Like Abraham and Sarah…
Like Manoah and his wife…
Like Hannah and Elkanah…
Like Zechariah and Elizabeth…
We, too, thought we might be without children our entire lives. But God gave us a promise. And then He gave us a miracle! Like those listed above, He gave us a son. Two, in fact! And today we celebrate the birth of our first son 9 years ago!!!
And in light of our celebration, I pray for those reading this right now who long for the Lord to give them a promise and a miracle.
Growing up, I loved watching “The Jetsons” cartoon. And I never thought I’d live to see the day when there was an actual flying car… but I saw one on the internet recently which built and tested in Europe.
Growing up, I used to love shows like Star Trek and Buck Rogers. Again, I never thought I’d live long enough to see the day when people could communicate via video and audio over handheld devices… but I FaceTime with family regularly.
Now when I see a transparent screen on a tablet or a floating hologram computer screen on a movie, I realize that, before my boys graduate high school, they could be using such technology… as we travel across the country in our family’s flying car.
Recently I was watching one of those “Anne of Green Gables” TV shows when I heard the character Matthew Cuthbert say, “I reckon every new idea was modern once… until it wasn’t.”
What once was new to all of us before Steve Jobs pulled an iPhone out of his pocket and introduced us to the new world of smartphones containing phone, camera and computer all in one is now old hat. Everyone has one… even kids. They have even created a simple version for elderly folks who may not be ready for all the bells and whistles.
The same is true when it comes to the challenges in our lives. Often, we can’t even imagine how we could overcome them. We don’t see how we could get well… or get out of debt… or get an “A” in that class… or get that spouse. We are limited by what we know and have experienced.
But God is not limited. He knows all and has experienced all. And He has all creative ability within Himself. So He can bring something to the table in an instant which is a game-changer for us.
Adam had never seen or imagined a woman when God gave him Eve. Noah had never built a boat or seen rain when God spared him and his family. Moses had never seen a sea part when God opened up the Red Sea and led the millions of Israelites through on dry land. Elijah had never had birds bring him food till he camped at Kerith Brook. The disciples had never seen someone stop a storm with their words… or heal the blind with mud… or feed the masses with the minuscule… or raise themselves from the dead… till Jesus. But after those experiences, those people knew that God has ways of doing something even when we don’t.
God is ready, willing and able to step into the course of our lives and bring something we have never thought of… never dreamed… never imagined… never entertained as possible to change our situation completely in our favor! So instead of sitting around singing, “Gloom, despair and agony on me,” today, try inviting God to work His power of the new and unexplainable in your life. You may not see a way, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a way. With God, nothing is impossible!
Just pull out that smartphone… although you’re probably reading this on it, and so it’s already in your hand… and remember that every new idea was once modern… until it wasn’t. Then ask God to do something new in your life, and one day down the road you’ll see that there really was a way… an answer… a solution. What was new in this moment will be a lasting foundation to believe for other new help in the future!
Our family LOVES going to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO! It so fits our family-friendly, Christian-values idea of fun. And there is so much for the boys to do.
One of their favorite areas is Half Dollar Holler. And one of their favorite things to do there is climb through and jump around in the suspended netting of the “treehouse.” At least, it’s one of their favorite things now.
It wasn’t always Austin’s favorite.
Last night, we sat around watching “old” home videos (from three or four years ago) with the boys. Captured on video was Austin trying to enjoy the treehouse but with great trepidation. It was obvious that he was unsure of the safety of that netting suspended ten feet above solid earth.
As we watched, Austin told us that he used to be afraid of the bouncing treehouse at Silver Dollar City because he was afraid he would fall, but that he’s not now. Sure enough, were you to watch more recent videos or travel with us to SDC, you’d find him tearing through there with no hesitation whatsoever.
I asked Him if he reason that he’s not afraid anymore is because he knows if it will hold me up, it will hold him up. (I mean, I might weigh a little more than he does. Wink, wink.) I must admit that I was a little shocked when he replied, “No, it’s because I’ve been on it enough times now that I know it will won’t let me down.”
Tested, tried, true.
Reliable, dependable, trustworthy.
Because it has never let him down before, he has unwavering faith that it will never let him down in the future. And with that, I sat back in my seat, having been schooled in faith by my six-year old.
In Deuteronomy 31:8, Moses… the guy who led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, through forty years of wandering in the wilderness, and all the way to the edge of the land promised to the Israelites by God… looks Joshua… his successor who will actually lead those people into conquest of their homeland… in the eyes and tells him, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
Never. It just won’t happen. God won’t let you down. He is incapable of failing you. And He chooses to never abandon or give up on you. He will go ahead of you and clear the path. Then He will be right beside you every step of the way.
We can trust God because He has never let us down. In fact, He has never let anyone down. So unlike those investment commercials on the radio, His past results are indicative of His future performance.
This means you and I can relax and enjoy the ride now. We don’t have to stress. We don’t have to panic. We can romp through life full of joy and hope and peace, knowing that He will neither fail us nor abandon us.
If you’re battling a lengthy illness, He won’t let you down. If you’re dealing with a difficult divorce, He won’t let you down. If you’re having trouble passing that class at school, He won’t let you down. If the bills are stacking up higher than the paychecks, He won’t let you down.
So go ahead… climb the steep ramp of the treehouse of life… crawl into the netted area… and jump with confidence alongside Austin… because it hasn’t let him down before and it isn’t going to let him down this time either.
Neither will God.
One of my favorite movies of all time is… Rocketman. In it Harland Williams plays the bumbling and yet brilliant Fred Z. Randall who, through a series of ridiculous events, ends up on the first manned mission to Mars.
Once clear of earth’s orbit, Fred accidentally ends up on a world-wide broadcast of a video call between the President of the United States and the astronauts. The President asks Fred what it’s like up in space, and Fred replies, “From up here, the earth looks like a giant blueberry.” The call ends with Fred leading people across the world in the song, “He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands.”
What Fred portrayed in that scene is a known fact for all of us alive today… the earth is round.
But when Columbus lived, many people did not believe that now well-known fact. In fact, most people believed the world was flat… even though brilliant minds had been suggesting for hundreds of years that it was round.
Yet Columbus believed. He had faith. Oh, I’m not suggesting he was a Christian or that he was as perfect as some of our history books would portray. Truth be told, he was wrong about much of what he thought.
But he was right about believing the earth is round. He believed. He believed so strongly that, though it took him many attempts to gain the financial backing and actually find a crew who didn’t think they would fall off the edge of the earth if they sailed too far, he persisted.
That’s what faith does. Faith motivates us in the face of doubt. C. S. Lewis wrote, “When the whole world is running towards a cliff, he who runs in the opposite direction appears to have lost his mind.”
Hebrews 11:1 tells us, “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” And just five verses later, the writer of that letter tells us that it is impossible to please God without faith.
So ignore the naysayers today. Run the opposite direction when you know in your heart God has promised you that you are running the right way. Just as Columbus was willing to put his faith in a round earth to the test, be willing to test that of which God has assured you. And one day we will be celebrating your accomplishments!
It’s like our six-year old, Austin, cannot even see the possibility of a negative outcome when he is wanting and believing for something. He sees a toy or a game that he absolutely has to have, and he begins to tell us about it. As he describes it in detail, he says things like, “When I get it, I’m going to…” Not “if I get it,” but “when I get it.”
In his mind, there is no possible way we would say “no” to his request. And it’s not a greed thing (though he has his moments… as do I). He is so innocent and full of faith in our ability to provide what he wants and our willingness to bring him joy.
He entered a contest today in which he has the possibility of winning an iPad mini. In his mind, he has already won. He just has to wait for the contest to come to a close and receive his prize. He doesn’t even consider that there is a chance he won’t win. He doesn’t consider that other kids might also have a chance to win. The odds mean nothing to him… because he is going to win.
Oh, that I would view my Heavenly Father with such childlike faith! Oh, to be able to completely exclude any possibility that God would not answer my request. Oh, that I would never view failure as a possible outcome, only success.
And yet, isn’t that what Jesus instructed His disciples to do… to have faith like a child? What a radical concept that must have been for them. What a radical concept it often is for me.
God is a good Father… way better than me. Surely, I can count on Him to come through for me. There is no reasonable explanation for my doubting. I will win! I will receive! I will be filled with joy… because He laughs with me… and loves me… and lavishes blessings on me.
Of course He does. Why would I think otherwise?
For the record, He feels exactly the same way about you. So put on your faith like Austin & believe for the best to come your way today!
Trampoline. Swingset. Pool. See-saw. Bikes.
There was a time in our lives when we wondered if we would ever have the privilege of having children in our family, and thus the joy of a yard filled with activities. There were plenty of nights we soaked our pillows with tears.
But God had promised. So, some days we had great faith. Yet other days we wondered if that promise would ever be fulfilled.
But God promised. And His Word says that He always keeps His promises.
In some ways, I wish we could have seen then what our life looks like now with two handsome, strong, growing boys in it. I guess that’s not really having faith, though. At the time, all we could do was hope… and trust… and pray… and take Him at His Word.
Surprisingly, from time to time, we find ourselves in similar situations… you know, needing to take Him at His Word when it hasn’t actually happened yet. And it isn’t a whole lot easier now… until I look at those two miracles playing in the front yard, hollering for me to come play with them… and then I am reminded that…
God always keeps His promises!
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So, if you’re going through your own time in life when you wonder if God is actually going to do what He said, take heart and take note. You’re just as special to Him as we are. If He did it for us, He’ll do it for you. It’s not about us. It’s about His character. You can count on him because…
God always keeps His promises!
Childless
We tried for seven years to have children to no avail. We were doing everything right but could not have kids of our own, while people who were doing wrong were being allowed to have kids. We signed up to adopt internationally, and even that wasn’t coming together. It was a dark time in my life.
I’m a preacher… that’s no secret. And I often traveled to preach at different churches during that time frame. I can remember on more than one occasion driving on a Sunday morning to preach somewhere and asking the Lord what I was going to tell people that day as I preached because He wasn’t even answering my prayers. It was a dark time in my life.
More than one night, we soaked our pillows with tears. More than once we got our hopes up, only to have them dashed. I remember wishing that people would quit saying trite little things to try to make us feel better. It was a dark time in my life.
Hope
But it was during that time when, in one of my routine daily times alone with Him, the Lord brought me to John 20:1 in Scripture. It says that “while it was still dark” the women came to the tomb. They expected to find the dead body of Jesus. They expected to do their duty of preparing His body for proper burial. They expected life to remain as dark in their hearts as it was outside.
They didn’t realize the Son had already risen. They didn’t realize the miracle of resurrection had already taken place. They didn’t realize the stone had been rolled away so they could see the tomb was empty. They didn’t realize they were only moments… and steps… and heartbeats away from their world springing back into glorious light like never before.
And that’s what the Lord spoke to my heart that morning… that though it was still dark, the miracle was already in the works for us to have children.
Those Praying Kids
A couple months later, as I headed out to preach at yet another church, Angela told me to pick up a pregnancy test on the way home. I told her I would, and I hit the road.
In the service that morning, as the pastor was about to introduce me, his wife interrupted and said she wanted to do something. She told our story of struggling to become parents and suggested that since we wanted kids, the kids of their church should pray for us to have kids.
Honestly, I thought to myself, “Well, why not… what’s it gonna hurt? We’ve been prayed for a lot.” I was no man of great faith and power at the moment.
But then the kids started praying… I mean really praying… someone had seriously taught those kids how to connect with God when the talked with Him. Suddenly, I got very serious about believing with them for a miracle.
We had a great service, and after lunch with the pastor and his family, I headed home. As I promised, I picked up the pregnancy test on the way home… but with faith in my heart this time.
PREG-NANT!
Angela took the test the next day and informed me it was positive. Not having spectacular faith, I doubted to accuracy, went and bought the most expensive test I could find (because more expensive surely had to equal more accurate) and brought it home for her to try. Again, positive.
We went to the doctor and the doctor told her she had never in all her years of practice seen anyone with levels of positive results so high. She said, “Baby, you’re not just pregnant… you are PREG-NANT!”
Sure enough, God blessed us with our first son. And as miraculous as that was, we did not know if we could have any more. But two years later, God blessed us with our second son.
Your Turn
I share all that on this Easter eve… while it’s dark outside… to encourage you. We all go through some dark times in life… some times when we think all is lost… it’s all over… there’s no hope of things turning around.
But Easter is all about the fact that, with God, nothing is impossible. Sure it may be dark and you may simply be dutiful at this point, but the miracle is already started. Another few steps… around that bend in the path… and you will find that God was working before you ever knew it! And life will be bright again. Take heart! Grab hold of hope!
The Son rose as surely as the sun rose. And you will smile again soon. There will be a day when you tell someone your story like I’ve told you mine, and you will find it amazing that you ever doubted God.
So, take those few more steps… but may they not be heavy… because just a little way ahead of you… your miracle awaits your arrival!
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