Christmas Cheer... Not So Much!
I have been accused of being a pessimist, but it isn’t true. The glass is not half-empty, but neither is it half-full! I demand there be a third category in which the glass is not all the way to the top but there is hope! Someone could argue that my position is basically that of the pessimistic half-empty variety, but that would discount a vital attribute that my point of view offers… there is hope that it can become full!
Over the last week, I have heard and read stories about real people that are gut-wrenching… heartbreaking… and seemingly hopeless. In the news nationally, there was a story about a young family taking the wrong road in Oregon where they got stuck and stranded for a week. The mother and two little girls were found in bad shape but alive on Monday… the young husband and father was found on Wednesday face down in the snow. In the Austin news this week, a mother of two young girls ages 4 and 7 and her friend were both killed instantly when a garbage truck plowed into the back of her vehicle as they sat in traffic at 11 a.m. on their way to lunch.
Last night I spoke with a friend whose wife had a horrible seizure the day before Thanksgiving while she was baking pies with her young daughters… she cracked her head open and bled all over the kitchen floor while her daughters watched in horror. The following Monday, this same family was awoken at 2 a.m. by a police officer who came to inform them that her 69-year old mother was brutally beaten, almost to death, on her way home from work. She was attacked by a man who had every intention of raping and killing her. Police caught the man as he was stuffing her into the back of a van. She barely survived.
Today my mom called me to ask me to pray for the family of a young father who committed suicide last night after he was unable to convince his wife to reconcile with him. The only thing that can make someone go to such an extreme is a feeling of complete despair. They see no hope for their situation.
I realize that these stories are extreme and hopefully outside of your experiences, but I also know that there are a lot of tragic stories in the making all around us. We may never get stranded in extreme conditions… we may never experience the fatal car accident of a loved one… we may never be brutally beaten on our way home from work… and we may not know someone who is on the verge of taking their own life… but the same feelings of hopelessness and despair that result from major catastrophic events in our lives can also be caused by a series of smaller events or disappointments.
The holidays always seem to magnify feelings of loneliness or pain. There are people who are unable to find work, family members who haven’t spoken in years, couples who can’t afford to buy gifts for each other, students who won’t be able to return to college because the loan wasn’t approved, friends who can’t make it to work because their car is broken down again, and the list goes on.
I know I’m not exactly fanning the flame of holiday cheer here. I guess my point is that we live in a broken and hurting world full of broken and hurting people. We can pretend that the glass is closer to full, we can whine about it being too empty, or we can do everything in our power to redeem and restore others by sharing the reason for the hope we have! There is hope in Jesus Christ! May God increase your hope and fill you with courage as you extend His love and hope to others who so desperately need it!
I have been accused of being a pessimist, but it isn’t true. The glass is not half-empty, but neither is it half-full! I demand there be a third category in which the glass is not all the way to the top but there is hope! Someone could argue that my position is basically that of the pessimistic half-empty variety, but that would discount a vital attribute that my point of view offers… there is hope that it can become full!
Over the last week, I have heard and read stories about real people that are gut-wrenching… heartbreaking… and seemingly hopeless. In the news nationally, there was a story about a young family taking the wrong road in Oregon where they got stuck and stranded for a week. The mother and two little girls were found in bad shape but alive on Monday… the young husband and father was found on Wednesday face down in the snow. In the Austin news this week, a mother of two young girls ages 4 and 7 and her friend were both killed instantly when a garbage truck plowed into the back of her vehicle as they sat in traffic at 11 a.m. on their way to lunch.
Last night I spoke with a friend whose wife had a horrible seizure the day before Thanksgiving while she was baking pies with her young daughters… she cracked her head open and bled all over the kitchen floor while her daughters watched in horror. The following Monday, this same family was awoken at 2 a.m. by a police officer who came to inform them that her 69-year old mother was brutally beaten, almost to death, on her way home from work. She was attacked by a man who had every intention of raping and killing her. Police caught the man as he was stuffing her into the back of a van. She barely survived.
Today my mom called me to ask me to pray for the family of a young father who committed suicide last night after he was unable to convince his wife to reconcile with him. The only thing that can make someone go to such an extreme is a feeling of complete despair. They see no hope for their situation.
I realize that these stories are extreme and hopefully outside of your experiences, but I also know that there are a lot of tragic stories in the making all around us. We may never get stranded in extreme conditions… we may never experience the fatal car accident of a loved one… we may never be brutally beaten on our way home from work… and we may not know someone who is on the verge of taking their own life… but the same feelings of hopelessness and despair that result from major catastrophic events in our lives can also be caused by a series of smaller events or disappointments.
The holidays always seem to magnify feelings of loneliness or pain. There are people who are unable to find work, family members who haven’t spoken in years, couples who can’t afford to buy gifts for each other, students who won’t be able to return to college because the loan wasn’t approved, friends who can’t make it to work because their car is broken down again, and the list goes on.
I know I’m not exactly fanning the flame of holiday cheer here. I guess my point is that we live in a broken and hurting world full of broken and hurting people. We can pretend that the glass is closer to full, we can whine about it being too empty, or we can do everything in our power to redeem and restore others by sharing the reason for the hope we have! There is hope in Jesus Christ! May God increase your hope and fill you with courage as you extend His love and hope to others who so desperately need it!
posted by The Austin Project at 4:32 PM
2 Comments:
Reading this reminds me how much I miss just sitting and talking with you about things just like that.
I've been accused of having the same attitude for a long time. Even though they are correct to an extent, I have never lost hope.
God bless,
Mr. Keith
That's all well and good when you're a church planter and have loads of free time on your hands. But I'm busy Chris. I don't have time to sit down and spread hope to people...
Oh...
Wait a minute...
Tis the season my man. I love you and miss you. Thanks for shining the light in the darkness. Feel the love.
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