because love connects with the soul, not just the brain. 

In God’s perfect design and plan, He brought those nurse assistants to this Nursing Home at the right time, to permeate their aroma in Jon’s life, and others. Jon certainly receives a lot of love from the staff, and I’m glad that he can respond emotionally to that love.

We may not always realize it, but the people in our lives are those who were sent to us, just as we were sent to them. God wants to share the aroma of His son, Jesus, through us, to the rest of the world. For some people, love is the only language they will ever comprehend. While we continue spreading the aroma of Christ to those around us, God continues to lead people to us for a purpose and a time such as this. 

Lord, let the fragrance of Christ permeate every place we go and touch the life of every person we meet. Lead us in triumph, with a new awareness that we were made to spread your aroma of love to all those around us. Amen

“As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset.”

Exodus 17:11-12 (NIV)

To appreciate this bible story, it helps to know some of the background. The Amalekites were a nomadic warrior tribe, dwelling in the Sinai peninsula area. They were named after one man, Amalek, who was the grandson of Esau, who was Jacob’s twin brother. 

Esau bore a grudge against his brother, Jacob, and family grudges can run deep. This one ran deep enough, that generations later, Esau’s descendants, the Amalekites, were attacking his brother, Jacob’s descendants, the Israelites. 

It’s rooted in something that goes deeper than mere sibling rivalry between brothers. Esau despised his spiritual birthright, rejecting his family’s faith in God, and he chose to do his own thing, and became a man of violence. His grandson, Amalek, followed in his footsteps. Jacob wasn’t perfect, but he honored the God of his parents. He tried to make peace with Esau, but it didn’t last. 

Jacob had twelve sons who became the twelve tribes of Israel, and his descendants were the group of people Moses delivered from slavery under a cruel Pharaoh. He led them out of Egypt with many signs and miracles, and they were finally on the way to their promised land. 

Then the Amalekites appeared, and they were the first enemy to attack the Israelites since being freed from slavery. Moses tried to avoid passing through enemy territory on their journey through the desert, but the Amalekites brazenly attacked them, even though unprovoked.

After the attack of the Amalekites, Moses told Joshua to organize an army, and prepare for battle. Moses planned to stand upon a hill with his staff in hand, his arms raised upward in prayer, telling the people that the Lord will prevail against their enemy. Joshua gathered his men and went to battle. 

As long as Moses held his staff up in the air, the Israelites prevailed, but when his arms grew weak, and he lowered the staff, the Amalekites got the better of the fight. The outcome of the battle basically depended on whether Moses could keep his arms up in the air, holding up his staff, as he prayed. It was a lot for one man to do alone, to say the least.

Aaron, Moses’ brother, was the high priest of the Israelites, and Hur, was a close companion, who also had a place of authority among the people. They saw that Moses grew tired, so Aaron and Hur rushed to his side and held his wearied arms up. Joshua’s men were finally able to defeat the Amalekites and continue their journey to the promised land. 

It’s inspiring to know that Aaron and Hur were there for Moses, and his staff represents the essence of our faith and trust in God. Moses used  that same staff to touch the Nile River, turning the water into blood. He held his staff over the sea and the waters parted for the Israelites to walk through on dry ground. His staff represents our trust in God through every difficult time in our lives, as we turn our eyes upward in faith. 

As much as I love this story, I always wondered why God didn’t just drive the enemy away in one single instant, without a battle, since God can do anything. Instead, He required them to fight the battle, with the moral support of Moses, their leader and prayer Intercessor. Keeping his arms up in the air the whole time was exhausting, but Aaron and Hur show us what the unity of faith and service can look like.

This story can be applied to the church throughout the world today, and to our life, which is a journey to the promised land. Moses received support from Aaron and Hur. Every person in the church may not be our closest friend, but we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. I think God is telling us to support one another, especially those with wearied arms.

The world wide church of believers are God’s spiritual Israelites, and we are journeying towards our own promised land, which is heaven. Whether we realize it or not, we all face enemy spirits who want to divide and derail us, robbing us of our hope. Paul reminds the church that our real battle is not with the visible enemies, but with unseen powers of wickedness. He said, 

“For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)

In other words, we still have our own Amalekites to battle with every day. As the Israelites looked up, they saw Moses, with his arms held up, knowing God was with them. We also look toward heaven where Jesus, our high priest and intercessor, once stretched His arms out, nailed to a cross. By His blood, he destroyed the power that evil has over us, and promised that we will overcome by our faith in His work on the cross.

Satan’s first scheme is to convince people that there is no such thing as a devil. If he cannot succeed in that, he tries to divide the people of God, 

causing dissension in the church. The same spirit of the Amalekites exists today, trying to sow division among believers. We are a church called to lift one another up, as Aaron and Hur did for Moses. The devil’s greatest fear is our unity in faith and service for God. Jesus said that the gates of hell will not prevail against His church. 

We encounter different types of battles, on our journey to heaven. The church is composed of diverse people, cultures, ideas, backgrounds and tastes, but we still have one common denominator that spiritually unites us…we trust in Jesus as our Savior.

We may never know how weary or exhausted another person is. When we lift them up in prayer, or by listening to their story, or by doing a task that lightens their burden, we help them prevail in battle. 

I believe God gave us this story to illustrate the beauty of unity and support for others in the faith. He also reminds us of the reality that we are in a battle with unseen powers at work in a spirit realm. We can easily drop our arms in exhaustion, or become discouraged by the words or actions of others. In spite of this, we are His church, and we share the same Holy Spirit who lives in each of us. If we lift each other up, we will always win the battle.

“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

Lord, help us to seek unity, to hold each other up, to aim higher, and to strive for holiness. Use us to impact the world around us, by revealing your love and mercy to others, making it a better place until you come again. Amen

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3:5-6  (NIV)

Joseph probably read today’s scripture from the book of Proverbs several times during his lifetime, but he not only read it, he lived it. He was living in trust and obedience to God long before he understood the full details of the plan. The story about Joseph, the foster father of Jesus, is far too wonderful to reserve only for Christmastime. His life example of trusting God, is worth meditating on more than once a year.

Joseph was engaged to Mary, and as virtuous as he was, he was still human, and became very stressed when he discovered that Mary was pregnant. He prayed about the situation but still worried, having many sleepless nights. His anxiety was caused by wanting to do the right thing, without putting Mary at risk of being stoned, a punishment for a woman presumed guilty of adultery, at the time. 

I think everyone can relate to praying about a problem, but still worrying to the point of sleepless nights, filled with anxiety. Joseph has been there and done that. 

A marriage engagement, according to first century Judaism was a permanent, sealed betrothal which could not be broken without a legal divorce.  Joseph tried to think of ways to handle the problem of her pregnancy without putting Mary to shame, so he thought of divorcing her and sending her away, secretly. 

That night, an angel came to him in a dream, telling him not to be afraid and to take Mary as his wife, because the child in her womb was conceived by the Holy Spirit. He didn’t understand it all, but he trusted God, believing in the unbelievable.  (Matthew 1:20)

God’s plan for salvation and the miracle of the incarnation was a marvelous event, and yet it was followed by the most difficult challenges Mary and Joseph ever encountered in their entire lives. The same pattern follows every believer, because along with every blessing, comes a challenge, that tests our trust and willingness to cooperate with God. 

When God has a plan, He cares about every detail. Mary’s womb was the first place of comfort and safety for His son, Jesus. Her womb was His ark of protection to nurture Him during the prenatal days of His life. Joseph’s job was to keep them both safe.

Once He was born into the world, it was Joseph’s turn to have the most important role in the plan. He was called to be His earliest mentor, His protector, and the first father figure that Jesus would know, in His human existence. 

The infinite God of the universe, who asks us to trust Him, entrusted His only incarnate son into Joseph’s care and protection, and He did it so that we could be saved and receive eternal life. 

God trusted Joseph and Joseph trusted God-which is called a relationship. We are all called to trust God, and be in a relationship with Him. 

When God has a plan, He requires our cooperation to finish it. Mary and Joseph were probably the most misunderstood couple in Nazareth, but God was slowly revealing the details of His salvation plan. They journeyed to Bethlehem, for a required government census. People were ordered to register in the city of their ancestry. As they arrived in Bethlehem, Mary gave birth to Jesus. Joseph began to see that the timing was all part of God’s plan to fulfill a prophecy that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2)

Joseph was visited by an angel in a dream again, but this time, he was told to take Mary and Jesus, and flee quickly to Egypt. Herod was plotting a mass murder of all the innocent ones, born within a two year period, because he felt they were a threat to his kingdom. Joseph kept doing his part as the father and protector of his family, unaware of all the details.

Egypt was not an easy place to live for religious Jews in the first century. They were far away from their family and friends, living as aliens and strangers in a land, foreign to their culture. Every decision Joseph made in caring for his family, was contrary to the normal lifestyle of his culture and time. It was not normal to marry an already pregnant woman. It was not normal for a devout Hebrew man to live among those who worshipped idols instead of one true God. In Egypt, they didn’t have the support of a faith community or any family nearby, it was just Joseph and Mary, trusting God together.

Eventually, they were led back to  Nazareth, providing a humble but loving home environment for Jesus to grow up in the security of a Jewish family and friends. Joseph is a role model for every Christian man whose faithfulness caused him at first to ask, “How did I get myself into this?” 

He is also a role model for ministers, chaplains, priests, and missionaries, who lead their own flock of believers. 

Anyone who ever felt like they are living in Egypt, outside the norm, facing a situation that is too difficult to explain to anyone else, should remember Joseph went through the same thing. God knew every anguish Joseph had from the start, and He knows everything that worries us, even the things we keep to ourselves. 

God can accomplish anything without our help, but He chooses to have people participate in His plans. Mary and Joseph cooperated with God’s greatest plan since creation. There is no better place to be, than in the center of God’s will, and Joseph shows us how trust can keep us there. 

Lord, thank you for Joseph’s life and example. Help us to trust you as he did, even when we don’t understand the purpose or details of whatever is happening in our lives. Guide us and protect our families as we follow you. Amen

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

Revelation 3:20 (RSV)

Although Jesus calls everyone equally, everyone may not respond to Him in the same time frame, or with the same magnitude of faith. 

Responses matter to Jesus, because He wants to be invited into every part of our life. He is too gentle and polite to barge in and take over. It’s in the most desperate times, that we can hear Him calling our name, or knocking on the door of our hearts, until we respond and invite Him in. 

Jesus talked about the ten lepers that He healed, asking why only one leper returned to thank Him. He expects us to hear His voice and follow Him, because His sheep hear His voice, and they follow Him. Jesus wants responses, and there are so many scriptural examples, making it clear that He appreciates our response to Him, when He calls our name, before or after He heals us, or while He is politely knocking on our door. 

I’m going to share two stories on the topic of responding to Jesus. The first one is a trip down memory lane for me. Although there is an actual street about a mile north of my home, called Memory Lane, I’m sharing this from the memory lane in my heart.

I used to write letters to Ted, my oldest brother who was an instructor Air Force pilot, who was stationed in various countries over the years. For some odd reason, ever since he joined the Air Force, I had an obsession of concern for his safety, and earnestly prayed for him. Even twelve years later, while he was in South Korea, at the height of his Air Force career, I felt an urge to send him a letter with this sentence in it, 

“If you’re ever in a time of danger, call on Jesus.” It’s not very profound, and I don’t know why I felt such intense concern, since it was 1982, long after the Viet Nam era and our country was at peace.

Not very long after that letter, his F-16 jet crashed during a routine mission, and after a ten day search, the crash site revealed that he had died on impact. The cause of the crash was later found to be an electrical wire malfunction in F-16 planes. It took a few more years to prove, but after further investigation, the accident report was changed to read that the cause was electrical wire chafing, and not pilot error. 

I believe that my overwhelming sense of urgency to pray for him and write to him, was a response to the Holy Spirit. I trust that the same Holy Spirit stirred my brother’s heart at an important time in his life, leading him to respond and call upon Jesus, finding peace in his final seconds of life. 

Yesterday, I was visiting patients in the hospital as part of the volunteer ministry I do every Sunday. I visited one patient, who was in his mid seventies, and asked if I could pray for him. He said “Don’t bother, it won’t do any good anyway.” 

He said it with a look in his eyes, which I read as meaning he was facing a terminal diagnosis. Rather than asking any questions, I told him God can do anything, but the most important thing is that we have the peace of knowing it is well with our soul. So I asked again if I could pray that God’s presence would give him peace from this day forward, and he responded yes. Half way through the prayer, he started crying, but I knew that they were tears of comfort and peace. 

In the next few minutes, we agreed together that God’s presence was in the room, and that He will never leave him, and he agreed that eternal life is his greatest gift. 

His very first response to me may have been a negative one, but after praying, he found hope and peace. Jesus was obviously knocking on his door, he heard His voice, and he responded by opening the door of his heart to Him. As I walked out of that room, I felt a sense of awe, that something beautiful, but from another world, just took place in there. A part of heaven is in every hospital room, calling, knocking and whispering to every heart.

We are all carrying a cross, and though we don’t understand it, there is meaning and purpose in our loved one’s suffering, as well as in our own. We don’t need to fully understand things here and now, but the grace of God will always lift us out of our despair and give us peace. As we respond to the One who suffered for us, He changes our hearts, before changing our situations. 

The Holy Spirit is drawing us closer to Jesus each day, and we are all called to respond to Him in some way. The same Spirit leads us to others who are ripe to respond to His voice or a polite knock on their door. The Good Shepherd is a “gatherer.” He is in a continuous phase of gathering His sheep closer and closer to Himself, but it needs to start with each one’s response. 

Lord, you call us all closer, knocking on the door of our hearts daily, and you lift us out of our despair and give us your peace. Send your Spirit to lead us and others to continually respond to you. Amen

“We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. 

2 Corinthians 4:7 ( NLT)

Although the word “resilience” is not mentioned in this scripture, the meaning of the words written, imply it. Webster’s dictionary defines resilience as the ability to recover, bounce back or recoil after some sort of compressive stress. This translation refers to us as fragile clay jars, that are pressed by compressive stress. 

Compressive stress is feeling squeezed or pressed against. It can be brought on by some kind of loss, illness, strained relationships or any situation that we never planned for. Some problems cause us to feel stretched beyond our capabilities, yet by God’s grace, in time, we will recoil and spring back. 

I believe that we are all more resilient than we admit to. We don’t always feel like we are going to recoil and spring back when we’re in the eye of the storm, but resilience has a way of emerging within us, over time. 

If we stop and think about what we have overcome over the years in our lives, we will admit that a strength has somehow developed within us, and that strength comes from Jesus. Paul emphasizes the point that our great power is from God, not from ourselves, because the life of Christ is dwelling within our mortal bodies. 

(2 Corinthians 4:11)

The beauty of resilience is that we have it, yet don’t always recognize it within ourselves. Like David, we will each face a Goliath of some sort, at some time in our lives. We humbly face our giant with a little faith in our heart and a simple stone in our hand, and as we put one foot in front of the other, moving forward, God does the rest. The power comes from God, not from ourselves.

Then one day, someone tells us how strong our faith must be, to handle what we are going through, but we never thought of it as strength at the time. We only know that there’s no other option than to keep moving forward, trusting God, as we go.

It’s much deeper than mind over matter or positive thinking. It’s not something emerging from deep within us, it’s someone within us-Jesus.

This resilience of Jesus is placed within all believers, whether we face a Goliath in the form of a medical diagnosis, loss of a loved one, a financial loss or going through any kind of stress or intense anxiety. We may feel like our clay jars are going to break, but Jesus is within us, building our resilience through every trial, making us over comers through Him.

The power of this scripture says it best, 

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”(2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

We might be briefly knocked off our feet, but we will rise up again, because an enduring light dwells within us. It shines through our frail clay vessels, and it’s the Spirit of Jesus. He is within us, helping us to recoil, rise and endure, because God will never allow us to be tested beyond our capacity to endure.

(1 Corinthians 10:13)

Lord, we give you all the glory and gratitude for making us resilient, despite how fragile and weak we may feel at times. We carry your presence within us, and trust that we will overcome all things in the power of your name. Amen

“Behold, how good and pleasant it iswhen brothers dwell together in unity.”  Psalm 133:1 (RSV)

I once heard a famous Israeli folk song, composed of the lyrics from this scripture verse. It was sung in a catchy melody in Hebrew. I was studying Hebrew at the time, so I 

bought the tape and played the song in my home. Soon, my boys, who were three years old at the time, were singing the entire song together  in Hebrew after listening to the tape. 

I still remember their voices singing in unity, and in Hebrew, yet. I wish I had a video to capture that memory, but in the 80’s, we didn’t have cell phones at our fingertips as we do today. It made me aware that just as a parent receives joy in seeing their children dwell together in unity, how much more pleasing is it to God, our Heavenly Father, to see us dwell together in unity?

Scripture, unfortunately, is filled with stories of dysfunctional siblings, divided families, and brothers who didn’t dwell in unity, which left many parents broken hearted. It all began with the very first family. 

Adam and Eve’s two sons, Cain and Abel, presented the first murder scene in scripture, committed by a brother against a brother. In Genesis, Abel was the first victim of murder, and a martyr, who was a type and foreshadowing of Jesus. Abel and Jesus, in their innocence, both suffered early deaths at the hands of angry brothers. Abel was killed by Cain, and Jesus was betrayed by brothers in the faith, the religious authorities of His time.

Through the 3,000 years of biblical history, inspired scripture reveals a deeper meaning through these many stories of sibling rivalries. Every betrayed brother in biblical history is a mysterious hint of the coming of God’s own beloved son one day. Jesus represents all brothers who were ever unjustly scorned, betrayed and mistreated by their siblings.

Isaac and Rebecca had twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Jacob was the son who was closer to his mother, and observant of the faith of his parents. Jacob is a subtle reminder of Jesus, but his brother Esau, was a carnal man, who had no regard for his family’s faith or his own birthright. Esau eventually hunted down his own brother, Jacob, attempting to kill him, but God protected Jacob, and he became the father of the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Out of Jacob’s twelve sons, Joseph, was his most beloved son, which stirred hatred and jealousy among the other eleven brothers. Joseph was mistreated by his brothers, who abandoned him, leaving him to be sold into slavery. 

Joseph and Jesus were both beloved sons of their father. Both were betrayed by their brothers, and falsely accused, and both forgave those who once persecuted them. 

Moses had a brother and a sister, Aaron and Miriam. His siblings were loyal to him up to a point, until they became jealous and started to question his authority and exclusive leadership. Miriam was struck with leprosy because of her rebellious attitude towards her brother, but Moses prayed earnestly for her and she was healed. Moses was humble and forgiving, and so was Jesus, who healed many lepers and forgave His enemies from the cross.

David was chosen by God to be the next king of Israel. As the youngest among a large family of brothers, he never received the respect he deserved from his siblings. Jesus also never received the respect He deserved from the Pharisees and Sadducees. David and Jesus both endured disrespect even though they were both chosen by God. 

David’s own son, Absalom, betrayed his father, seeking to overthrow his throne and take over his kingdom by force. It was heartbreaking for David as he later mourned the death of his son, Absalom, after he was killed. Jesus was betrayed by Judas, a close friend from within His inner circle. Jesus wept in advance over the city of Jerusalem, knowing many would reject Him. (Luke 19:41) 

Both David and Jesus were betrayed by someone close to them. 

God put each of these stories in scripture about betrayed brothers, to prepare people to know that His own son would also be betrayed by his own brothers. Jesus is preeminent among all betrayed brothers in history. 

Jacob, Joseph, Moses and David teach us by example to be humble and forgiving, and they were all exalted to positions of leadership, in spite of the betrayals they suffered. 

Jesus taught that those who humble themselves will be exalted, and it is true throughout biblical history. God exalted Jesus, who is the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star, and He now sits on the throne of heaven as King of kings and Lord of lords.  (Revelation 22:16)

Any parent can understand how pleasing it is to see their children dwell together in unity. We are the sons and daughters of God, and as a Father, He has joy when brothers can live in unity, whether it is in a family or among the nations of the world.

Lord, the whole world desperately needs peace and unity among brothers of families as well as among nations. Give all people a desire to please you first, by forgiving others, living in unity, and fill us with your love and peace. Amen

(Mike (left) and Jon (right) age 2)