Suffering

     Everyone has suffered at one time or another. I don’t know of any person who has not felt either the pain of betrayal, the wrench of heartache or the quiet whispers of loneliness. And when these hard times come, we can only ask, Why? Why is this happening to me? In the book of Job, we see a picture of suffering, but the answer is still vague. If you asked a Buddhist, they would tell you that suffering comes from desire. If you can empty yourself of any desire, your suffering would be at end. Some bad karma that you have to repay from a previous life. Ask a pessimist and they would tell you that suffering is normal. That life, as we know it, is suffering. But I think we’ve missed Someone. Have you ever asked God during your time of trouble, what is going on? Or have you just cried out to God for the pain to stop? Perhaps if we stepped away from our self-centeredness about our suffering, we might see a glimpse of God’s character…

     Jesus came to die upon the cross. God took on the shape of a man & died to redeem us from the wages of sin. Not just one of us, but each and every one of us. If you clicked on the “crucified” link, you may have read about the physical anguish that Christ went through. Not just a simple death, but a slow, excruciating one. All this seems meaningless unless you caught onto the only visible good result… Redemption. We have been brought back from certain death back to life… and not just any life, but everlasting, joyful, liberating, awesome life. Christ did no wrong, He was an innocent man. Place yourself into His shoes. God will Jesus to die a slow, torturous death for crimes He did not commit & to be forsaken… so that future God-followers would be redeemed of their sins.

     What does that mean to us? It means that suffering is not just bad karma. It is not necessarily a result of some sin, although that is a possibility. But maybe… just maybe, our suffering brings us closer to our Lord Jesus. Using our comfort and our very lives to cover over someone else’s sin. That through our suffering, God has a good plan. That somehow, through all this hurt & pain… we still trust & believe in the goodness & faithfulness in God to be true to his holy, awesome, merciful, loving, & forgiving character. That He can bless and equip us even through our pains & sorrows… our times of trouble & distress. That during times of utter darkness, we still have light. We still have a King of Kings who has already walked the dark dungeons of sin and pain where we weep & cry out. He has suffered barely believable things, yet after it was all said and done… The end result was He has opened the gates of heaven… and awaits us there.

Dad. You sent your son to die for us. I pray that we would be comforted that we don’t suffer alone, but that Jesus knows where we are. He has already been to these places. May you use our suffering and our striving to follow Your will for good. That somewhere at the end of the road, after the suffering is done, we will know how You’ve done great things through us. That when we get to heaven, we meet not just a god, but our God. And you’ll welcome us home and you’ll wipe away our tears… Thank you for bringing us home. In Jesus name, Amen.

Love or Obsession?
Turn down your iPod…
Iraq: Progress?  Progress II
Life springs from dead…
Sledding goes wrong
Suspended for speaking spanish?
One step closer to the Matrix?
Suing over polygamy?
“The holocaust is a myth”
Media spin on Iraq
Females have advanced sexual software…
The choking game (A must-read for people who have/take care of children)
The End of the World (even if it’s an online one…)
Eminem & Dr Dre (as instruments of torture??)
The Internet is Karl Marx’s utopia
An example of why people become vegetarians…
Take two doses of weed killer and call me in the morning…
Home workers get no respect…

5 WEIRD HABITS THAT I HAVE! (tagged by swtxlilxannie)

Ground Rules: The first player of this “game’ starts with the topic 5 weird habits of yourself, and people who get tagged write a Xanga entry about their 5 strange habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next 5 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a little something that says, “You are tagged” in their Xanga and tell them to read yours.

1) I enjoy walking up next to people w/o saying hi. This is usually triggered when I spot you… but you don’t spot me. So out of the corner of your eye, you’ll see this person start walking closer and closer to you (in step with you, of course). Eventually, I’ll cross over from your public space into your personal space and you’ll stop to look me over. (This has the added effect of freaking people out who are walking by themselves and generally distracted.)

2) I sometimes sing karaoke horribly on purpose. I think that when everyone is sitting around the karaoke machine and all the “singers” have had their turn, but all the “shower / closet singers” are too self-conscious to pick up the mic, even on songs that they know by heart, this is where I step in. Imagine someone with the range of a tenor trying to sing BSB… or NSync. It is a most worthy sacrifice of pride, no? As a result of listening to my caterwauling, the “shower / closet singers” lose their self-consciousness / are forced to take the mic away from me to spare the poor audience further auditory-inflicted pain.

3) I tend to steer clear of most video games. MMRPG’s, RPG’s, Simulations, Sims, FPS’s… They ate my life at several points in time and I’m still in the reclamation process.

4) When I catch somebody’s eye, I usually raise both eyebrows to acknowledge that “I see you too!” (Unfortunately, this also has the side effect of looking like I’m flirting with people.)

5) I have a stalker-like mentality. I can usually track down personal details about anyone. The “stalking” can progress pretty far depending upon when my mind tells me I’m probably going too far… (This probably freaks out anyone who doesn’t know how much information the internet holds about any one person… ) On a side note, this skill also allows me to research and gather information rather quickly when I put my mind to it.