Into the Desert: October

In the last several years, I've realized that October is a difficult month for me. Perhaps it is because of the changing seasons, warm summers shifting to cool, and sometimes wet, autumns. Often, I find myself running from the inevitable: Summer's end. It's my favorite season of the year, although I like the other three seasons almost as well. Perhaps though, it is more spiritual. In the summer, I rejoice in the sunshine and warm weather. When autumn arrives, however, I welcome it with much less enthusiasm, I am less thankful. Even depressed. Throw into the mix making some tough (and painful) decisions, and Elizabeth is a mess... Thank God for His grace and mercy.

What does this have to do with my journey into the desert? I don't know. Honestly, I'm searching for answers just as much as the rest of you. And funny how, as I type this, the very words I am writing are playing in a song immediately after I type each word. "I'll stop searching for the answers, I'll stop praying for an escape, and I'll trust You God with where I am and believe that You will have Your way" (Britt Nicole). Good song; fully expresses where I am and how I'm feeling right now. God speaks to me through songs a lot.

Guess God is asking (reminding) me to trust Him. It's hard sometimes, you know? Putting my life into the hands of Someone we can't physically see... I mean, we can see signs of Him in all of His creation, especially in each other. So... I guess I'll ask God to carry me through this difficult month and help, rather, teach me to trust Him.

So Much Evil in the World

So often I hear people ask the question, "How can there be a God?" or "How could He care about us since there are so many bad things in this world?"

With the way the world is going, I'm not surprised in the least that people ask these questions, but oh... how my heart breaks when I hear those words! I'm sure many of you have had that very question asked of you or maybe, you are the one asking the question. Where do you go for answers? It seems that every where one turns, someone has their "own" solution: "What is good for you may not be good for me. What you believe is good for you is your truth."

There's a song I hear on the radio quite frequently called, "Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath. It is an incredible song in which the Heath cries out to our Maker to reveal to him the brokenness of the world and a call to reach out with His love for all of mankind. This kind of love takes great sacrifice because it requires us to step out of our comfort zone and be selfless. Now, before I get too far ahead of myself, we must search out the heart of the problem. How did we get here? Why does it seem as if we are surrounded by 'bad things'? Why do bad things happen to good people? "...but in the beginning, it was not so." It was not until the fall of man (not to be confused with the male gender, rather humanity) that 'bad' things began to happen.

Now, many people would argue that, because we Christians believe in God, that we would not be subjected to the same evil, pain and suffering the rest of the world must face for their 'unbelief', if this God is really real. That is a subjective view of God, which many people have because, as humans, we have the tendency to limit God. One thing that people often misunderstand when it comes to knowing God, they think He must be some sort of dictator or authoritarian parent. Our God is actually quite the opposite. He is authoritative - I use this word loosely, as God cannot be bound by one title or concept, this is simply a metaphor. He is a loving God; who knows that if He made our choices for us, we would be slaves. Therefore, the Father set us free by giving us free will. Free will is God's way of allowing us to follow the call, His perfect will for our lives. When we choose that life, no amount of pain, suffering, or evil will be allowed to destroy us if we persevere. This does not mean that we receive "immunity" from it.

Evil, pain, and suffering. These three seeming "bad" circumstances are what cause us to grow and become strengthened in Christ. God allows these to happen so that we will turn our lives to Him more and more each day. He wants a relationship with us and He wants to bless us. God does not desire us to suffer, but wants us to realize that He can bring us the joy, healing, and life through that pain. There is evil in the world; should we not see that its existence is a sure sign that there is good too?

God will one day save us from all this pain and suffering and spare us from evil when we get to Heaven. Until then, we must know what evil is and experience pain so that we may be strengthened and know the sufferings of others and have compassion. Through suffering, God wants us to choose to put our trust and faith in Him instead of relying on ourselves. The only cure for all these "bad" things is Christ Jesus.