Leaning on the Everlasting Arms
Rob ChambersOn a recent weekend vacation, my wife and I encountered what was not only a message for us but for others as well. Throughout our short stay we saw old and new friends and made new acquaintances. The common thread that ran throughout our conversations and experiences was the importance of hope and encouragement.
It’s difficult to encourage someone if you don’t have hope, and one thing that will erode a Christian’s hope in day-to-day living is negativity. If someone is inundated with negativity, then it’s hard to ward off a despairing attitude.
It is very unlikely that a person can go through the day without encountering some form of bad news or being bombarded with messages of negativity. Just turn on the news, read the paper, or open your email and you’ll see numerous reports of depressing and pessimistic information.
You’ll read accounts of our own state where we have been plagued with disasters of Biblical proportion – from life-taking tornadoes to a massive oil spill.
On the national scene you’ll read about the cost of health care skyrocketing making affordable health insurance practically unattainable and cost prohibitive for many. You’ll also likely hear about the ever-increasing problems associated with the federal government failing to enforce existing immigration laws and failing to secure our national borders.
There’s so much political wrangling going on related to resolving these two issues (and much more) that the negative tone of these “conversations” will drive nearly anyone to toss their newspaper and unplug their TV - lest they find themselves singing Hee Haw’s, “Gloom, despair, and agony on me…”
When we get exposed to so much negativity it can take root in our own life. If we allow it to do so, it will produce its fruit - hopelessness.
Christians do, however, need to be informed about what is going on in the culture and seek to be salt and light in the public square, but we don’t need to be so consumed and driven by these issues that we neglect ‘weightier’ matters of our faith. James alludes to this when describing true religion as ministering to widows and orphans and being unstained by the world.
It is this aspect and general attitude of self-less encouragement and ministry to others that Christians ought to demonstrate toward others – starting with our own family and relatives, then our church family and on to the uttermost ends of the earth.
When we do this in deed, it will serve as a Light to lost people that there’s something Savory in our lives. When they thirst for the Living Water, then we must be quick to share the soul quenching, Gospel message (John 4).
Christians, of all people, ought to be so full of hope on the inside that it manifests itself on our face and in our every expression, especially when facing adversity.
Recall how Timothy’s face “was like that of an angel” when he was being falsely accused by religious leaders in Acts 6? Consider also Apostle Paul. In Paul’s defense before Agrippa in Acts 26, Paul turns a near hopeless situation where his accusers want him dead into a message of hope to all who heard him. It’s encouraging to read numerous Biblical accounts of Paul communicating a message of hope amidst hardship.
Here’re some practical principles to live by.
If you find a particular news source causing your blood to boil, give it a break and fill yourself with encouragement from the Word and/or take that time to encourage someone who needs it. Give them a phone call or a visit. They could even be under your very own roof.
Also, demonstrate your love for your family and friends. Encourage strangers along the way. Maintain a joyful, positive attitude by keeping your eyes on Christ. He alone is our anchor and holds true in times of trouble. He is the one who holds us safe and secure from all alarms. So, what do we have to fear or dread? Nothing. Through it all, let us be found leaning on His everlasting arms.