Hope

Avoid Controversy

Avoid Controversy

Transcending Camps of Opinion

There are some issues that I seldom discuss, especially in the context of social media.  I find our current culture at large intolerant of nuanced opinions.  Anything less than unilateral agreement is labeled rather than understood.  Forgive my disgruntled comments.  I've grown weary of watching fruitless battles result in deeper encampments.  

I love truth, and I love people.  Understanding is a bridge between the two, and I can't build that bridge with labels.  Perhaps most disheartening is the knowledge that the greatest offenders in these wars of controversy are the least aware and most prideful.  

It is a frustrating thing to have an opinion that exists neither within nor between prominent camps. This is the lesser of two reasons why I haven't posted anything about recent SCOTUS rulings or battle colors associated with confederate states (save for comedic statements meant to lighten the mood at a very serious time).  I've avoided commenting, because there is no room anyone that doesn't fit in a "camp." And, Jesus doesn't fit into a camp, because He is King.  

Rocks

Rocks

But what happens when they don't get better.  When your child is born mentally disabled, it is a life sentence.  I have a friend with a severely disabled son.  He isn't going to get better.  The trial isn't going to end.  He will need constant attention for the rest of his life.  Statements like, "just hold on" give no hope to situations like that.  Physical strain is compounded by fear in the form of questions like, "What if something happens to me?" or "What if I can't take care of him forever?" 

The same kind of long-term suffering comes with emotional and mental illness.  Christians think that depression is something to "bootstrap" your way out of.  Sometimes people tell you to just have faith for God's healing.  Others just dismiss you as weak.  The trial doesn't end.  

Sometimes in the midst of following Jesus, you find yourself beaten down by life.  I'm not talking about just a bad day or a bad week, though that fits too.  I'm talking about years of unending loss, stress, and trouble.  

It feels like being caught in a storm at sea and being thrown against the rocks again and again.  Before you have recovered from the last wave, you get hit with another and another for years.  

Where is God?  The question is inevitable. 

Restoration

Last year I wrote a blog post about prodigals when LeBron James announced that he was coming back to Cleveland.  Essentially, I reminded everyone that in the story of the prodigal son, he returns to his father broken and destitute.  LeBron came back with an NBA title and more money than most of us will ever see.  I think that we forget that the story of the prodigal son is not about the son's return, but about the Father's extravagant love and forgiveness.  

“LeBron isn’t a prodigal son, I am. And, I’m thankful both of us came home. ”
— Restoration

Here we are stepping into the NBA Finals, and it feels like the city is united like we haven't been in a long time.  Nike ran this commercial, and it pretty much sums up how we all feel here in Cleveland.  I'll confess that I welled up when I first saw this commercial.  

I'm not a big sports fan.  I love watching a game with friends, but I'm not the guy who keeps up with teams.  For me, Cleveland in the Finals gives me hope for this city.  There is a deep sense of hope, that things are possible again, that the city is making a comeback.  

 

I like feeling hope.  We need it, and there is some real meaning in a city rallying behind a team.  It has become about more than a game; it's about a city hoping together again.  

It reminds me that hope comes before restoration, that making old things new has a lot more to do with relationship than with material things.  The city has come together for something.  There is a sense that we are all in this together.  Local rivalries are overshadowed by hope.  

Hope is powerful.  

But, NBA finals are temporary.  They make a mark.  They inspire a city, but they are gone next year.  Players get old, get hurt, or leave.  People move on.  Hope wavers with the winds of change.  Not long ago, we were burning "23" jerseys.  Today, all of Northeast Ohio is draped in wine and gold.  

So, I'm taking this opportunity to remind everyone that eventually this particular feeling of hope will pass away.  I'm not talking it down. I'm buzzing just like everyone else.  

Instead, I'm reminding everyone that there is a hope that does not disappoint.  Forgive the spiritual application, but the reality is that hope that is from God never ends.  

“And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
— Romans 5:5

NBA titles give energy to cities.  There is no question they effect economies and moods from stadiums to living rooms, but Jesus is making all things new.  So, tonight let's hope for a big win.  But, when this series is over, Jesus will still be King, and He'll still be making all things new.  

“ And he who was seated on the throne (Jesus) said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’”
— Revelation 5:21

Hope boldly.