You Are Not Alone

“We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death.” That’s part of what Paul wrote to the Corinthian church (2 Cor. 1:9). Eloquent, isn’t it. Real. Raw. Authentic. “We felt a death sentence. In our hearts. We despaired of life.” It may even sound like someone tore a page out of your personal journal or hacked into your heart and wrote what they found in the Bible. Paul could write that way because he had been there. He had penned into his resume, sometimes in blood, the dates, times and locations of his trials. He could, as the old-time preachers used to say, testify. Knowing that you aren’t the only one to despair even of life is, in an odd way, comforting.

From Heartbreak to Burning Heart

Has your heart been broken? Did you watch a dream die? Have you found yourself standing in the ashes and rubble of what you thought was a rock-solid relationship? Were you hurt by someone you trusted? Let down by someone you relied on?

This story is in Luke 24. It was a Sunday. Two disciples of Jesus left Jerusalem headed for Emmaus. Everything they had hoped for, every dream they’d dare to imagine, had been nailed to a cross and buried in a tomb. It was over. When they encountered a stranger on their dismal journey, Luke writes, “They stood still, their faces downcast.” He didn’t write this but I know it’s true; their hearts were broken.

They told the stranger the story in all its sad detail. Then the stranger said something strange; “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.” He began to tell them a story, one they’d heard a hundred times about a Messiah who was to come and how he had to suffer and how the prophets had predicted all of it.

When they reached Emmaus, they urged the stranger to stay with them. While they were eating, he took bread, broke it and gave it to them. “Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him.” Jesus. Reflecting on their encounter, one of them remembered – “Were not our hearts burning within us?”

You are not alone. Your heart will beat again, even burn again. When you rely on the God who raises the dead, there is healing for broken hearts.

From Struggling to Strong

Are you experiencing the struggle of your life right now? Is it a doctor’s diagnosis? A child’s rebellion? A friend’s rejection? An enemy’s attack? A job’s termination?

This story is in 2 Timothy 4. It was getting cold. That’s the impression you get when you read Paul’s letter to his young protege. “Bring my cloak. Do your best to get here before winter.” And he wasn’t just cold. Paul was lonely, too. Demas, a good friend, had deserted him. So had most everyone else. Other trusted companions were fulfilling the responsibilities of their ministries in distant cities. A man named Alexander had deliberately made things difficult for Paul. Not that things weren’t bad enough — he was in prison, on trial for his life.

But in the middle of describing his struggle and how no one was willing to stand up for him, Paul made this amazing affirmation; “But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength.” He doesn’t say how God strengthened him; just that he did. I suspect God’s strength comes in many different ways. But it always comes. Always.

You are not alone. You will not only survive. You will be strong.

From Failure to Forgiven

Did you break someone’s heart? Were you the reason someone felt alone, rejected and abandoned? I’m not talking about a little slip up, here. I’m talking about an epic, world-class, cosmic-scale, relational, ethical, moral melt-down. You didn’t just fail — you’re pretty certain you’ve become a failure.

This story is in each of the four Gospels. It was the night before Jesus’ crucifixion and one of his disciples, Peter, had followed the crowd into the High Priest’s courtyard. He was warming himself by the fire when someone said, “You’re one of his discples, aren’t you?” Peter denied it. Then he denied it again. Then, just before the rooster welcomed the Friday morning sunrise, Peter cursed the name of his best and truest friend for the third time.

Mark says that when Peter heard the rooster, he remembered that Jesus had predicted this very outcome. And Peter broke down and wept.

Millions of people over thousand of years in hundreds of languages have read about the biggest failure in Peter’s life. Why would the writers of the Gospels, three of whom were close friends, chronicle the darkest moment of Peter’s life?

So you’d know you are not alone. So you would realize you are not the only one to have failed — nor the only one for whom forgiveness is possible.