Devotionals by Dr. M. Craig Barnes
Our hope for you is unshaken.
When someone we care about is going through a hard time, we want to say something hopeful. But how do we say anything meaningful? The last thing anyone in trouble needs to hear is a sentimental reassurance that everything will be fine when the reality is that things are definitely not fine. So how do you say something that honors how it is, yet encourages with a vision for how it can be?
The response of the Gospel to this important question is to point to Easter. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead proclaims the present order of things is tenuous. So don't count on it. Don't take the present too seriously because it will not last. We once thought that death was the sure thing we could count on in this present life, but after this Sunday even that is in doubt.
Easter is not just a historical phenomenon. It is also a present, sacred reality that says the only thing about this life of which you can be certain is uncertainty, because Jesus is not dead. As long as you believe that, you have every reason to be filled with unshaken hope.
That is what those who are in trouble most need to hear. They don't need you to analyze their situation and point to tenuous reasons for optimism. As strange as it sounds, what a person in trouble needs is volatility ‹ the strange peace that comes from believing a risen Savior is on the loose. Anything can happen.
-- Craig Barnes