John 16:32-33 Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. 33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Last year was our first year to go to Disney World! We had never been and were fortunate to have my cousin show us the ropes. We did our best to do all the main attractions… partly because many are incredibly fun, but partly because everybody has to ride it’s a small world after all! This year we were on our own, but we knew which rides we really enjoyed so we judiciously worked through our favorite parts of the park trying to time everything so we could get home early and enjoy the pool!
Don’t you wish our regular lives could be scheduled like that? New job you love, successful band at UIL contest, successful VBS, kids doing great at school, marriage working well…let’s do those again. Old job you can’t stand, second divisions, kids struggling at school, frustrations in marriage, or the loss of a beloved family member…can we say we’ve done all that and move on? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to schedule only the things we love in life and then get back early to relax in the pool everyday?
Yet that is not what normal life is like. We struggle through the ups and downs of life, often being caught off guard by unscheduled times of frustration, sickness, pain and sorrow. Jesus tells his disciples that they will have tribulation. This is not just tribulation because of the normal woes that everyone faces. This is tribulation because they were followers of Jesus. But in the midst of it all, the good, the bad, the ups and downs, Jesus promised peace grounded in his victory over the world.
We will never get to pick and choose what life events we get to deal with; and most of our normal life will be a long way from an a day at an amusement park. But we can choose to have God’s peace as we face whatever comes our way.
Dear Heavenly Father,
May our lives that we try to order so carefully reflect a willingness to follow you no matter what comes our way. May we take heart and choose peace even in the middle of tribulation because you have overcome the world!
Amen
Pastor Ray was a band director for 11 years before coming to FBCW as a worship pastor (hence the UIL Contest references). He has gone to Disney World with his family for the last two summers and told his children that the next time he goes is when they can pay for his trip! This year they went to support Antonio and the Weslaco Panther Marching Band!
