Jesus gets it!!
As I’ve been speaking to different folks from church one thing is clear, despite being in the same storm… we are all in different boats… we have all experienced different challenges through these last months and because of being apart, we have experienced these things separately.
What have you found most difficult?
Some have missed the energy and interaction with others, some have struggled with the intensity of being altogether in the same house with constant noise and no place to escape.
Some have struggled with fear, others with exhaustion, some with isolation, others with lack of motivation, … and so on.
How have you coped with the challenges? What have you turned to?
What do we do in the struggles? Where do we turn? That’s also been challenging for some as many of our places of refuge have changed… a coffee with friends or a walk in the hills, … not so easy anymore. Temptations have popped into our lives from unexpected place too. The temptation for self pity, to hide, to be frustrated and controlling, to drink or eat for comfort, to watch something unhelpful for escapism.
Recognising these things is important but it’s not the end of the story…. It’s not the purpose of these reflections to make us feel guilty about our failures… rather to acknowledge we all have them and we can be honest about them and find help in them.
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,[f] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Christ himself has been in the boat with us these last months and knows personally what it is to struggle and face temptation. He has known lonliness, rejection, frustration, anger, desire for comfort. He has walked this earth and he has experienced all the emotions we experience without giving in to the temptation. Further more he sees. He knows. He gets it… He gets it… HE GETS it!! That’s such a comfort….
And God has been at work through it
It’s also been encouraging to hear that some have been able in the midst of things to turn to God, to lean more heavily on Him, to find time to read, to worship in new ways, to encourage others and pray for others with more honesty. Reflecting on what we can see of how God has been there with us and has helped us is a great encouragement to our own hearts and to others. Holding on even when we can't see what God is doing has lifted our hearts to trust Him more.
Why not take time for some honest conversation with God and others, listen to one another so that we can understand better what each others' boat has been like. Then together turn to worship God for his help, sustaining and goodness through these challenging days. He gets it!!
