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Seeking the perspective of Jesus

"So we're not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever."

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (The Message)

This morning at 3:00 AM I read these words and drew immediate encouragement. Perhaps it is because I just turned 64 years of age that it meant so much to me. You know, with these aches and pains associated with aging, I am reminded that this human vessel my soul occupies is “falling apart,” as it diminishes in strength and stamina. Or, perhaps it is because of the hard times of our economy, or the desecration of the spiritual foundation of our nation or the constant negative news we read and hear about. Those things would easily be classified as “falling apart on us,” wouldn’t you agree? Any of these things could have contributed to waking me up earlier than I normally do. How about you? Have you been waking up with some deep concerns? Well, I’ve got good news for both of us. In all those challenges I listed and much, much more, “there is more than meets the eye,” and God is at work in our life right now doing something very good. The good times are ahead for all God’s children. But, how do we deal with the current bad news? We endure and wait for God’s plan for our life to come together, for there is a work of God going on in our lives that is out of sight. One day it will emerge, and we will see it. Until that time comes, we grab a promise from God like the one above, and we stand on it. We cling to it, and we endure with it. So, let’s explore this promise and others, as we make life applications with them. Perhaps you too will be encouraged today as I have been.

Let me start with something all men have to deal with one way or another. Plain and simple: All of our life we will be dealing with issues that are beyond our control. We think we have an aspect of life neatly wrapped up, secure and bulletproof, and we work really hard to make sure it happens. But we live in an imperfect world as imperfect people, and something will always thwart our plans sooner or later. The sooner we come to grips with this fact, the easier it will be for us to get beyond our setbacks and disappointments when they come. Instead of thinking that the “good life” we once had is over because of changes beyond our control, we need to meet the challenge head on and welcome a change as permitted by our King. No matter how dismal these changes might look to us, we must shift our perspective and welcome these changes as the beginning of something better for us. How can I say this? Well it’s not what I say but what God says, as is indicated in the scripture above.

As an example of what I mean, let’s continue the discussion about getting older. As we age, those physical things that we could do so easily become a challenge and have to be left off or at least curtailed. For a former athlete this can be a big downer to one’s self-esteem, which has been the case for me. We can fight it and try to delay it, but it will always catch up with us. So what do we do about it? Do we complain and whine about what we no longer have, or do we adjust and find our new strength and new purpose? New strength you ask? Yep! That’s what I said, for you see that is what God revealed to me in the passage above. What encouraged me is the message that God is progressively renewing my inner self day after day, and there will be a greater strength in some other area of my life that will surface that will be amazing. It will reveal how God has been working inside me (out of sight) for a future purpose. I have seen this occur in others and myself, and I speak from experience on this. No matter how dire our circumstances, God is at work in our inner life, preparing us for something good ahead that we will join Him in, if we will join Him in our present crisis by trusting Him. Yes, whether it is physical, financial, or setbacks of any kind, there is great encouragement for all men, young and old, in crisis. However, we must grasp the fact that even though we will diminish in many ways, we can also become a much better man, provided we allow God to take us through the crisis. He is at work during our struggles. We just don’t always see it nor understand the way He is working.

I think of the movie Karate Kid and how Mr. Miyagi taught his young apprentice karate by having him paint fences and wax cars. Daniel thought his mentor was taking advantage of him and that he was not being taught the sport he wanted to learn. When he complained, his mentor gave him a few sudden offensive moves which Daniel’s new reflexes easily blocked, teaching him that the mundane work assignments given to him had created new strengths and new abilities. There was a work going on in Daniel that was out of sight, not understood, and not appreciated until he saw it surface. Similarly, the regular grind of life or the sudden challenges that come at us are part of a process for forming new strengths and abilities in us. God is at work within us preparing us for a very special purpose. We need to understand that the enemy would try to convince us that all we get is what we see. While God is saying to us, “There is more going on here than you realize. Will you trust Me in this?”

Since I’m on the subject of older men, bear with me a little more. If we older men allow a lie from our enemy to form in our life, that we are not like we used to be, that we have nothing to offer, this negativity will cause us to lose our adventure and zest, and we will become discouraged. For many, it will cause us to just settle for a comfortable existence and become irrelevant to our world around us. What a shame, for this world needs older men engaged in the lives of God’s family! The work going on inside us can provide a supernatural expression that, when unleashed, will provide amazing fruit to God’s glory. We must not settle for an existence that leads to the sidelines rather than a race that leads to the victory line with other men! Do not listen to a voice that tells you that you have nothing left to offer, that God does not work through your life, or that you are on your own. How could we even consider that God uses us up and discards us as being useless for His purpose when He gives us the following promise:

"Even to your old age I am He, and even to hair white with age will I carry you. I have made, and I will bear; yes, I will carry and will save you." Isaiah 46:4 (Amplified Bible)

Now to you younger Christian men: As with older men, consider that He who created you and wove you in your mother’s womb is intimately involved with all the details of your life. In fact, He delights in the details of your life.

"The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step]." Psalm 37:23 (Amplified Bible)

The enemy of our soul would have us believe that God is not involved, that He is disinterested, and that we are on our own to both defend and protect all that we are and all that we have. What a lie we swallow when we agree with him and believe these things! We must understand that he does his best work when we are discouraged or isolated or being tested. When we hold on to our false gods, he leaves us alone. But, when we begin to walk on the narrow path that requires abandonment of our false gods and absolute trust in our Sovereign King, he then comes to discourage us and attempt to turn us back to those idols. For that reason, we must hold unswervingly to the truth of God’s promises and the fact that He is at work in our inner man to bless us and give us our heart’s desire. Did I say that God wants to give us our heart’s desire? Yes, but that is just one of those promises that He wants us to stand on:

"Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37: 3-4 NASB

As we connect verses about the outward trials we endure with the inward work of God in our life and the purpose God has to bless us with the desires of our heart, we are given another message: God knows the plans He has for us, and they are good. We must also conclude that the work God is doing in our inner man is also a work on our hearts. He is busy reconstructing a heart that is similar to His. He is actually recreating a man after His own heart, and, when He finishes that work on our heart, He then completes His work by giving us the desires of our heart. Men, will you stand firm and allow God to do His work in your life and believe the truth that He is involved with every detail in your life right now? Do not believe the enemy. Believe your King who loves you beyond anything that you could ever understand. Stay the course men, for one day you will awake to a day that includes your heart’s desire.