"Even Now"

For several months now, Ned and I have been discussing the confidence that comes with faith. We have talked about how God works in our lives, in spite of the messes we make, regardless of the waves of chaos and commotion that often threaten to sweep our feet out from under us and aside from our own helplessness. Personally, we have both been able to see God's blessings many times. And yet, when things are not as we hoped, when our hearts are aching, when our frustrations are high and we don't know what to do, we find ourselves entertaining thoughts of despair and hopelessness.
I am sure these are similar to the thoughts of Mary and Martha at the death of their beloved brother, Lazarus. John chapter eleven tells us they sent for Jesus, the only One they knew could save their sibling. The message said, "Lord, the one you love is sick." I would guess their expectation was that the Messiah would sense their urgency, and moved by His love for them, drop what He was doing and come immediately. But, He did not. Or perhaps, they hoped He would simply speak the words and provide a "long-distance" healing. But, He didn't do that either. The gospel writer tells us that Jesuss stayed where He was two more days and that only after Lazarus had died, did He make plans to go to Bethany. I would imagine as the sisters kept vigil over their brother, they watched out the window, longing to see that familiar figure coming toward them, their brows furrowed with worry as they listened to the ragged, shallow death breathing of their loved one. I would imagine as time passed, they began to pace, wondering whether He even got their message. And that as their beloved brother breathed his last, the tears began to flow, their heart feeling as if it had dropped into their stomachs, breaking into a million sharp little pieces. I would imagine they were filled with great loss and hopelessness as they went about the business of preparing their Lazarus for burial, as they went about the business of saying "good-by".
Interestingly, it is Martha, the worker bee, who notices the arrival of Messiah. She goes out to meet Him, informing Him that He has arrived too late and that the one He loves is gone. And in an amazing statement of confident faith she says, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died, but I know that EVEN NOW God will give you whatever you
ask." (vs 21) Wow! What a statement---a statement without a hint of doubt, without an inkling of reluctance and without a shadow of hesitancy. Sister Martha with confidence and certainty, in spite of the pain in her heart, regardless of her own helplessness, asks her Savior to fix it! And according to the text that is just what He does. He raises Lazarus from the dead. It doesn't matter that he has been in the tomb for four days, it doesn't matter that his body has already started to decompose. Even now, Jesus can and does restore life.
As we go through our daily lives, as we walk (or dance) in the light, we will inevitably face some rough times. There may be days when our spirits will be victimized by those we love, days when our courage wanes and hopelessness threatens to overwhelm us. We will most certainly make mistakes that will have lengthy and costly repercussions. We may be forced to pay the consequences of another's actions.We will likely face times of discouragement, dragged down by our church family, misunderstood by our physical family, unappreciated by friends and co-workers. And yet . . . . we the faithful, we know that if we call Him, He can and will bless us . . . EVEN NOW!!!!

Peace
Neva