Coffee With The Lord

Once more I am blown away by the positive life-perspective of Joseph in the Bible!  What an example of faith and confidence in the providence of God!

Now I know some who experience injustice, inflicted pain and even oppression who embitter and scream out, “unfair! unfair!! unfair!!!  They become emotionally fixated on the negative and hurtful experiences of life to the point they can see little else.  If they continue in their fixation they shrivel up in life and go to the grave dehydrated little balls of bitterness.

Joseph, in the Bible could have done that… Sold into slavery by his brothers, falsely accused of sexual misconduct by his master’s wife, unjustly sent to prison, forgotten by those he had helped, separated from his father for years through no fault of his own… It could have embittered him… 

But it didn’t!!!  In my Bible reading today, Joseph exhibited a life-perspective that was different!  A life-perspective I want – a way of seeing things (even painful and unfair things) I want to embrace!  Listen to him as he speaks to his brothers – the ones who sold him into slavery…

“So Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come near to me, please.’ And they came near. And he said, ‘I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.  And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.  For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.  And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.  So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.’” (Genesis 45:4–8 ESV)

Joseph’s life-perspective reminds me of an assurance given by Apostle Paul in the Bible to those who trust God in the face of painful (and even unfair) life experiences…

“And we know that for those who love God ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD, for those who are called according to His purpose… What then shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who can be against us? … Who can separate us from the love of Christ? … In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!  For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord!” (from Romans 8:28-39)

With God’s help, I’m going to embrace that life-perspective!

Life is stressful these days!  I don’t have to remind you of that, do I?  The pace of life… the atmosphere of life… the demands of family and vocation… the pressures others place upon us… politics… dreaded physical problems… all are potential “ulcer makers” and the stuff of “emotional-breakdowns.”  “Burnout” is a popular term related to the cultural context in which we live today.

There is an answer!  It is possible to live from a “quiet center!”  Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest!  Take my yoke upon you! Let me teach you!  I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”  (From Matthew 11:28–30 New Living Translation)

“Soul rest!”  Imagine it… deep down within… a center of life that delivers peace, rest, competency, confidence, trust, and strength, in the midst of the stress-filled world we live in.  Jesus provides it!  Jesus teaches it!  Jesus is the secret of it!  (Check out verse 27 of the same passage!)

And you don’t have to be thought of as wise, influential, rich or famous to have it?  In fact, my experience is, some of the poorest people, those looked upon as quite ordinary, individuals with average intellect and education (even some thought of as quite “simple,” are the very ones who possess this “secret” and exhibit it!  And you know what?  That is precisely what Jesus declared in this very passage!  Here’s how it starts…

“At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: ‘O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike!  Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way!”

Now, a Christian therapist may be helpful in discovering and applying it to your life.  But even more than a therapist, the need is Jesus!  He provides the secret to this kind of life.  He said, “Come to Me… Learn from Me!”  I intend to do that EVERY DAY in the stress producing culture I live in!  “I have decided to follow Jesus!”  I learning from Him how to experience “soul rest” in this “pressure cooker” world in which we live!

(Pic and quoted verse from Clare Castaneda in Pinterest)

Let me recommend something I believe will be uplifting and inspiring for you… Take a walk!  Now I know some of you are “health walkers” – “you get out and motor!” as they say – you “push it” with arms working and legs churning… That’s not what I’m talking about (that’s good and it keeps you fit – I’m a runner, so I understand).  I probably should have said, “Take a stroll!”  Slow down, take out the ear buds, listen to the birds, look at the budding flowers, see the trees beginning to green, hear the breeze and enjoy the gurgle of a nearby brook if there is one close by.

Here is what prompted this bit of advice… My Bible reading this morning was from Job 37, where Elihu gave this bit of good advice to Job (and it should be noted, not all of his advice was good 😉 … but this was)… He said, “Stop and consider the wondrous works of God!” (And it’s hard to do that in a hurry!)

In fact, I underlined this summary of his words in my Bible today… it’s good!

“God thunders wondrously with His voice!  He does great things that we cannot comprehend… Whether for correction, or for his land, or for love he causes it to happen! … Hear this, O Job; stop and consider the wondrous works of God!  Do you know…the wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge? … God is clothed with awesome majesty!  (Taken from the words of Elihu to Job in Job 37)

So my advice today?  Take a walk… No, better than that – a stroll… look, listen, and “consider the wondrous works of God!”  It will be energizing to you physically, emotionally, mentally, AND MOST OF ALL, SPIRITUALLY!