Do You Have Those Days?

Do you have those days?

Do you ever wonder if anyone really cares about you?

Do you ever wonder if, for some people, you can do anything right?

Do you ever wonder if your mind will stop reeling from one bad thought to another?

Do you ever wonder if you will ever be loved?

Do you ever wonder if people in your life are using you?

Do you ever wonder if the anger, hate, bitterness, evil, wars, divisions, and greediness will come to an end, and if so, how and when?

The questions can go on and on. Life can be tough. If we’re able to enjoy the blessings of life, we should be thankful; for there are many who are struggling to get through the day.

Some are feeling lost, wondering where they belong, or if they belong.

Some are dreading the moment when their spouse comes home.

Some are fearful of the time when daddy arrives home.

Some are struggling with pain that continually racks their bodies.

Some are spending sleepless nights worried over their children.

Some are so caught up in addiction that the only thing that matters is the next fix.

Some are dreading the upcoming holidays, because for them, it is not the most wonderful time of the year, and they will not be going home for Christmas, and a Thanksgiving table laden with food is only a dream.

The list goes on and on…

Meanwhile, it looks as if the world has gone mad. Jesus warned us, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars…” We should understand by now his words, “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…” Yet, every time war breaks out, we wonder how did this happen. Are we more civilized now than we were, say a thousand years ago? Is there a difference in the “barbarians” who fought with swords and spears, and the use of today’s modern weaponry?

And what of the great divisions we face. Friendships have ended, families have broken up, work places have become toxic, and some people carry perpetual anger over…what? Politics? Politicians? Religion? A Preacher? Some television talking head? Some person on the radio spewing anger and fear? Some YouTube conspiracy? Have we lost our common sense? Have we lost our ability to reason? Do friends and family and co-workers really mean that little?

All of this is going on while people are fighting their personal battles with illness—both physical and mental—heartache, grief, addiction, broken families and more.

When will we awaken to reality?

When will we stop looking for easy answers to difficult questions?

When will we demand more of our leaders in every field than oversimplified answers to our, anything but simple, questions?

When will we restore the “Golden Rule” and treat others as we want to be treated?

When will honesty, integrity, truth, compassion, and concern matter again?

When will we see people as created in the image of God?

When will we try to understand instead of continually putting down?

Again, the questions can go on and on.

We have a mental health crisis. We have an addiction crisis. We have a spiritual crisis.

We can’t buy our way out of any of the three crises we face. Indeed, it is greed that has been a factor in all three. The Bible gives us a clear warning, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.” (1Timothy 6:10) But…who takes the Bible seriously anymore?

Billions of dollars have been unleashed in our political process. How much better off are we politically? Money buys influence. So who actually makes the decisions that affect us all?

We’ve thrown tons of money into the “war on drugs,” and how much better is our drug problem? And we’ve learned that the wealthy, even the extremely wealthy, have as many mental illnesses as those who have nothing.

Is my picture of modern life too bleak? Am I too pessimistic? Or is it reality?

Can we learn to be neighbors again—to love our neighbor as ourselves?

Can we live by the “Golden Rule” again and treat others as we want to be treated?

Can we learn to care about and encourage instead of demeaning and discouraging?

Do we have it in us to deal with our spiritual crisis?

The prophet Isaiah ask us:

“To whom then will you liken God,

or what likeness compare with him?

An idol?—A workman casts it,

and a goldsmith overlays it with gold,

and casts for it silver chains…” (40:18-19)

We’re trying the idols—people, stuff, things, wealth. How’s that working out?

“Have you not known? Have you not heard?

Has it not been told you from the beginning?

Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,

and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;

who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,

and spreads them like a tent to live in;

who brings princes to naught,

and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.” (Isaiah 40:21-23)

“Have you not known? Have you not heard?”

Now you know. Now you’ve heard.

The balls in your court…what say ye?