Deep-End Discipleship

Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:5 I find that this time of year causes a significant amount of stress. The semester is wrapping up, assignments are due, tests abound and the holidays are fast approaching. It’s easy to feel bogged down in the struggle and anxiety, to despair that none if it will get done and that this hard time will never end. But this psalm tells us that we have hope in God. Even in the midst of stressful times, we hope that there will be an end to the struggle. May we be reminded to praise God, because God is the one who brings hope into our lives. It may seem like the “downcast” time is forever, that we will never have peace again. God says otherwise. Have hope in the Lord, and know that joy comes in the morning. Isaiah 43

He said to me, "My grace is enough for you, because power is made perfect in weakness." So I'll gladly spend my time bragging about my weaknesses so that Christ's power can rest on me. Therefore, I'm all right with weaknesses, insults, disasters, harassments, and stressful situations for the sake of Christ, because when I'm weak, then I'm strong. - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NRSV - In high school my youth pastor used the image of a clay jar with a candle inside to explain how we can find strength in weakness. If a clay jar is perfectly intact and closed with a lid, the light of the candle inside is hidden. From the outside no one is able to tell that the candle exists. However, when the clay jar is cracked and broken, the light of the candle shines through, revealing its existence. This is how we can find strength in weakness, thereby glorifying God. If humans were perfect, there would be no need to point to a savior. From the outside no one w...