Life can beat you down at times. We can be beat down and have the ground we walk on shaken so hard it drive us to our knees. Things like job changes, the frailty of life, rejection by friends, or another failed attempt on our part to do something that we have long wanted to do.
John 20:26-29 says this, "Jesus was standing among them. 'Peace be with you,' he said. Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!' "My Lord and my God!" Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, "You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me." Thomas' story in the passage we just read sheds some light on those moments of despair and offers a solution for how we might move forward through them. Growing up in Sunday School I can remember hearing the story of "doubting Thomas." Little did I know at the time that I would exhibit similar doubts as the world came in around me.
Remember Thomas' words to his fellow disciples when Jesus said He was heading back to Bethany to go to Lazarus's grave? He is the one who was initially ready to charge headlong after Jesus: "Let's go too-and die with Jesus"(John 11:16). Previous trips to Judea had been dangerous for them and Jesus' notoriety was growing among the religious leaders who wanted Him gone. Thomas was willing to stand at Jesus' side, even to his death. And yet after the death and resurrection of Jesus, thomas wasn't there when the others saw Jesus, and he wouldn't take their word that Jesus was alive.
Then, in the midst of his doubt, in walks Jesus. I can tell you that in my life I have experienced this more times than I want to admit. Times when I thought that there was no way and no how. Days when I had given up all hope that the storms that were in my life would pass over and the sun would shine again. But as the word has taught me, He is always faithful.
Doubt. Perhaps you are fortunate and can honestly say that you haven't experienced it in a while. I doubt it. It hits us all on a regular basis. And if you let it, it can be devastating. It can cause you not only to lose focus but it can also cause you to lose hope. The enemy uses it to get us off track and to sap us of the energy we need for the day. When it comes, it rocks our world. But just when we think there is no hope, Jesus comes to us, just as He came to Thomas, to keep those doubts from taking root in our lives. He calls us to faith, to a belief that in the end, even when it doesn't always seem like it, we prevail, we will win with Him.
Live as doubt free as you can. And when doubt comes at you, stop and honestly admit them to God.
John 20:26-29 says this, "Jesus was standing among them. 'Peace be with you,' he said. Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!' "My Lord and my God!" Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, "You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me." Thomas' story in the passage we just read sheds some light on those moments of despair and offers a solution for how we might move forward through them. Growing up in Sunday School I can remember hearing the story of "doubting Thomas." Little did I know at the time that I would exhibit similar doubts as the world came in around me.
Remember Thomas' words to his fellow disciples when Jesus said He was heading back to Bethany to go to Lazarus's grave? He is the one who was initially ready to charge headlong after Jesus: "Let's go too-and die with Jesus"(John 11:16). Previous trips to Judea had been dangerous for them and Jesus' notoriety was growing among the religious leaders who wanted Him gone. Thomas was willing to stand at Jesus' side, even to his death. And yet after the death and resurrection of Jesus, thomas wasn't there when the others saw Jesus, and he wouldn't take their word that Jesus was alive.
Then, in the midst of his doubt, in walks Jesus. I can tell you that in my life I have experienced this more times than I want to admit. Times when I thought that there was no way and no how. Days when I had given up all hope that the storms that were in my life would pass over and the sun would shine again. But as the word has taught me, He is always faithful.
Doubt. Perhaps you are fortunate and can honestly say that you haven't experienced it in a while. I doubt it. It hits us all on a regular basis. And if you let it, it can be devastating. It can cause you not only to lose focus but it can also cause you to lose hope. The enemy uses it to get us off track and to sap us of the energy we need for the day. When it comes, it rocks our world. But just when we think there is no hope, Jesus comes to us, just as He came to Thomas, to keep those doubts from taking root in our lives. He calls us to faith, to a belief that in the end, even when it doesn't always seem like it, we prevail, we will win with Him.
Live as doubt free as you can. And when doubt comes at you, stop and honestly admit them to God.
Comments
Post a Comment