The Hope We Have

Easter represents the hope we have because of the resurrection!

Each year this day renews my own faith and hope that I have in Christ.  One of the classic hymns I always loved to sing in church on Easter has been "He Lives" and the part that always excites me is where is says: "You ask me how I know He lives?  He lives within my heart!"

Today many do not believe and choose to celebrate with the Easter Bunny, colored eggs and candy.  Although I have no problem with those celebrations, there is more to Easter than those things.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ over 2,000 years ago gives us the hope and promise that death doesn't have to be the end for us and our departed loved ones. 

I think you would agree with me that our world needs hope.  There is so much division and hatred today.  People do not value the lives of others.  

Jesus Christ gives us hope.  The Easter Bunny does not.  The Easter Bunny is a fictional character.  Jesus Christ actually existed.  

Besides the gospels and the letters of Paul in the New Testament of the Bible, non-biblical works are also considered legitimate sources which prove the existence of Christ.  This includes the Antiquities of the Jews (Testimonium Flavianum, Jesus' own brother James) by Jewish historian and Galilean military leader Josephus.  He is also mentioned in Annals by Roman historian Tactius.  Multiple independent sources affirm that Jesus actually had siblings.  Contemporary non-Christian sources in the first and second centuries never deny the existence of Jesus including Pagan or Jewish writers who oppose Christianity.

Of course, none of these sources won't convince many who do not believe.  It comes down to whether you believe or not.  

If Christ had not risen from the dead, why would the Apostles have gone on with spreading the gospel?  Why make the sacrifices they made for a lie or some kind of conspiracy cover up?  They were also martyred for their beliefs.  

From GotQuestions.org:

While martyrdom is remarkable, it is not necessarily compelling. It does not validate a belief so much as it authenticates a believer (by demonstrating his or her sincerity in a tangible way). What makes the earliest Christian martyrs remarkable is that they knew whether or not what they were professing was true. They either saw Jesus Christ alive-and-well after His death or they did not. This is extraordinary. If it was all just a lie, why would so many perpetuate it given their circumstances? Why would they all knowingly cling to such an unprofitable lie in the face of persecution, imprisonment, torture, and death?

While the September 11, 2001, suicide hijackers undoubtedly believed what they professed (as evidenced by their willingness to die for it), they could not and did not know if it was true. They put their faith in traditions passed down to them over many generations. In contrast, the early Christian martyrs were the first generation. Either they saw what they claimed to see, or they did not.

Among the most illustrious of the professed eyewitnesses were the Apostles. They collectively underwent an undeniable change following the alleged post-resurrection appearances of Christ. Immediately following His crucifixion, they hid in fear for their lives. Following the resurrection they took to the streets, boldly proclaiming the resurrection despite intensifying persecution. What accounts for their sudden and dramatic change? It certainly was not financial gain. The Apostles gave up everything they had to preach the resurrection, including their lives.

You don't have to act crazy to be a believer and you don't have to join a church.  What harm is there to simply believe?  Faith doesn't mean we have to know everything or have all the facts.  What harm is it to believe that Jesus Christ rose from the grave which gives us the hope that we can also do the same?

I choose to believe.   I choose hope.

Enduring Difficult Times

We all go through difficult times. That’s just the reality of life.

There is a dumb saying that goes:  "Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger!"

I don't know about that.  It's still not any fun to go through them.  

I can look back at my own life and see the difficult times I have had to go through and endure. I have endured times of working with difficult people, unpleasant projects and times that just I wished I could have avoided.

Life just doesn’t always go as planned. If it did I would choose to avoid going through difficult times.

Several years ago my wife and I moved to Tampa, Florida.  After just a month we wanted to leave.  I had to ride the bus every day to work and the work situation was not what I had expected.  During this time there was a hiring freeze so it took us two years to leave there.  Two years may not seem like a long time unless you are going through it and didn't know how long it was going to last.  I often said that if I just knew when the end was coming that I could have done a lot better.  It wasn't until later that I could look back on those two years and see God's purpose during that time.  Of course, it would have been nice to have that information when it seemed long and hopeless.    

Sometimes we might how long it tough times will last but most of the time we do not. The only advice is suck it up. No way to sugar coat it. I am like you, I am not always patient at being patient but if you are a believer, you can know that with God that all things work together for His purpose.  

When enduring hard times, I have tried to cling to things that will help me during the difficult time.

One thing that I always focus on is that things will eventually change. Either the situation will change or a time will come when we can change it.

When going through hard times we have to accept it for what it is and look for the moments that help renew us. It could be meditation, quiet time, encouraging music or anything that helps to renew you. For me it isn’t always the same thing depending on the situation. The most recent time it I took a few minutes before going to sleep to listen to some encouraging music.   My go-to song during hard times has always been the song "Made Me Glad" by Hillsong.  The chorus always lifts me up when it says:

You are my shield, my strength
My portion, Deliverer
My shelter, strong tower
My very present help

Just do whatever works for you.  Then when you have gotten through the difficult time, evaluate it so you can know how to improve enduring the next one.

The thing about difficult times are either you are getting ready to go through one, you are in one or you have just gotten through one.

Difficult times are going to happen. Just do the best we can to get through it.

When Others Don't Believe in God

I often remember when I was growing up in church, someone would always have a prayer request: "please pray for my lost loved ones."

It is sad that many do not believe in Christ.  That's the reality of our world.

I have several non-believers in my life too.  Does that make me any better than them?  No, absolutely not.  They are good people and they all treat me kindly.  I pray for each one of them often especially if I know of a need they have or something going on in their lives.  They never ask me to pray for them but I still do.   That doesn't make me any kind of saint or anything but I have always believed that the MOST I can do for anyone is to pray for them.   

We can't force people to believe.  No matter how much we want them to believe, there is nothing we can do.  I'm also not one to debate.  I have never known debating to win anyone into believing.  Debates are a waste of time.   I am a believer.  Period.  Always have been and there is nothing anyone can say to change my mind.  I am also not going to pound anyone over the head with a Bible or quote worn-out religious cliches to them.  That certainly won't make anyone a believer.

I know people who would push the issue and "witness" to non-believers but I think that's a dangerous thing to do.  Personally I think forcing the issue with non-believers risk having an opposite affect on people.  There is already enough bad publicity about being a Christian.  In the United States it has been politicized and has further pushed people away for believing.    

The most any of us can do is to pray for non-believers.  Leave it up to God.  He can do whatever, whenever and however He wants to do it.  The pressure is not on us.  I know at times I have stressed about it until I realized there isn't anything I can do to make someone believe.   I just need to pray for them and trust God to do His part.  

Naturally I would love for everyone to believe in Christ but, sadly, that isn't the reality.  There is still the option of people having free will to make their own decisions.  Are believers perfect?  No, absolutely not.  I make mistakes and I have moments where I slip up but I never give up and I never want to give the impression that I have it all together because I don't.

Being a believer takes a commitment.  You can't argue someone into it and we can't paint it being a life where you no longer have problems.  Sometimes believers are the only Bibles that non-believers will read so if there is any pressure at all, it is us to us to be a good example.  

Only the Holy Spirit can change the heart.  I have been blessed to have been taught about Christ and have believed from an early age.  I had a pastor once who belittled my experience by saying that I cut my teeth on the church pews.  Yes, I was raised to be a believer but it's the only way I know to live.  I know many others have not.  We have all traveled different paths in our lives and we all have different experiences.  God knows where we all are and He is able to reach us where we are.