In church a couple of
weeks ago, the minister tackled a difficult passage, Luke 6:17-26, in which
Jesus talks about blessings and woes and doesn’t mince words. At all.
The minister explained how it is tempting to simply want to divide people into
two camps: those who are poor in various ways (the good guys) and those who are
rich in various ways (the bad guys). But
the reality is, we are all both. We are
the poor, those who have suffered, those who don’t belong in this world, those
who have very real needs. At the same
time, we are also the rich, being the recipients of many blessings yet, with
those blessings, having the temptation to focus entirely on the gifts, worshiping
and counting on them instead of God.
The wondrous and
countercultural reality of God’s Kingdom is that it provides a safe place to be
vulnerable, sharing both our burdens and blessings. A place
where we can live with both, as the minister encouraged. We admit our sorrows and brokenness, while
simultaneously giving out of the areas of individual and corporate
abundance. Together, we proclaim that
pain and suffering do not have the final say.
Furthermore, we are challenged to uphold Christ’s values and His
blessings as central, putting this perspective to work in a broken,
impoverished world… ushering in the fullness of God’s kingdom.
So, how does this relate
to my life right now? How does this
relate to yours? The pastor challenged
us to reflect on both the areas of burden in our lives and also on the areas
of blessing. He also asked us to
contemplate how we can give out of our “rich” places.
So I sat there, ever the
teacher’s pet desiring to do what is asked, and I put my thinking cap on…
Burdens first: This is easy, and you may even be tired of hearing
my story (feel free to skip to the next paragraph!). My child died a tragic, untimely death. My remaining twin, John, faced grave medical
circumstances and still struggles every day due to his condition. John has to live without his twin
brother. We mourn the loss of all we
dreamed about and anticipated: twin boys growing up together as best friends,
supporting each other in the challenges and joys. And of course there is the pain of watching
John work so hard (and if I’m honest, we work so hard too) for what can appear
to be so little gain. There is the isolation and feeling different from
others. And we dealt with significant
posttraumatic stress trigged by giving birth to Daniel in the same hospital
where John and Warren came into the world.
Then brining him home and realizing all we missed out on with both
Warren and John. Yes, burdens…
Next blessings: Of course
there are material blessings that I hope to never take for granted. But when I thought about blessings and rich
places, my mind kept going back to my children and back to our marriage (after
what we have endured and because of what we have continued to endure). I thought of Daniel’s joy and curious
nature. How he keeps us on our toes,
having to laugh as he “gets into trouble” just as we prayed he would be able to
do! And I specifically thought of
John AND all the therapies, the efforts, the doctor’s appointments, the trips,
the constant flow of people in and out of our home, the unknowns… Undoubtedly, John and his struggles bring us closer
to Jesus, they have taught us all how to pray, they point us to a greater
reality beyond ourselves and beyond this life… where all things are fully and
finally made new. But even in the
current reality, my supposed “burden” of having a child with special needs
and all that entails, is actually my “rich place,” the place where God wants to
work and bless others through John and through our family.
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| Three of my blessings |
WOW, I was amazed as I
pondered the pastor’s question… my areas
of pain are also my areas of blessing.
So often in my life, I have viewed these areas as separate. But through my three sons, these areas
have been redeemed in a beautiful overlap.
My life, burdens and all, are my rich places from which I can give. Is that not the hope of the Gospel, of God’s
intimate restoration? That the same
things that are the “burdens” in my life are also my richest areas? The areas that bring the most joy and
fulfillment? The areas I want to share
with you? The areas that our therapy
volunteers frequently claim bless them (even though it is hard for me to see
past how greatly they bless us with their time and devotion to John)? Praise God.
There is pain (I never
want to discount that), and I know He mourns alongside us as we hurt and are
battered from this broken world. YET, He
is sovereign in and over the greatest pain, promising to bring beauty from the
ashes. Working tireless and tenderly to
make all things new. Working to weave
the beautiful overlap into each of our lives.
“Why do you call me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and
hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like.
They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation
on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake
it, because it was well built.”
-Luke 6:46-48
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| Uncle Cole in town from college and Daddy B! |
