Crushed under the weight of life’s setbacks and disappointments,
do you still dream? Despairing of life,
do you still hope? Buried under the
shame of sins and regrets, do you still smile, knowing God loves you?
Perhaps, in a fleeting moment, as Jesus hung on that cross, a faint smile crossed his lips. Under the weight of the agony of his own suffering, gasping for breath, his own eyes blurred by blood that he could not wipe away, perhaps there was a faint glimmer of a smile. Why? Because he knew. He knew the truth. He knew that despite his present circumstances, a resurrection was on the way.
It reminds of a scene from the movie, The Princess Bride. Inigo Montoya is in a sword duel with the Dread Pirate Roberts (Westley). He says to Westley, “I admit it you are better than I am.” To that Westley replies, “Then why are you smiling?” Inigo responds, “Because I know something you don’t know.” “And what is that?” Westley asks. “I am not left-handed!” He then switches his sword to his stronger right hand and the fight begins to turn to his favor (until later Westley reveals he is not left-handed either).
You may be in a fight, a duel, and the enemy seems to have the upper-hand. But, you are smiling. Why? Because you are not left-handed!
But seriously, we can smile today, regardless of our circumstances, because we know that the battle is fixed in our favor. Even though things may look hopeless and dim right now, keep praising God.
In Psalm 88, the writer says,
Perhaps, in a fleeting moment, as Jesus hung on that cross, a faint smile crossed his lips. Under the weight of the agony of his own suffering, gasping for breath, his own eyes blurred by blood that he could not wipe away, perhaps there was a faint glimmer of a smile. Why? Because he knew. He knew the truth. He knew that despite his present circumstances, a resurrection was on the way.
It reminds of a scene from the movie, The Princess Bride. Inigo Montoya is in a sword duel with the Dread Pirate Roberts (Westley). He says to Westley, “I admit it you are better than I am.” To that Westley replies, “Then why are you smiling?” Inigo responds, “Because I know something you don’t know.” “And what is that?” Westley asks. “I am not left-handed!” He then switches his sword to his stronger right hand and the fight begins to turn to his favor (until later Westley reveals he is not left-handed either).
You may be in a fight, a duel, and the enemy seems to have the upper-hand. But, you are smiling. Why? Because you are not left-handed!
But seriously, we can smile today, regardless of our circumstances, because we know that the battle is fixed in our favor. Even though things may look hopeless and dim right now, keep praising God.
In Psalm 88, the writer says,
“From my youth I have suffered and been close to death;
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
Your wrath has swept over me;
your terrors have destroyed me.
All day long they surround me like a flood;
they have completely engulfed me.
You have taken from me friend and neighbor—
darkness is my closest friend.”
vs. 15-18
Have you ever felt this way?
The Apostle Paul wrote, “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” (I Cor. 1:8-9)
God raises the dead! Despite the despair of our present situations, we can smile. We know the truth. We know that a decree from heaven has been issued in our favor. As we praise Him the battle turns in our favor. Even though the enemy comes against us with passionate fury, we can smile. Why? Because we know that God has for us a future and a hope.
In the midst of your difficult situation, you can still dream. What do you dream of? What hope do you hold onto? As I sit here writing this, next to me lies a book by Dr. Mark Rutland entitled “Dream”. Regardless of what I am going through right now I believe God has a plan for my life. I have a dream. I have a hope for the future. I have hope that God will still act on my behalf. I believe that the dreams God has placed in my heart will still come to pass. For this reason, I can smile.
your terrors have destroyed me.
All day long they surround me like a flood;
they have completely engulfed me.
You have taken from me friend and neighbor—
darkness is my closest friend.”
vs. 15-18
Have you ever felt this way?
The Apostle Paul wrote, “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” (I Cor. 1:8-9)
God raises the dead! Despite the despair of our present situations, we can smile. We know the truth. We know that a decree from heaven has been issued in our favor. As we praise Him the battle turns in our favor. Even though the enemy comes against us with passionate fury, we can smile. Why? Because we know that God has for us a future and a hope.
In the midst of your difficult situation, you can still dream. What do you dream of? What hope do you hold onto? As I sit here writing this, next to me lies a book by Dr. Mark Rutland entitled “Dream”. Regardless of what I am going through right now I believe God has a plan for my life. I have a dream. I have a hope for the future. I have hope that God will still act on my behalf. I believe that the dreams God has placed in my heart will still come to pass. For this reason, I can smile.
And, in case you want to see a good sword fight....
Good word!
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