How there could have been any pleasure in the sight of these stick-thin legs and hunger-bloated stomachs I could not imagine. Surely there is no more wretched sight than the human body unloved and uncared for.
“Nor could I see the necessity for the complete undressing: when we finally reached the examining room a doctor looked down each throat, another–a dentist presumably–at our teeth, a third in between each finger. And that was all. We trooped again down the long, cold corridor and picked up our X-marked dresses at the door.
“But it was one of these mornings while we were waiting, shivering in the corridor, that yet another page in the Bible leapt into life for me.
“He hung naked on the cross.”
…The paintings, the carved crucifixes showed at least a scrap of cloth. But this, I suddenly knew, was the respect and reverence of the artist. But oh–at the time itself, on that other Friday morning–there had been no reverence. No more than I saw in the faces around us now.
“‘Betsie, they took His clothes too.’
“‘Ahead of me I heard a little gasp. ‘Oh, Corrie. And I never thanked Him…’
The Hiding Place, Corrie Ten Boom
Corrie and Betsie ten Boom were not angelic figures; they were human beings just like you and me. For those of you who have not read “The Hiding Place” (we cannot be friends until you do), I will catch you up a bit.
Corrie ten Boom’s family hid Jews during WWII in their home. It was a huge risk and they paid dearly for it. Corrie, her sister Betsy, and her father were arrested and jailed. Her beloved father died ten days after their arrest. Betsy and Corrie were put in a concentration camp together. Betsy starved to death in that camp, and Corrie was released a couple of weeks later due to a “clerical error” (otherwise known as a miracle). Corrie lost her freedom for almost a year. She was treated more horribly than any of us can imagine. Yet, she traveled the world with this message, ““There is no pit so deep, that God’s love is not deeper still.”
How? How could a loving and perfect Father put three of His most devoted children in hell on earth?
If they judged God by what He allowed in their lives, they would have been miserable in that place. Yet they weren’t. It was horrific, but God used those two spinsters to lead many women to salvation before their deaths in the gas chambers. The reason He could put them there was because they knew Him. Because they knew Him, they trusted Him. Because they trusted Him, He could do what He wanted with them. He could take those two lights and shine His love into the pit of hell on earth.
Until we take the time to know God, we will only do as well as our circumstances.
We live in an unpredictable and scary place called earth. What started out as the Garden of Eden is now a full on rescue mission. We long for the garden because we were created for it. We were formed by the hands of love and perfection, so deep down we expect it.
“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”
C.S Lewis
We will never experience a perfect world in this life. However, we can experience perfect peace as we walk in this world. The kingdom of God is now within us. This kingdom is from a place of perfection. Jesus beautifully modeled this other worldly peace for us as He explained this to Pilate.
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
John 18:36
Jesus was standing before the person who had the power to crucify Him and He stood there…completely at peace. God is sovereign over this world and every person and thing in this world.
Sovereign-possessing supreme or ultimate power.
No one is above Him. No one has power over Him. He is our Father and nothing touches us without His permission (unless we are choosing to live in sin; different blog for a different day).
We don’t like this. Our common sense tells us that if God is good, then He can only allow good things to happen to us, and we should live our lives from the cradle to the grave in perfectly peaceful circumstances. We expect no death, no pain, no financial difficulties, nothing to cause us discomfort. That may sound ridiculous, but our minds operate that way. We immediately think we have done something wrong if anything bad happens. In reality, we are promised that lots of bad things are going to happen for sure.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
- In Jesus-may have peace
- In this world-will have trouble
We will have trouble, but we may have peace. As believers, we are guaranteed trouble but we are not guaranteed peace. Peace of mind comes from one place; what we believe.
What we believe is what controls us.
Have you ever thought someone was angry with you and it ruined your entire day? You could think of nothing else. You replayed in your mind what you thought caused the anger. You quickly leap from there to imagining they discussed it with others and now everyone is mad at you.
Just when you are ready to leave work early to go talk to them, you get a sweet text from that person. They share a funny story from the day and ask if you want to grab a bite to eat. They are not angry at all. Relief floods your body and mind and everything from the day seems silly.
What happened? You found out the truth. You believed the truth. The truth set you free from the misery of your tortured mind. It’s that simple.
In the same way, if we believe a few simple truths about God and our circumstances, life becomes an amazing journey of seeing God operate on both tiny and huge levels. Every single day becomes an adventure of knowing God more and watching Him unfold our days before our expectant hearts. It’s a miracle.
Suffering is accepted and (almost) enjoyed because it drives us deeper into perfect Love and calm (the suffering child in a home gets the most attention).
Inside of our souls is the Holy of Holies. At all times, we are invited to live in fellowship with our God. The unthinkable has happened. God, who lives in unapproachable light and holiness, has made a way to live inside of us. His blood is the most precious gift ever presented to God on our behalf. Through His blood, He has given us the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Nothing we have done has earned that amazing position.
He paid it all and He is delighted to have us come to Him with every single pain, victory, sin, anger, jealousy, bitterness, sexual addiction, drug addiction, praise, and anything else we can imagine. He is our Father and Jesus is our Friend. We are “one” with the trinity. That truth (if it’s believed) is the reason that any of us can live above our circumstances. We can thrive if we are being loved and we can thrive if we are being treated horribly. Nothing can touch us when we believe the truth about God.
We are going to be steeped in trouble down here. Jesus said He has overcome the world. Overcome means there was a battle and He carried off the victory.
The “world” means- kosmos (Greek)-universe; worldly affairs; the inhabitants of the world.
That simple word “world” is huge in the Greek language. There is nothing He has not conquered.
Now, let’s see what scripture says about us since we are one with Him.
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Romans 8:35-37
All the misery and hardship in this world can never separate us from the one thing that matters; we are loved by Christ. Knowing He loves us dearly will take us through any and every hardship.
Circumstances never destroy God’s children.
Wrong belief about God is what destroys us. I have talked to God’s children and have seen them judge Him harshly by their circumstances. It almost makes me physically sick. I don’t know much, but I do know the heart of God (as much as He has enabled me to at this point). His kindness and compassion are without question. When I hear them question His heart motives, I cringe because I know it hurts Him. He is not indifferent to us. Our thoughts and words hurt Him. Jesus wept over Jerusalem while He was down here. He longed to wrap His arms around His children and they wouldn’t let Him (Luke 19:41). As a parent, that kind of distrust and rejection would hurt me above all things.
He has done everything to prove His love and good intentions toward us. He can do no more. He gave His Son. Whether we choose to believe it or not is completely up to us. A healthy mind toward God is one of the greatest miracles on the planet and it is within the grasp of every single person listening to this.
Jesus said it best after the miracle of feeding the 5,000 with a few loaves and fish. The people flocked to Him because of the miracles and because their bellies were full. It wasn’t Jesus they wanted, it was an easy life. Not much has changed in a few thousand years. We humans still want the same thing.
They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do? Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
John 6:28-29
Notice Jesus calls believing in Him work. Never doubt how much work it takes to change our mindset about who God is.
I look at circumstances and preach scripture to my mind all the time. It is the most life-changing thing we can do.
How do you start? Open your Bible and read the Gospels first (over and over again if you need to). They are the story of our Champion.
Our messed up minds tell us terrible things about God and scripture tells us the truth.
When we choose to believe what is written, a miracle happens. Circumstances will no longer crush us. They will become chariots of fire, sent by God, to take us to the high places of faith. We can step in each one and hold on tight for the ride of our lives.
As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
2 Kings 2:11
I still cannot believe this is real life!
