Scary World

Man have you been watching TV lately? I try not to watch it too much but when the weather is weird I do have it on more. Besides, even though we are not to be "of this world" we do live in the this world and I think we need to stay informed of the things we could be involved in, or help with or the things that affect our family or even just us as individuals. But oh my goodness the stories that have been on the news...

Such as gun control, tax hikes, program cuts, debt, the Pope retiring, shootings, bad storms,wars, robberies and unrest throughout our country. The list of scary things is really sad.

How did our world get so scary?

Imagine the disciples world right after Jesus death on the cross. Their beloved leader had just had a trial, was tortured and killed on the cross. They have heard that he has raised from the dead, but let's be honest here. If you heard that, what would you believe? So here they sit, huddled in the upper room. The room where they, just the other day, had had their last supper with their Lord. The world was a very scary place right now!

Then:

John 20: 19-21 says:
Later on that day, the disciples gathered together, but fearful of the Jews had locked all the doors in the house. Jesus entered  and stood among them and said "Peace be with you" Then He showed His hands and side.
The disciples seeing their master with their own eyes were exuberant. Jesus repeated his greeting "Peace be with you".

There He was bringing peace again. Remember the peace He brought to the Sea of Galilee, the woman at the well, Lazarus and his sisters, the gentleman at Bethesda, the bleeding woman, the lepers, the five thousand, oh the list just goes on and on.

 The relief on their faces must have been something to see! He then goes on to finish verse 21, "Just as the Father sent me I send you".  The disciples did go out from there and started spreading His peace themselves. Don't get me wrong, their world did stay scary. In fact alot of the disciples were martyred for their beliefs but they kept His peace. You can see that as you read through the book of Acts and on into the New Testament.

What would having His peace look like for you? Maybe, even though the news speaks of all this unrest, you are at rest. Maybe your world breaks down around you, but you can stand strong. Maybe others see themselves as unworthy people, but you know you are forgiven and loved. Maybe everything is scary, but you do not have to be scared.

Look at the upper room as we see it today....

This tree was added to show how Christ's ministry branched out from this room. I like to think of it as arms reaching out to bring a much needed comfort to our scary world.

My hope for you today is that you do have His peace. The peace that comes when you see Jesus as the one who gave everything for you.

SCARY WORLD? Yes, but we can take it!

Blessings!