Embrace Your Pain ...

The last 2 weeks have been a “roller coaster” of emotions. Our new Daughter in-law’s father died suddenly two weeks before the wedding. We all had to both grieve and celebrate at the same time.

Then news reached me about my nephew, who has been diagnosed with cancer. He is going through a very difficult time of chemotherapy and not looking forward to a radical surgery.

All of this causes us ask: "what in the world is going on?" As I settled down I realized that we are part of a multitude of people who are experiencing pain, suffering and grief.

One thing is sure, God cannot be blamed for all the suffering in the world. We are living in a sinful world in which all of us bear some responsibility. So lets stop the “Blame Game”.

Let me share something Max Lucado wrote in his devotional "Upwards:

WE DON’T like to admit it, but pain is a fact of life. Sooner or later the “p” word comes into everyone's path. And when it does how do you deal with it? Do you let pain conquer your spirit, or do you stare it down, armed with a “stubborn joy”?

Even in pain God is near. He wants you to grasp the peace that defies pain. He wants to be with you, facing pain with his holy joy. Only he can show you the path to a defiant peace.

God’s purpose is greater than our pain, and he has a greater purpose than our problems. Our cries are not going to slow down the purpose of God - have confidence in that. Years from now we may realize it was those struggles that taught us something we could not have otherwise learned - that there was a purpose in our pain.

Pain teaches us to set our hopes on heaven, to hold firmly to the promise of eternal life, so that we can withstand the struggles and storms of this world may His holy Word be our soothing medicine to our wounded heart.

With those wise words in mind, consider the pains you may be suffering ... God is probably doing something great for you. He will give you the strength to endure and to remember the words of Revelation 21:4 ... "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."

Embrace your pain ... you are growing in the Lord!

Paul Weresch

9/11 Fallout

Ten years ago the Islamist wing of the Muslim religion, a gigantic and merciless force, declared war on the West.
Islamists don’t believe in the principles of the West and plan to banish them from the Earth. The war, they claim, will continue until they win. Most of the world’s Muslims dislike them but can’t stop them.

In 2005, after a Danish newspaper published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, rabble-rousers in Syria, Lebanon and Iran stirred up furious protests. These led to mob violence. Police began shooting and some estimates place the resulting many fatalities — in most cases fellow Muslims.

These killings inaugurated a new form of intimidation and censorship. Around the world many editors who would otherwise have published the cartoons decided against it, lest they inspire more demagogues to inflame more crazed gangs and thereby lead to more deaths.

It’s become clear free speech and free inquiry are among the chief targets of the Islamists. It is as if Islamists were saying to the world: Don’t offend us or we’ll kill a lot of your people.

In the climate that was created by 9/11 the fear of Islamophobia has created another threat, more serious in the long run: It inhibits the serious discussion of Islam.

Of all the great religions, Islam is unique in believing it should not be analyzed or criticized … the key point being the divine nature of the Koran. Because Muslims believe it is unalterably holy, any discussion of it is an affront.

In this sense Islam remains medieval. In 15th-century Europe, before Martin Luther, criticism of the Gospels and the Christian church was forbidden. In the year 2011 Islam still maintains that principle.

The Koran has never been scrutinized in the way the Bible has been studied since the 17th century. Why should both practitioners and scholars not argue about Islam with the same frankness we bring to other world religions?

Islamist violence subverts free speech and threatens to eliminate it altogether. And, without the ability to speak freely … how are we to reason together?

"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

If we are not to SPEAK of it … how will they HEAR the GOOD NEWS!

Paul Weresch

Be glad ... and have joy in the Lord your God

I received a note from Paul as he reacted to the destruction that is happening in our world. Read what he said:

“In my musing over the Christmas season and the Joy it brought to countless people around the world, I was reminded of the stark reality of life as it unfold before our eyes. My thought went out to the people of Haiti, Sudan, Australia, Brazil and the great tragedy of Arizona.

In times like this it is easy to spread blame, and demonize the other. My prayer is that we would turn to the source of Comfort, Hope and Peace.

Let me give you a portion of God’s Word as spoken to the people of Israel by the prophet Joel. Please read Joel 2:21-32 as he assures us we should have no fear because the Lord will give back the years that have been destroyed. ‘… Have no fear, O land; be glad with great joy; for the Lord has done great things.’

Read it, think about it and pray.”

Paul Weresch

Yes, Joel gives hope to the people of Israel where there seems to be no hope. And, just like the people of Joel’s time, we are given hope in words of the Bible.

Isaiah 34:4, Matthew 24:29-31 and Luke 21:25-28 tell us of the signs in the heavens … to “lift up your heads because your redemption is drawing near.”

Jesus tells us in Matthew 24 to “keep watch” and “be ready” but also to “… see to it that you are not alarmed.”

The Apostle Paul warns and comforts in 2 Thessalonians not to be deceived or to become easily unsettled as the events unfold, because Jesus will keep you “steadfast in the faith to the end.”

Peter reminds us in his second book to be error free by “recalling the words spoken of old by holy prophets” which takes us back to Joel 2:21-32.

Yes, dear friends … there is much happening in the world today to bring sorrow to our hearts. However, let us listen to Joel as he says, “Be glad and have joy in the Lord your God!”

Larry Abele, Editorial Team