Soaring Like Eagles, August 17, 2014

Soaring Like Eagles

Isaiah 40:28-31, 2 Corinthians 4:8-18

Grace Presbyterian Church

August 17, 2014

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

 

Bad Hair Day  If any of you have ever had a “bad hair day” you will appreciate this. The story is told of a newspaper reporter was trying to get pictures of a forest fire. As he tried to get pictures, the smoke and dust of the fire spoiled all his pictures. So he called his boss and asked for an airplane to get some pictures above the fire. His boss called back shortly and said, “There is a plane waiting for you at the airport.” So the photographer drove to the airport and sure enough, there was the plane, all warmed up and ready to go. He climbed in and said, “Let’s go! Let’s go!” So the pilot took off until they were above the fire. The man said, “Fly to the north side of the fire and do several passes as low as you can go.” “Why?” asked the pilot. “Because I’m a photographer and want to get pictures for my paper.” There was a long pause and finally the pilot said, “You’re not the instructor?”

 

I dare say that all of us have had or are having the proverbial “bad hair day.” But sometimes things happen that go far beyond just having a bad hair day. Things that bowl us over physically and emotionally. When that happens we may feel like Walter Payton, the great running back for the Chicago Bears from 1975 to 1988. Over his career, he gained over nine and one-half miles rushing. But every 4.6 yards of the way, someone knocked him down.

Over the years, most of us have been knocked down for various reasons. Some of us have had loved ones die. Others have suffered financial hardship and unemployment. Some have lost their homes. Still others have had health problems or family difficulties. So sometimes it seems as though we go through the years running a few yards until something knocks us down. We run a few more yards and suddenly we’re on the ground again. The older we become, the more times we’ve been hit, fallen down, and gotten up again.

Life is Difficult  In his book “A Road Less Traveled,” Scott Peck says, “Life is difficult.” [p. 15] Now that’s not headline news. Each of us here this morning knows that life can be difficult, at times at least. However, Peck goes on to suggest that unless we recognize and accept the fact that life is difficult and not always fair, we never will get on with our living.

If we assume life is supposed to always be free of stress, then we may spend our life bemoaning our fate rather than enjoying life. Jesus himself said “In this world you will have tribulation.” [John 16:33]

Difficulties Lie Ahead  Since the past has had its share of problems, it is logical to assume that the years to come will bring us difficulties as well.

And since we don’t know what they might be, all we can do is prepare ourselves as best we can to meet and handle them when they come. A part of that preparation involves recognizing the truth of the following.

No Guarantee  First of all, being a Christian is no guarantee of a pain and trouble-free life. If it was, every human on earth would be a Christian. Stephen was stoned to death and became the first martyr of the Christian church. The apostle Peter was crucified. James was martyred for his faith. Paul was imprisoned and noted that he had been shipwrecked, beaten with rods, and stoned.

The fact is that we Christians can be the kindest, finest, law-abiding, church-going human beings on earth and still be knocked to the ground by trials and tribulations.

And what’s worse is that we look around and see lawbreakers and non-church goers blessed with both wealth and health.

As it says in Matthew, God “causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” [Matthew 5:45 NIV] 

Uniqueness of Suffering Second, we must remember that no other human being has ever lived a life exactly like us. No one else has the same specific memories, even identical twins. No one has experienced the exact same joys and problems as we have. And our genetic makeup is unlike any other person that ever lived. That means that we are unique. We are different from any one else in the world.

Similar Feelings  At the same time, we are alike in many ways. Paul wrote, “No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone.” [1 Corinthians 10:13] This means that in spite of our uniqueness, most people have felt the same feelings we feel, such as anxiety, fear, loneliness, sorrow and depression. This is why people can come up to us and say, “I know how you feel.” And this is why support groups for grief, addictions, and mental illnesses can be so helpful.

Don’t Deserve It Another facet of stress and pain is that sometimes we get knocked down when we don’t deserve it.

            Some years ago, Bob Hope won a major award. When accepting it he joked, “I don’t deserve this, but then I have arthritis and I don’t deserve that either.”

 

Each of us here this morning can identify something that has happened to us or to someone we love that was not deserved. When this happens, we can become quite angry. 

One person who felt he didn’t deserve it was a boy named Joey who was dying with cancer in a Rhode Island hospital. Joey said, “When I get to heaven I’m going to ask God why he put me through this. He’d better have a mighty good answer.”

 

Yes, sometimes we get knocked down and we don’t deserve it.

Helpless to Fix It  Another reflection on misfortunes is that often there’s nothing we can do to fix our problems and make things better. When we catch a cold or come down with the flu, we know that it soon will go away. If we have a tooth ache, the dentist can fix it. If we break an arm, the doctor can set it and it will heal. However, it’s different if a loved one has a terminal disease. Then, in spite of all the efforts of the doctors, the loved one dies. We are helpless to eliminate the disease. Such feeling of helplessness is one of the most upsetting feelings a person can have. 

 

Paul One man that encountered numerous problems in his life was Paul. In his letter to the church at Corinth, he wrote, “We should like you to know, dear friends, how serious was the trouble that came upon us in the province of Asia. The burden of it was far too heavy for us to bear, so heavy that we even despaired of life.” [2 Cor 1:8]  Paul sounded pretty low at this point, didn’t he? Yet, later in the same letter he wrote, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.” [2 Corinthians 4:8-9] Paul displayed uncommon courage. And courage in the face of personal challenges and crises is a gift God offers us each day. We can seize that gift of courage, or we can give up. It’s up to us.

Climbing Mountain

 A few years ago, a young man by the name of Mark Wellman was climbing a mountain peak in Yosemite National Park when he fell. His legs were paralyzed for life. Mark could have given up on life, but he didn’t. Instead he worked to get in shape. Then with the help of a friend, Mark climbed the 3,200 foot El Capitan mountain. He did it six inches at a time over nine days using only his arms. He performed 6,800 pull ups on ropes placed by his friend and became the first paraplegic to make the vertical trek up the mountain.

Hymns The hymn writer, Joseph Scriven [1820-1886], lived in Dublin, Ireland in the 1800's.  His life was marked by many tragedies including the accidental drowning of his fiancee on the eve of their wedding. Out of this and other grief experiences, he wrote the beloved hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.”

Another favorite hymn, “O Love that Wilt Not Let Me Go,” was written by George Matheson [1842-1906], one of Scotland’s outstanding preachers and devotional writers. He became totally blind in his late teens. As a result, his fiancee broke off their engagement. Matheson now was surrounded not only by blindness, but by loneliness and suffering as well. As Matheson began to experience God as the love that never lets him go, no matter what, he wrote the hymn.

 

 

 

Crucible of Pain Whether we realize it or not, without trials and tribulations we would never reach out to God or to anyone else for help. We would be so self-sufficient and filled with our own importance that we never would help others in their troubles. Sometimes it is only by being transformed in the crucible of pain that we grow strong enough to serve God in the world in which we live. It was in his weakness and troubles that Paul discovered the immeasurable strength of God and enabled him to say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” [Philippians 4:13].

But how does Christ strengthen us? Through his body, the Church. Through the congregation known as Grace Presbyterian. By each of us supporting one another to dispel loneliness and help each other get through times of stress and anxiety. This was most evident yesterday when we Celebrated the life of Deeda Mae. The love we have for her was revealed through the countless hugs and words of assurance, through the beautiful music, the words of Scripture, and the lunch so lovingly prepared by members.

Not everyone who experiences misfortunes ends up writing beautiful hymns or grows stronger. Some become angry and bitter, and give up. Others wallow in self-pity.

How we handle our tribulations is up to us. Be assured that God is willing and able to help us transform sorrow into peace and misfortune into opportunities. He took the sufferings of Christ and transformed them into the Bright Morning Star. [Revelation 22:16] If we let him, God will enable us not be crushed if afflicted, or driven to despair when perplexed, or forsaken when persecuted, or destroyed when struck down. Like Paul, we can do all things in Christ who strengthens us.

Soar Like Eagles Isaiah said, “Even youths will faint and be weary, and young men will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” [Isaiah 40:30-31]

 

 

I read once that an eagle knows when a storm is coming long before we do. So the eagle will fly to the highest point in the area and wait. When the storm hits, the eagle sets its wings so that the winds pick it up and lift it above the storm. The eagle doesn’t flee the storm, but instead uses the storm to be lifted even higher.

 

Like the eagle, we needn’t run away from the storms of life, but instead we can call upon the winds of the Spirit to lift us up and help us ride out the storm with confidence and hope.

Takes Time  To soar like eagles in the midst of adversities takes time. It doesn’t happen over night. We can’t race through pain and distress. Instead, we wait on the Lord and move ahead without remaining mired in the past. No matter what our problems might be, God can give us the courage to soar like eagles. Thanks be to God. Amen.

 

Isaiah 40:28-31 NRSV

 

Have you not known? Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

   the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He does not faint or grow weary;

   his understanding is unsearchable.

He gives power to the faint,

   and strengthens the powerless.

Even youths will faint and be weary,

   and the young will fall exhausted;

but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,

   they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary,

   they shall walk and not faint.

2 Corinthians 4:8-18 NRSV

Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. But just as we have the same spirit of faith that is in accordance with scripture—‘I believed, and so I spoke’—we also believe, and so we speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence. Yes, everything is for your sake, so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.