By Pastor Greg...
A guy had been out of work
for months and was getting desperate to find a job. He decided to stop by the local zoo and look
for work, but the director of the zoo said they were not hiring. However, as the dejected man turned to leave
the director noticed how large he was. So,
he stopped the guy and said, "Wait. I have an idea. Our gorilla died a
couple of weeks ago, and he was our main
attraction. It will be months before we are able to get another one. Would you
be willing to dress like a gorilla? It would really help us out of a jam." Being desperate for work, the man took the
job.
The first few days were
incredibly boring. So, to liven things up a bit, he started doing some tricks… really putting on
a show! Before long, huge crowds were gathered to watch what they thought was a
real gorilla.
One day, while showing off,
he was on a rope and was swinging out over the lion’s cage when the rope broke. He was terrified as he noticed a
lion approaching him. He was afraid to scream, thinking he might lose his job,
but was afraid that if he didn't yell for help, he might lose his life. So, he yelled out, "Help!
Help!" About that time the lion
spoke up and said, "Shut up! Do you want to get us both fired?!"
Yeah. Cute story.
I only wish real life played out like that; I wish that when we faced disasters, life would pull off its mask and
say, “Just kidding!” Unfortunately, life
isn’t a cute story; life blindsides us with tragedies and trials that knock us
off our feet.
Those who must face a crisis
need sympathy and empathy; they also need care.
But deep down inside I think most people need hope. They need to find something to cling to that
draws them out of their despair. They need hope.
Where do we turn for
hope? Where can a person find hope? Sometimes the headlines will report a story
that encourages us, but encouragement
is not the same as hope. Encouragement is what we feel when something
good happens to an individual; we wonder
if the same will happen to us. However, Hope
is what we believe will happen to us.
Hope is not something we can create. Hope comes when we have faith in someone or
something else.
Hope is what people need
when facing a crisis, and buried deep within the pages of history are
stories that do give us hope.
Let me tell you a story
about a man named Jeremiah. He was a
prophet of God who lived in Jerusalem during its darkest moments. You see, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon
attacked the city of Jerusalem in 586 BC, and Jeremiah had a front row
seat. He watched as his beloved city was
demolished, brick by brick. About this
tragic day, Jeremiah wrote, “The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond
words. 20 I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over
my loss” [1]
(Lamentations 3:19-20).
You know those words; you
have said them yourself. You never
forget your time of grief and loss. Our
society does the same. Peppered along
the roadways are memorials tied to a tragedy; loving family and friends mark
the spot where someone died. Even our
daily lives are measured by the tragedies we have endured. “Where were you,”
the world asks, drawing us back to a moment of sadness and despair. Our memories are tied to the tragedies we face
in life. And hope is hard to see when we
look at the tragedies of life… which is why this example from Jeremiah is so
important for us today. In the middle of
his lamentation – his song of lament and sadness – Jeremiah dared to have hope.
21 “Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: 22 The
faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning. 24 I
say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” 25 The
Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him”
[2]
(Lamentations 3:21-25).
Remember a few weeks ago
when I said that God faithfully keeps His promises? This is where Jeremiah found hope. The covenant God made with Israel way back
when Moses led these people out of Egypt was still in effect, even though
Babylon has conquered the city. The
Lord’s promise in Deuteronomy 28 would not be forgotten. The prayer of Solomon in 1 Kings 8:46-50
would be answered. Jeremiah knew that in
God’s eyes, the people of Israel were His people – His special possession – that He brought out of Egypt (1 Kings
8:51). Jeremiah found hope, not because
the situation changed, but because he reminded himself of God’s promises.
And in God’s promises,
Jeremiah found hope.
Granted, you and I are not
Jewish; we cannot claim the promises God made Israel. But, we can remember the promises Jesus made
to His followers. Jesus promised that no
one will snatch His sheep from the Father’s hand. 27 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and
they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will
never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my
Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand”
[3]
(John 10:27-30). Paul, a first-century
evangelist, insists that “nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death
nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our
worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s
love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth
below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the
love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” [4]
(Romans 8:38-39).
You will never face a
circumstance in this life where God casts you aside. When you become a Christian, your life is
held securely in the mighty hand of God.
Nothing will ever change His love for you. Although the wind and the waves of life
batter against you, the Lord will be by your side. You are more valuable than many sparrows
(Matthew 10:31).
If we let them, our many
tragedies can drain life from our soul; our heart feels like it is being ripped
from our chest. However, like Jeremiah,
a follower of Jesus dares to hope; not that the situation in life will change,
but that despite the situation, God
remains for us, not against us.
His love
never wavers. His mercies never
cease. His compassion never fails.
Great is His faithfulness.
[1]
Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation
(La 3:19–20). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
[2]
Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation
(La 3:21–25). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
[3] Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation
(Jn 10:27–30). Carol Stream, IL.
[4] Tyndale
House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation
(Ro 8:38–39). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
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