It’s Going To Be OK
When tragedy
tears our hearts out, when untimely death cracks the foundation of our faith,
when abuse mars all that is good, we mourn. We grieve the loss. But we mustn’t
allow the story to stop there.
Sharon
Jaynes
“Now
faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not
see.” Hebrews 11:1 (NET)
It was one of the worst days of my life.
Tragedy struck our family in the worst way, and I was emotionally paralyzed.
That’s when my friend Mary stepped in to do
what I couldn’t. She made me a hotel reservation, called the necessary people
and said, “It’s going to be OK.”
In that moment, I was flooded with supernatural
peace as I felt the Lord speaking through Mary.
Her statement was not a dismissal of my
pain or the complexity of the situation; however, something greater happened.
The peace and comfort of God was somehow
found in that statement in the middle of my storm.
“It’s going to be OK” is one of the most
hope-filled sentiments I can offer to others and choose to believe for myself.
The writer of
Hebrews says, “Now faith is being sure of
what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1).
That’s where hope comes from.
Of course, for the Christian, there is the
future hope of eternity with God. But there is also hope for the here and now.
We have the assurance, the evidence of
things not seen, that no matter what happens, God is still on His throne.
What is biblical hope? It is tethering to
the future what we know about God’s past faithfulness.
In defining faith as “being sure of what we hope for,” the writer of Hebrews gives us an
insight into hope, but let’s chew on it a bit.
Biblical hope is not a wish. A wish is
something we want to have or to happen. “I wish I had a bigger house.” “I wish
I could go to Spain.” “I wish I had a smaller waist.” Maybe it will happen one
day, but maybe it won’t.
In contrast, biblical hope is a certainty
that our ultimate future rests in God’s capable and loving hands. It is an
assurance that the invisible God is faithful and has a good plan in my visible
life.
Old Testament writers used several Hebrew
words for hope.
One is qawa, which means “hope” in the
sense of trust, as when the prophet Jeremiah said to God, “… our hope is in you
…” (Jeremiah
14:22d, NIV).
New Testament writers used the Greek word
hupomeno for hope. It means to wait, to be patient, to endure, to persevere
under misfortunes and trials, to hold fast to one’s faith in Christ.
We get a picture of hope, as these biblical
words define it, in the life of the Apostle Paul.
Paul encountered struggle after struggle,
but he never lost hope that everything was going to be OK, and he assured others
of the same. (2
Corinthians 4:8-10)
Here’s the thing, though: Unless someone
has struggled through traumatic situations themselves, I don’t really believe
them when they tell me, “It’s going to be
OK.”
My knee-jerk reaction is, “How do you know?” Unless they truly
understand, the words fall flat.
When you aren’t ashamed to tell your
darkest moments but freely reveal how God brought you through, you become
believable. Hope becomes conceivable. Then you become a hope-giver.
Sometimes, it may take years to put back
the pieces the wrecking ball of pain has caused. The atrocities we’ve endured
may tempt us to believe that someone other than God is writing our stories.
But God has the power to redeem what we
consider unredeemable. To heal what we consider fatally wounded. To make our
worst chapters our greatest victories.
And then to fashion us into hope-givers who
are believable, vulnerable and beautiful when we tell one another, “It’s going to be OK.”
When tragedy tears our hearts out, when
untimely death cracks the foundation of our faith, when abuse mars all that is
good, we mourn.
We grieve the loss. But we mustn’t allow
the story to stop there. I type these words with tears in my eyes because I
have lived them.
Hear me when I say, “It’s going to be OK – you’re going to be OK.” God has more to
write.
God,
I trust You.
No
matter what happens this side of heaven, I know it’s going to be OK because You
have a purpose and a plan.
I
might not like the situation or understand the observation, but I trust You
without reservation.
In
Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
TRUTH
FOR TODAY
Psalm 9:10, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never
forsaken those who seek you.” (NIV)
RELATED
RESOURCES
Everyone likes a good story, but not
everyone likes their own story. Did you know that the chapters you’d like to
tear out of your story are the very ones God can use the most? Those stories
can make you stronger … if you let them. Check out Sharon Jaynes’ new book,
When You Don’t Like Your Story: What if Your Worst Chapters Could Become Your
Greatest Victories? I know they can! This book will help you get there.
Our favorite Therapy & Theology series
is back on The Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast! Join Lysa TerKeurst, Proverbs 31
Ministries Director of Theological Research, Joel Muddamalle, and Lysa's
personal, licensed professional counselor, Jim Cress, for conversations about
topics like guilt, shame, signs of emotional maturity and more. Subscribe to
The Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast today so you never miss an episode!
CONNECT
Watch a short video about When You Don’t
Like Your Story, and access a free printout of “10 Bible Verses to Assure You
God Is Always Working Behind the Scenes in Your Life.”
REFLECT
AND RESPOND
What is one difficult situation God has brought you through that you can now share with someone else going through a similar struggle? We’d love to hear about it in the comment section!
Sharon Jaynes served as vice
president and radio co-host for Proverbs 31 Ministries from 1996-2006. She is a
best-selling author of 24 books and Bible studies, including Enough:
Silencing the Lies that Steal Your Confidence, Praying for Your Husband from
Head to Toe: A Daily Guide to Scripture-Based Prayer, Take Hold of the Faith
You Long For: Let Go-Move Forward-Live Bold, and her latest
release--Lovestruck: Discovering God's Design for Romance, Marriage, and Sexual
Intimacy from the Song of Solomon.
Sharon
has been featured on several radio and television programs such as Focus
on the Family, Family Life Today, Revive Our Hearts, and The 700 Club. But
what she loves most is speaking to women face-to-face at women's conferences
and events. Her passion is encouraging and empowering women to walk in courage
and confidence as they grasp their true identity as a child of God and co-heir
with Christ. She’s a storyteller who loves weaving biblical principles and
powerful stories to help the Bible come alive. Sharon and her husband Steve
have been married 39 years. They have one son, Steven, who is married to
someone Sharon says is the sweetest girl ever, Emily. They live 767.5 miles
away (yes, she’s counted them).
https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2021/04/16/its-going-to-be-ok
No comments:
Post a Comment