Godly Sorrow
Sunday, June 20, 2004
This is Something I posted in my Yahoo group yesterday. But was written more with blagging in mind, except people there all have crosses to bear, so posted it their first, and are now copying and pasting here:Well, I seem to recall there was a discussion a while ago, about why it seemed after conversion one was much more deeply sorrowful and grief stricken than before-hand. And I think maybe sometimes, maybe even to the unbelieving world, it is somewhat of an oxymoron. They think being a Christian you should always be full of joy and never tearful or unhappy. When one finds this in the Christian world too, I think something must be amiss with what they believe as regards faith and acting in it, and what it may mean to be overwhelmed with sorrow as a Christian.
And seems to be very much in the line of if a someone who professes faith think you can only be a Christian if joyful or happy, to be much like the health and wealth of the kind of thing like Prayer of Jabez.
I heard a sermon on Lamentations, and the preacher said, that no one sorrows and grieves so deeply as a Christian does.
The discussion here a while ago, others said too and agreed, that grief and sorrow was often worse as a Christian than before. And myself, I don't think its just a sense of ones own sin. Tho no doubt that is part of it. I think when calamity strikes us, we can torment ourselves trying to search our hearts for the one sin which must've bought us calamity. And yet, the Bible says that Zion had a multitude of sins. But don't think sin and awareness of it, is all there is to it. I think its cos of our hope. The hope we have during a long lasting, calamity, seems so far off, a distant sunbeam, that its hard to see the hope as a reality soon to happen, and in the meantime one is left to cope often it seems alone, especially when one feels abandoned by God, to get through the rest of this earthly dwelling and not lose our hope and certainly not forefeit it, by rage and anger at what befalls us at the hand of God. But it can seem a bitter pill to swallow, and you can feel like God is feeding you stones instead of bread to break your teeth, which is not what Jesus said
Matthew 7
9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
Guess it all boils down to trust. In trusting that even if nothing seems good, or ever has, or ever likely to be what most folks may think of as good, in that if we belong to God, nothing can change the course of where we're going. And nothing can go really wrong or be outside of God's will even if its outside our wants.
But still think anyone who thinks or judges other, on the basis of any sorrow for anything they may be going through, as to the state of their soul, is not really on the ball, in life, or experiences, or even understanding God's providences very well in how they are often worked out. And I know no one here or at least any one I know here thinks that about any one else or ever has. I know lots of folks here who have heavy crosses to bear, and have never seen anyone else be judgmental towards them or condemnatory. But are sure it must go on, by those who hold to the prayer of Jabez mentality, rather than the God of the Bible. And I remember too, feeling similar from other believers a long time ago. Biblical Christianity is not a wealth and happiness thing. And anyone who had any grasp of what it teaches, would know that.
Its a bit like in the book of Job, his friends were not helpful to be around at all to him. Because they were so askew. Grief and sorrow are often part of a believers lot. And it may not be a pleasnt one. But don't think any of us go to God at the moment of repentance seeking what we can gain. We go to Him empty and barren and with nothing to give, so why really should things get any better or stuff.
~Deejay<---thinks this should've been a blag, but knows suffering is rampant in varying degrees, within this group so posted it here.
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