Yesterday was a special day as we
celebrated Jesus Christ’s resurrection in which he conquered death, figuratively
and quite literally. As he climbed the
hill known as Mount Calvary, the situation looked desperate. He was a man who served his fellow man as a
teacher, a prophet, a rabbi and counselor.
Yet now he was walking a road to his death with a huge wooden cross on
his shoulders. He knew the outcome. He knew the price he was about to pay for all
of mankind’s sins.
Even though he knew what was
about to happen, the pain and agony he would suffer, he moved forward with
God’s plan for him. He had agonized over
the path he was about to take in the garden of Gethsemane. He prayed for God’s support and
guidance. But he still moved forward on
that path. He maintained perspective because he also knew that
God would bring him through the storm and he would be resurrected and then
reunited with his Father in Heaven.
Let’s talk today for a few
minutes about perspective. Our trials and tribulations pale in
comparison to what Jesus did for us, but God will still be with us for the
little and big troubles we face.
Remember what Emmanuel means? It
means God is with us. Do you believe
this to be true for you? Ask yourself
that question. Look into your own heart
today and what answer to you get?
No matter what happens each
day, each week and each month in our lives, perspective will help us because God Himself will walk with us
along the path he has chosen for us. If
we maintain a broad view on life, then each event will be just one small piece
of the bigger puzzle. So let’s consider
a few thoughts:
· Looking at our life as one big
event, means we have two simple tasks to accomplish: Honor
Him and Help Others. We must make
all of our actions pleasing to God and we must work towards the goal of helping
our fellow man, our brothers and sisters.
Our new Pope is demonstrating this every day. Christ spent every waking minute helping
others.
Deuteronomy 6:5
"And thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
might."
Matthew 22:39 "And the second is like unto it, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
· And because it has to rain sometimes, remember
perspective.
Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait on the LORD shall renew
their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and
not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."
· There will some very, very
tough days so how do you survive the
strife in those situations?
ü Maintain perspective
ü Endure it
ü Step away and look to the
future
ü Learn from it
ü Grow and get stronger
Psalm 34:19: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
but the LORD delivereth him out of them all."
· Last point: since it is all temporary anyway, remember
the big picture.
2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV "So
we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is
temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
