 If you examine the image above, you’ll notice it’s my bracket for the Men’s March Madness tournament. I’ve not done too poorly, and I feel confident about selecting U Conn to take the championship once more. However, numerous red x’s mark where I incorrectly predicted the winning team. With only 16 teams remaining, 52 teams have suffered losses and exited the competition. What began with immense hope and cheering has concluded with tears, disappointment, and in many instances, supporters blaming players and/or coaches for their team’s premature departure. Some fans might have even removed their school’s apparel to avoid mockery. On Palm Sunday, while attending church, I was struck by the parallels between Jesus entering Jerusalem to the sound of “Hosanna in the highest” https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2021:9&version=NIV and the 68 teams entering the NCAA tournament. Both the people lining the streets to worship Jesus with palm fronds and the losing teams’ boosters showing their school’s colors, ended up very disappointed. Peter was the ultimate disappointed fan denying Christ 3 times.https://biblehub.com/matthew/26-75.htm In both situations, people in the stands and on the road into Jerusalem, were putting their trust in man versus God. Fans called for coaches to be fired and in Jesus’ sake, the crowds shouted “Crucify Him”! https://biblehub.com/luke/23-21.htm  So the question for us this Holy Week is “where will we put our trust?” Do you yearn for what the Kingdom in Heaven or the world has to offer? Deuteronomy 8 https://www.bible.com/bible/111/DEU.8.NIV offers this great reminder. You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” 18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” God through His son Jesus Christ (not coaches or players) gives us the ultimate victory. As we prepare for Easter, “Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills. Deuteronomy 8:6-9 May your Hosannas be cried out whether you are being challenged or blessed. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. I can be reached via email at [email protected] Please subscribe to receive email notifications when new content is published. HAPPY EASTER!  |
In adversity, Can we Count it all blessing….
Today is Palm Sunday. Over 2,000 years ago, Jesus rode into town hearing the crowds shouting “Hosanna; blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord” (Mark 11.9). Mistakenly, They were celebrating that he was “the Messiah coming to renew the kingdom of our father David!” (Mark 11:10). They had no idea what was to come just a week later. As I thought about this fact this morning, I couldn’t help but think of how a month ago none of us could have imagined we would be sheltered at home because of Covid-19. Each of us has been thrown into uncertainty because our before Coronavirus lives have been turned upside down. The same question needs to be asked, just as back then. Where does my trust lie? Who can I believe to tell me the truth of what is happening and how long will it last? We have been thrown into uncertainty as our lives as we know them have been turned upside down. I am grateful that I count it all blessing because I trust the One who said this to those that were looking for someone to trust. “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” John 14:27. I, we, certainly need to be concerned but we need not fear. Why?
…because our trust is found in the Lord. This is Holy week where we prepare for what God did for all of us. He sent His Son to live amongst us so that He could be sacrificed to fulfill the prophecy of the Old testament. Zechariah 9:9-10 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon a colt the foal of an ass.” Yes, then beaten, hung on a cross, and died so that our relationship with God could be restored. Psalm 22, “”They have pierced my hands and my feet.” and in the chapters of Isaiah 52 and 53 where what happens is written in specific detail. I count it all blessing because God knew what was going to happen to His son and was with him throughout the pain and anguish even into death. This gives me renewed confidence and hope that God knew that Covid-19 was going to happen and will be with me and you as well. I use the word renewed because I saw this and continue to see this play out in my Guillain Barre Syndrome recovery. I have written about it on this blog in the past. God made His presence known time and time again in my darkest hours of GBS so I, and I promise you, can count on Him doing it again now. So…..
Count your blessings always being humble and give thanks for everything in life. Be thankful that God through Jesus Christ is with you and promises to walk you through this storm. Be thankful for food, friends, family, but most of all God’s Love. Appreciate everything you have and remember there are people who are in a way harder situation than you. Use this special Holy Week to reach out to those who are alone or are in need. Ask God to show you how He wants you to make a difference in your world. Who knows, maybe you are the one who God uses to show someone He is with them during their darkest hour,
Matthew 25:40- “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” And in doing so, maybe others will count it a blessing for what you did for them.