Well, things have been going ok.
I can't say I've been 100% negativity free and I can say that yesterday was a pretty big fail in a lot of ways when it comes to this stuff but I'm hanging in there and not beating myself up over it.
We were talking as a youth staff some last night after our class and that's when a lot of it came out.
Mostly we were talking about the Lady Gaga and then our kids out look and all that kind of thing. Which wasn't the greatest experience so that lent to the negativity.
But our lesson last night was about Where God is during Bad Times.
And really it was a GOOD lesson.
We even ended up going over. The kids were engaged and listening for the most part and participating.
We talked for a good bit about Lazarus. You know him right...Jesus' friend that died. Mary & Martha's Brother.
Probably best known as the dude Jesus raised from the dead.
That Lazarus.
And Mary says to Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died,”
The unspoken question is, “Why weren’t you here when I needed you most?” That question comes to our hearts and lips when death darkens our house, when our parent’s divorce, when the person we love does not return our affection. It is a profoundly personal question.
Jesus didn’t come to tell bad people to be good people or to explain away deep, unrelenting pain with soothing words.
Jesus did proclaim God’s promises to Martha.
Jesus did raise her brother Lazarus that day
but Jesus response first response on seeing the body of his friend was to weep.
But get this...I went back today and did more reading to see if I could find out more about why Jesus waited to get back to Judea where Lazarus was.
And this is what the scripture says,
John 11(4-6,11) “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” ...So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days...“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” His disciples thought he meant actual sleep so ...
14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
So then the part with Mary takes place and Jesus raises Lazarus.
One of our main questions last night was why did God wait. And yes with out the back scripture one of the answers was for God to have the glory.
No one could questions if he was really dead after 4 days.
But one kiddo wanted to know why God would allow them to suffer. Why not show up 2hrs after he died and then raise him. And yes we can go with the whole some could question if he was really dead and all that, but I'm going to leave that alone here.
I do want to touch on the why God allowed them to suffer.
I wish I had an answer for that.
But I don't know that there is an answer. Not one that a person who is suffering will accept.
But I believe this. God is God....he is powerful, and mighty and loving.
Do we suffer sometime - yes- I believe that we all suffer sometimes.
Do I think that some people seem to suffer more? Yes I do. Some people's loads seem to be so much heavier than others. To the extent that it doesn't seem fair.
Take the girl in our group that had a baby last November, a baby that stayed in the NICU for almost 2 months, a baby that ended up dieing a few weeks after getting out of the hospital.
Does that suck? You bet it does! It's not something that my human mind understands or comprehends. And it is something I don't think it will until I get to heaven.
Do I think that God has his reasons? Of course. I could probably have a laundry list of ones right now in fact as to why a 17 yr old unmarried girl with a baby who was born over 11wks premature isn't ready or capable of being a mom yet.
But it's not my place to assume reasons. And let's face it if I offered any of those "reasons" to her it would be hurtful.
I do believe this above all when it comes to our suffering...
Hebrews 13:5b “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
No matter how much we suffer, we aren't suffering alone. Sometimes we may not see it till after we are out of the storm but it is still true, even if we never see it.
I can't say I've been 100% negativity free and I can say that yesterday was a pretty big fail in a lot of ways when it comes to this stuff but I'm hanging in there and not beating myself up over it.
We were talking as a youth staff some last night after our class and that's when a lot of it came out.
Mostly we were talking about the Lady Gaga and then our kids out look and all that kind of thing. Which wasn't the greatest experience so that lent to the negativity.
But our lesson last night was about Where God is during Bad Times.
And really it was a GOOD lesson.
We even ended up going over. The kids were engaged and listening for the most part and participating.
We talked for a good bit about Lazarus. You know him right...Jesus' friend that died. Mary & Martha's Brother.
Probably best known as the dude Jesus raised from the dead.
That Lazarus.
And Mary says to Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died,”
The unspoken question is, “Why weren’t you here when I needed you most?” That question comes to our hearts and lips when death darkens our house, when our parent’s divorce, when the person we love does not return our affection. It is a profoundly personal question.
Jesus didn’t come to tell bad people to be good people or to explain away deep, unrelenting pain with soothing words.
Jesus did proclaim God’s promises to Martha.
Jesus did raise her brother Lazarus that day
but Jesus response first response on seeing the body of his friend was to weep.
But get this...I went back today and did more reading to see if I could find out more about why Jesus waited to get back to Judea where Lazarus was.
And this is what the scripture says,
John 11(4-6,11) “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” ...So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days...“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” His disciples thought he meant actual sleep so ...
14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
So then the part with Mary takes place and Jesus raises Lazarus.
One of our main questions last night was why did God wait. And yes with out the back scripture one of the answers was for God to have the glory.
No one could questions if he was really dead after 4 days.
But one kiddo wanted to know why God would allow them to suffer. Why not show up 2hrs after he died and then raise him. And yes we can go with the whole some could question if he was really dead and all that, but I'm going to leave that alone here.
I do want to touch on the why God allowed them to suffer.
I wish I had an answer for that.
But I don't know that there is an answer. Not one that a person who is suffering will accept.
But I believe this. God is God....he is powerful, and mighty and loving.
Do we suffer sometime - yes- I believe that we all suffer sometimes.
Do I think that some people seem to suffer more? Yes I do. Some people's loads seem to be so much heavier than others. To the extent that it doesn't seem fair.
Take the girl in our group that had a baby last November, a baby that stayed in the NICU for almost 2 months, a baby that ended up dieing a few weeks after getting out of the hospital.
Does that suck? You bet it does! It's not something that my human mind understands or comprehends. And it is something I don't think it will until I get to heaven.
Do I think that God has his reasons? Of course. I could probably have a laundry list of ones right now in fact as to why a 17 yr old unmarried girl with a baby who was born over 11wks premature isn't ready or capable of being a mom yet.
But it's not my place to assume reasons. And let's face it if I offered any of those "reasons" to her it would be hurtful.
I do believe this above all when it comes to our suffering...
Hebrews 13:5b “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
No matter how much we suffer, we aren't suffering alone. Sometimes we may not see it till after we are out of the storm but it is still true, even if we never see it.
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