Life’s Inevitable and Unexpected Twists and Turns

Probably no one who's lived for any length of time can say life has turned out exactly as they expected, at least to this point. Even the best-planned life will encounter unforeseen twists and turns along the way. 

 

Sometimes they’re merely brief detours. Like taking a highway exit to get gas or buy some fast food, then quickly getting back on the highway. Other times, however, life’s course goes in completely unexpected directions. Kind of like leaving New York to go to Florida, and suddenly discovering you’re rerouted to Colorado. 

 

Try mentally transporting yourself back in time 10 years, 20 years, even 30 years. Can you remember what you were anticipating about your life? Your dreams? Your plans? Your aspirations? Now consider how those goals, hopes and expectations compare with how your life has unfolded to date.

 

If you could have done so then, would you have chosen the life you have now? Some of us might have, but for probably the majority of us, our lives look very different from what we had envisioned. 

 

In my case, when I enrolled in college, I had no idea my educational and career paths would take me from New Jersey to Texas to Ohio to Pennsylvania, back to Ohio and Texas, and now, to Tennessee. It’s almost as if God were saying, “I know where I want you to be, but you can’t get there from here. You have to go somewhere else first.” Actually, lots of “somewhere elses.”

 

Over the course of one’s life, we experience joys and tragedies, successes and setbacks, delights and discouragements we could not have imagined. In some cases, we wish we could have a do-over, a “mulligan.” Other times we think, “Wow! I never would have thought of that!” The question is, how do we deal with our disappointments and sorrows, as well as surprising opportunities and challenges?

 

For those of us who trust in and follow Jesus Christ, it helps to believe that He is in control, even when life seems spiraling out of it. As the Lord says in Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways…. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

 

Whenever we’re tempted to wallow in self-pity or despair, this offers the assurance that bumps in the road, the obstacles we face, are part of God’s plan for taking us to where He ultimately wants us to be.

 

As I started my journalism career, I envisioned a long career in the newspaper business. I did enjoy the opportunity to work on suburban newspapers for 10 years, but the Lord had other plans for me and my career. In fact, over the decade I spent as a newspaper editor, God was also using the path He took me on for working in my life in other ways. Who I am today, not only professionally but also personally and spiritually, is a result of how He guided me and my family from place to place, job to job.

 

This is one reason that more than 40 years ago, I adopted Proverbs 3:5-6 as my “life verse.” It says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.”

 

There have been many times along the way that my paths seemed more crooked than straight, but in retrospect I can see God knew exactly what He was doing, every step along the way. I love the promise He gave to the ancient Israelites – one we can also claim as believers today: 

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Then you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile’” (Jeremiah 29:11-13).

 

Perhaps you’re at a point in life when you feel like you’re “in exile.” You might be wondering, “God, what is going on? Are You there? How did I get here? Are You aware of what’s happening?” If so, the Scripture passages above assure us that He is there – and knows quite well, better than we do, what’s going on. 

Sometimes He wants us to move into action, to step through doors He opens. Other times, however, the Lord asks us simply to slow down and trust Him. As He says in Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” 

Not All There Is to Know, But All We Need to Know

How many books have you read more than once? It may seem bold to ask this question, since reading books is becoming a thing of the past for many people. What with all the channels on cable TV, the Internet, video games, text messaging and other distractions, who has time to read, right?

 

But for those who still enjoy the feel of a tangible book, the rustle of pages turning, the smell of paper and ink, and the adventure of discovering what the author has packed inside the book, I ask again: How many books have you read more than once? (Comic books don’t count.)

 

Personally, I’ve enjoyed reading a few classic novels a second or even third time. I’ve re-read George Orwell’s 1984 several times because his cautionary, dystopian tale appears to be unfolding right before our eyes, in real time. There are several books by Christian authors I’ve revisited, seeking to draw from their wells of wisdom again. 

 

There’s one book, however, that I have read cover to cover well over a dozen times. Perhaps you can guess what it is: the Bible. If I were to begin using adjectives to describe what the Bible – the Word of God – has meant for me over the years, I’d have to consult a thesaurus to cover all the bases. Words like amazing, incredible, and life-changing can’t begin to capture the impact of the Scriptures.

 

Why have I read it so much? Not because I expect any divine pats on the back or “extra credit.” It’s just that as I’ve read through the Bible year after year, I’ve found it kind of like peeling an onion – remove one layer and discover there’s another layer right below it, then another, and another. I’m convinced that an entire lifetime of reading through the Scriptures could barely begin to capture its vast treasures.

 

There are many reasons for this. Its length is one. One Bible I regularly use for reference has nearly 1,550 pages of purely biblical text – no footnotes, and not including the compilers’ introduction, table of contents, foreword, and index. Since it consists of 39 Old Testament books and 27 in the New Testament, written by dozens of different authors, there’s a lot to read from a variety of perspectives.

 

In the Bible we find narratives, history, poetry, letters, personal accounts, and other forms of writing, all pointing to one central theme: Jesus Christ and God’s plan for the redemption of His creation, most notably, humankind. That’s a lot to absorb.

 

But there’s another reason why the Scriptures are so compelling, so intriguing that they can be read again and again and again without ever seeming stale. The secret, I believe, is found in Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judged the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

 

The best novel, or a classic book that has endured centuries, might be fun to read again, but it will always say the same things. The Bible, however, has the uncanny capacity to speak to us differently each time we read it. That is, God through His Word can speak to us differently every time. This is because as we continue in our journey through life, we encounter the Scriptures in new ways, depending on what we’re experiencing and how we’ve changed.

 

An old friend, an agnostic, once told me that he regarded the Bible as “a primer, something you read once, and then you move on to something more sophisticated.” No offense intended, but I think that might be one of the most ridiculous things anyone has ever said. Because nothing is more comprehensive, profound, penetrating, and timeless as the Word of God. Its principles, principles and truths have transcended the ages and will continue doing so until Christ’s promised return. 

 

At the same time, I have no problem acknowledging the Bible doesn’t tell us all there is to know about God. How could it? But it does tell us all we need to know about God.

 

I like how 2 Peter 1:3-4 expresses it: “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption of the world caused by evil desires.”

 

Back in 1966, a movie came out called “Alfie,” starring Michael Caine. Its theme song asked, “What’s it all about?” This is a question that resonates with millions of people to this day. We ask things such as, “Who am I?” “Why am I here?” “What’s my purpose in life?” “Where do I find meaning?” The Scriptures, I can say without any reservation, answer each of these questions – and many more – if we’re only willing to give them an honest, open-minded look.

 

In the longest of the Psalms, the writer asks and then answers, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against You” (Psalm 119:9-11).

 

We live in a world that seems spinning out of control. I believe it’s primarily because we’ve turned our backs on our Creator, the One who has laid out for us in His Word how we should live. As the King James Version puts it, “Where there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18). Another translation says it a bit differently – “Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint.” But then the verse ends, “but happy is he who keeps [God’s] law.”

As wondrous as the Bible is, the divinely inspired Word of God, it’s barely the tip of the proverbial iceberg about all that is possible to know about Him. But it definitely tells us all we need to know about Him. 

A Marathon with an Undetermined Finish Line

You have probably heard someone describe life as “not a sprint, but a marathon.” This is true on many levels, not the least of which being that a 100-meter or 200-meter sprint is over quickly after it’s started, while a marathon is a 26.2-mile endurance contest that takes even the best runners several hours to finish.

 

But the sprint/marathon comparison is an apt one also because starting is relatively easy, whether it’s an athletic competition, a career, a marriage, or any other endeavor in this experience of everyday living. Arriving at the finish line successfully, however, is a much greater challenge.

A marathon, requires perseverance, determination, and willingness to face adversity, even pain. When you participate a marathon, you’re in it, literally, for the long run.

 

There is one area in which the marathon metaphor for life breaks down. Participants in a marathon race know the distance is exactly 26.2 miles. And as competitors near the end of the race, the finish line becomes visible. The end’s in sight. In the “marathon of life,” however, the distance is uncertain. It’s different for us all. And we never know where the finish line is until the moment we get there.

 

How would you like to enter a race that lacked a definitive finish line? At the very least, it would be disconcerting because you could never know when it was over, right? As difficult as it is to admit, that’s exactly what our lives are like. 

 

We wake up each morning and start preparing for the opportunities and challenges of the new day. Over the course of the day, we might make plans for tomorrow, next week, next month or even next year. But rarely do we pause to consider there’s a finish line out there somewhere, unseen but real just the same. I suppose if we dwelt on that too much, we’d be afraid to get out of bed in the first place. 

 

For some folks, their “marathon” continues for many years. We celebrate those who reach the 100-year mark. We even have a name for them: centenarians. On average, people in the Western world live well beyond 70 years, and lots of them pass the 80-year mark and continue going strong. The length of their “marathons” is a very long distance from their moment of birth.

 

At the same time, we know of people – including friends and loved ones – whose lives were cut way too short, at least in our estimation. Infants, children, teenagers, young adults barely out of college, just getting started with their careers, marriages and families. Their “marathon” ended abruptly. The finish line came way too soon. 

 

When I started preparing to write this, I didn’t have any specific individuals in mind. Then came the tragic news about Dwayne Haskins, the record-setting quarterback at Ohio State. He had been working for an opportunity to start at quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL, but died when he was struck by a truck in Florida – just a few weeks shy of his 25^th birthday.

 

Being a longtime OSU fan, I took particular note. Besides the loss for his family and every member of “Buckeye Nation,” Haskins’ unexpected passing served as a somber reminder that we never know when we’ll reach the end of our personal “marathon.”

 

Why is this important? Why invest time and energy on unsettling thoughts about the relative brevity of life? Why not do just as the ancient Israelites said, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” (Isaiah 22:13), rather than worry about something we can’t control?  

 

I’d suggest it’s because even though we can’t know our quantity of life – the number of years allotted for us – we can work to determine the quality of our lives. 

Some translations of Ephesians 5:16 strongly exhort us about, “redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” This isn’t saying that time itself is evil, but days pass very quickly, and once they’re gone, opportunities they offered may be lost forever. That’s why the preceding verse cautions, “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise.”

 

Jesus told a story called “the parable of the rich fool” which illustrates this. He said, “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy, drink and be merry.’”

 

But Jesus concluded this parable with a grim punchline: “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:16-20).

 

He offered a similar perspective during His most famous sermon,” warning, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).

So, as we continue along life’s marathon, with no guarantee for how long – when the “finish line” will suddenly appear – we have a decision to make. We can “eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” as 1 Corinthians 15:32 also states, or we can strive to do as Jesus taught, to store up treasures for ourselves in heaven – and be rich toward God. Which will you choose? 

What We Take for Granted in a Land of Plenty

Supply shortages. That’s a phrase that as recently as a few years ago, most of us had never heard – or if we had, we didn’t worry about it. We could hop in the car, drive to the nearest grocery store, big-box store or department store, and find exactly what we wanted, when we wanted it, however much we needed. Alas, the old Bob Dylan song told us, “The times, they are a-changin’,” and they still are. 

 

First came the COVID pandemic, then many of us were locked town, told to stay home, not to go to work while we waited for “the curve” to flatten. For a variety of other reasons only economics and supply-chain experts can explain, suddenly store shelves were no longer full; some were empty altogether. Remember the great toilet paper panic?

 

To some extent, critical shortages that caught many of us totally off-guard have eased, but these days we still must hunt for certain items we need, things that once were right at our fingertips, “on-demand” like some TV shows and movies via cable services. 

 

In the book of Exodus, we read about God preparing the Israelites for the Promised Land, “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8). I doubt the Lord had the United States specifically in mind, but we’ve certainly benefited from living in a land of plenty. However, we’ve become spoiled – I think this started a long time ago – and when the “plenty” turns into scarcity in some instances, we don’t like it at all.

 

For followers of Jesus, this presents a challenge. Because we’re told to be “in the world but not of the world,” drawing from His prayer to God for “those whom you gave me out of the world” (John 17:5-19). He instructed believers, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where mother and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, whether moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-20).

 

The key to this admonition is the verse immediately following: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve grown very accustomed to the abundance readily available for most of us and find it disconcerting when its accessibility seems threatened.          

 

At such times we need to ponder the wisdom of the apostle Paul, who told disciples of Christ in the church of Philippi, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through [Christ] who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11-13).

 

We live in a very materialistic society, constantly told the answers to all problems are financial and tangible, simply being able to acquire enough “stuff.” The Bible doesn’t teach asceticism, but neither does it teach wholesale pursuit of wealth and worldly possessions. In fact, we reminded, “the love of money [and things it can be used to obtain] is a root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10).

 

Instead of that, Paul told Timothy where his – and our – focus should be instead: “But godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6).

 

When Jesus told His hearers that where their treasure is, there their heart will be also, I believe He was saying that our “treasure” should be godliness, a continual yearning to please God, to be His righteous vessels for a world around us that desperately needs Him and to learn about Him. 

 

So, whenever we find ourselves frustrated because our favorite items are unavailable – whether canned foods, toilet paper, a dress, or a car – maybe our initial reaction shouldn’t be to curse the supply shortage. We can respond first by considering people in other parts of the world, Ukraine or somewhere else, who have lost everything. 

 

Next, we need to be thankful – and to give thanks – for what we do have: “give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Can we sincerely give thanks – even at those times when we don’t necessarily feel thankful?

And finally, we should ask ourselves, “Am I truly pursuing godliness with contentment, and discovering that indeed, it is great gain?” If I must confess my answer to that question is “No,” then I think God is probably asking me, “Why not?” Because as 2 Peter 1:3 declares, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” 

The Long Weekend That Changed Everything

Another Easter weekend is upon us, starting with the somber Good Friday observance and concluding with the celebration of Easter. Can you imagine what the world would be like – indeed, what life would be like – if Jesus Christ had not come? If He had not be crucified? If He had not risen from the grave?

Some “what if” ramifications immediately come to mind: There’d be no Christmas. Or Good Friday. Or Easter. Calendars wouldn’t be divided according to B.C. (Before Christ) and A.D. (Anno Domini).

 

But those are just the start. We wouldn’t have Jesus’ teachings, such as the “Golden Rule” – “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12, Luke 6:31) – or His declaration of the second greatest commandment, to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39, Mark 12:31). Who would have told us, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35)?

 

We wouldn’t have His teachings and parables, which not only imparted wonderful life principles but also enriched our language with such common phrases as the “good Samaritan,” “prodigal son,” and “born again.” There would be no references to “walking on water,” “doubting Thomas,” “salt of the earth,” “light of the world,” or “judge not lest you be judged.”

 

Some of the greatest works of art never would have been created – Leonardo da Vinci’s painting, “The Last Supper,” Michelangelo’s “Pieta,” and many others depicting the life and passion of Christ. Crosses, prominently displayed at churches around the world and worn as symbols of faith by Jesus’ fervent followers, likely would have had no meaning.

 

The significance of Jesus’ life is beyond measure: His feedings of the multitudes. Changing water into wine and raising Lazarus from the dead. His unforgettable “sermon on the mount,” including the Beatitudes and its paradoxical declarations that “the poor in spirit…those who mourn…the meek…the merciful…the peacemakers” and others are “blessed.” The name Judas wouldn’t have become synonymous with betrayal. The Virgin Mary wouldn’t be revered by millions around the globe.

 

As impressive as all of these are, they barely begin to answer the question, “What if He had not come?” Because the influence of Jesus’ life, teachings, death, burial, resurrection and ascension transcends the physical world. His most life-changing, transformational impact is found deeply rooted in the unseen spiritual realm. 

 

Countless books have been written about this, but consider the following: Were it not for Jesus, what definitive answers would we have for the problems of sin, guilt, justice, and ultimately, separation from God? Where would we find the capacity for genuine, complete forgiveness? How could we experience the hope (not “hope-so”) of eternal life, the assurance that we’re not moving from the land of the living to the land of the dead, but from the land of the dying to the land of those who live eternally?

 

Central to the Gospel is Jesus’ familiar promise of John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” As the apostle Paul asserted in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we still sinners, Christ died for us.”

 

But we know that Jesus’ death – commemorated on Good Friday – was not His final act. As each of the gospels confirms, He arose on the third day, as He had promised. When Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” went to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body with traditional burial spices, they encountered not a corpse but an angel, who declared, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said” (Matthew 28:5-6).

 

How important is this claim? Paul didn’t mince words when he stated, “if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins…. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” But then he gave an immediate reminder, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:17-22).

 

No leader of any other religion or belief system could make such a claim. As the old hymn affirms, “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives, all fear is gone.”

 

Best of all, we don’t have to wait until the moment of death to enjoy the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection. When He ascended from earth, He left His Holy Spirit not only to guide His people, but also to live in them: “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy…through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). Paul in Galatians 2:20 expresses it this way: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loves me and gave himself for me.” 

Literally hundreds of other Bible passages support and expand on these truths. Some might immediately come to your mind. The bottom line is this: Jesus did come. He was crucified. He did rise from the dead. And to this day, millions of men, women and children can experience the assurance we find in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” And in response, we can all add a hearty “Hallelujah!” 

The Cause of Christ Isn’t in Jeopardy

To read news headlines these days, one might be tempted to believe the demise of Christianity is imminent. “Evangelicalism,” according to some observers and self-acclaimed “experts,” seems on the ropes and headed for a knockout: Megachurch pastors resigning in disgrace; ministry leaders being tied to scandal, even posthumously; prominent Christian celebrities declaring they’re no longer followers of Jesus Christ.

 

This is not to minimize nor dismiss such dismal reports. When people holding held highly recognizable roles in modern-day Christendom are caught up in sin, or when so-called “believers” announce they no longer believe, this is cause for sadness, even some tears. But it’s not reason for despair.

Cynics and skeptics might regard these very public failures as cause for celebration, shouts of “I told you so!” However, for the faithful, despite the discrediting of people we might have admired, they’re vivid reminders to not lose focus, to keep “the main thing the main thing”: That we worship and serve the risen Christ only, not talented and influential persons who have served in His name.

 

We can’t judge where any of these fallen Christian icons stand with the Lord. That’s His job alone. To speculate on what might have gone wrong serves little purpose. But as King Solomon wrote, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The Scriptures candidly confirm similar scandals that occurred thousands of years ago, including an unlikely trio.

 

When Saul was chosen as the first king of Israel, he seemed an excellent choice. Described in 1 Samuel 9:2 as “an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites – a head taller than any of the others,” he had the look of a leader.

 

Then, when prophet Samuel revealed he was God’s choice “to deliver My people from the hand of the Philistines…he will govern My people” (1 Samuel 9:16-17), Saul came across as self-effacing, another admirable trait for a leader: “But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?” (1 Samuel 9:21). We’d surmise this was a man God could use – good-looking and humble, magnetic leadership qualities.

 

Before long, however, we learn King Saul’s outward appearance belied his poverty of inner character. He repeatedly disobeyed God’s commands, lacked courage, suffered fits of jealousy and, when his misdeeds were found out, quickly cast blame elsewhere. So, the Lord directed Samuel to anoint someone else – the lowly shepherd boy, David – to succeed him.

 

David exhibited many qualities that indicated worthiness for leadership, including bravery in confronting an imposing giant named Goliath. The book of Psalms contains many of David’s wonderful meditations about the Lord. He’s revered to this day – the Star of David bears his name. 

 

Alas, David also had feet of clay, falling prey to his own lust in seducing a married woman named Bathsheba, who became pregnant. He then compounded his sin by arranging to have her husband, Uriah, killed in battle. The king had many other failings, including not stemming family strife that resulted from his multiple wives and subsequent sibling rivalry. To his credit, David is described as “a man after [God’s] own heart” (Acts 13:22), reflecting his readiness to sincerely repent of his sins.

 

His successor, Solomon, his son by Bathsheba, also had a promising start in his role as king. When God appeared to him in a dream and said, “Ask for whatever you want Me to give you,” Solomon responded with great humility: “Now, O Lord, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties…. So give your servant a discerning heart to governing your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” (1 Kings 3:4-9).

 

God answered, “I will do what you asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart…. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for – both riches and honor – so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings” (1 Kings 3:12-13). Wow! This surely was the kind of leader the Lord wanted.

 

Solomon did accumulate the promised riches and honor. God gave us three books of the Bible largely attributed to him: Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes. But again, this king didn’t finish as strongly as he began. Partly because he also accumulated wives, defying a prohibition against marrying women from foreign nations. As 1 Kings 11:3-6 states, “He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines, and his wives led him astray…. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.”

 

We could cite many other examples from the Old and New Testaments; clearly, leaders tumbling into sin and even turning their backs on God is not a recent development. For us, one key is concentrating on the essence of truly following Jesus Christ. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

 

Jesus died and rose again to atone for our sins, but even more than that, He rose so that we could experience new life in Him. He said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10). But we also must realize we’re in a daily spiritual battle, facing an enemy desperately desiring to destroy us. 

We can’t overcome this spiritual enemy in our own strength. Rather, as the apostle Paul wrote, “I can do everything through [Christ] who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). Only through Him can we one day declare, as Paul did, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7). Evangelicalism, as we know it today, may stumble and even fall. But through the power of Jesus Christ, His Church will continue to stand tall. 

Searching for Calm in the Middle of Chaos

Watching news coverage of what’s going on in Ukraine – homes, schools and buildings being destroyed by the Russian assault – our minds are challenged to comprehend what’s happening. Most of us have no frame of reference for even beginning to grasp what that experience must be like for the Ukrainians, many of whom are now refugees from their homeland. 

My friend Albert was just a boy growing up in the Netherlands when the Nazis were bombing his city during World War II. Unlike me, he understands how terrifying – and life-changing – it is to go through something like that. Now, decades later, the memories remain vivid. He has endured a number of other calamities and challenges over the course of his life, but like many other people, has learned the secret of finding calm in the midst of whatever the surrounding chaos might be.

 

The trials many of us are currently facing might pale in comparison to living in a country under siege of war, but for us they are trials – even tribulations – just the same. At times it might feel as if we’re aboard a ship at sea, in the midst of a raging storm. Everything seems to be moving up and down, side to side, with nothing stable for us to grab ahold of. What do we do? Where do we turn?

 

At such times, as a good friend would sometimes remind me, “You’re in a great position!” What? Are you crazy? How can you think that? Because when times are uncertain, the most unstable, we have no choice but to look to the one true source of hope, stability and security.

 

Recently, I was reading a familiar passage from the Bible that describes well what many of us might be feeling in our tumultuous times. Psalm 46:1-10 gives us this assurance: 

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging…. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress…. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

 

When times are at their worst, when our hardships and adversities seem beyond hope, that’s when our Lord does His best work. We might say He’s the God of making the impossible possible.

 

When Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonian army, the prophet Jeremiah made this declaration: "Oh, Lord God! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!” (Jeremiah 32:17). 

 

Many centuries later, Jesus Christ was speaking of a very different challenge, that of being brought into a life-transforming, eternal relationship with God. A wealthy young man had asked Jesus how he could get eternal life. When the Lord answered by instructing him to sell all his possessions and give them to the poor, the rich man had gone away in despair, unwilling to part with all he had.

 

Turning to His disciples, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven…it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Upon hearing this, the disciples responded incredulously, “Who then can be saved?” Then Jesus made the key statement: “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:16-26).

 

This incident is recounted in detail in three of the four gospels, also in Mark 10 and Luke 18, so we know it was significant. The underlying message of each of the passages cited above is that whether it’s to create and control an entire universe, put an end to wars, calm raging seas, heal diseases, deliver us from many other kinds of crises, and even bring a reluctant, prideful person to saving faith, nothing is too difficult for our God.

 

With this confident assurance, and only because of that, we can comply with what the Lord tells us to do: “Be still, and know that I am God.”

Warnings: Unwanted, But Necessary

How do you react when you receive a warning? One way is to continue doing what you’re doing, reasoning, “Well, that doesn’t apply to me.” Another way – especially when it comes to dire weather predictions – is to think, “Yeah, right. That’s what they said last time, and nothing happened. That’s why they predict 80% chance of snow. Because that means 20% chance that it won’t snow, so they’re right either way.” 

 

Then there’s the more stubborn approach to being warned: “Hey, you’re not the boss of me! You can’t tell me what to do!” We might actually say this, or at least think it, determined to disregard what we’ve been told to do.

 

There’s the story of the motorist in an unfamiliar part of the country who drove past a person holding a sign that said, “The End is Near!” The driver smugly looked at the person, glanced at the warning, and proceeded, thinking, “Just another of those religious nuts!” Sadly, he didn’t realize until too late that the bridge on the road ahead was out.

 

Most of us don’t like warnings, whatever they happen to be. Because we like our freedom, our autonomy. But even though they’re not wanted, warnings are usually necessary – and often given with our best interests in mind.

 

While the COVID pandemic was in full force, we received lots of warnings: “Wear a mask.” “Get the vaccine.” “Wear two masks.” “Get the boosters.” “Social distance.” “Stay home.” Perhaps the most literal warning was, “Avoid people like the plague.”

 

At first, most of us readily complied, glad to help in “flattening the curve.” What’s a couple weeks of sacrifice, temporarily accepting the “new normal,” right? But when the weeks dragged into a month, then months, a year and more, those dire warnings grew old and tiresome. Some of us probably thought, “Okay, I heeded your warnings. Where did that get us?”

 

Much of the time, warnings we receive are for our good. The parent warns the child, “Hold my hand in the parking lot. Cars are coming,” or, “Don’t run into the street without stopping and looking both ways.” Can you remember your mom or dad warning, “Don’t touch the stove”? They didn’t say that to restrict our freedom – they were concerned about our safety.

 

As we read through the Bible, we find it filled with warnings. The first warning God ever gave is recorded in Genesis 2:16, when He told Adam and Eve, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

 

That seemed simple enough. Any tree in the garden of Eden was available to them, except for one. Sadly, for all of humankind – like the toddler told not to touch the hot stove but does it anyway – they decided to sample the forbidden fruit. Until then the first couple had not known about evil, but suddenly they did. The result was a divine eviction notice, along a succession of tragic consequences that continues to this day.

 

We could regard the Ten Commandments not only as rules given by God for us to follow, but also as warnings – guidelines for living happy, fulfilling lives. They begin with one that all of us, in one way or another, have violated: “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). We might not have physical idols displayed prominently in our homes or workplaces, but at times we all have “worshipped” other gods, whether they be spouse, children, the pursuit of success, possessions, even our favorite sports teams. (I know, I might have just quit preaching and started meddling.)

 

Why is this a warning? Not just because God doesn’t want to share His glory and adoration with anyone or anything else. It’s also because every other “god,” at its best, is flawed and certain to fail us.

 

The fourth commandment, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy” (Exodus 20:8), was given not only to commemorate on a weekly basis God’s work of creation and that He rested on the seventh day. It's also because better than anyone, He knows how much we, with our limited physical and mental capacities, also need rest and times to become refreshed. Stress, exhaustion and illness are common byproducts of people refusing to hit the “pause” button in their everyday schedules.

 

One of my favorite books in the Bible, Proverbs, is filled with warnings from our Creator. For instance, Proverbs 21:23 offers this advice: “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.” Have you ever said something, whether in anger or out of impulse, that you immediately regretted, only to realize the damage had already been done?

 

Speaking of anger, we’ve all experienced the impact of that destructive emotion. One way to avoid falling prey to it, either as perpetrator or victim, is not to hang around angry people. As Proverbs 22:24-25 warns, “Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.”

This is one of the things I value from reading God’s Word, which I regard as His “owner’s manual.” He made us, He knows who we are – our frailties, faults and flaws – and has graciously provided us with a comprehensive guidebook for successful living. We ignore it to our peril. Proceed at your own risk. Consider yourself warned!