Overcome Adversity: Choose Life

We had a team meeting at work the other day and one of my colleagues was tasked with inputting our deliverables into a Microsoft Project document to be shared with leadership. He volunteered to do it because of his experience with Microsoft Project. Then we began joking with him that he should have a deadline of 3:00pm; which, would have made the project more challenging. He actually completed the task at about 2:58. However, I misread the email and thought that he missed the deadline. Not wanting to let the joke go, I wrote that he did a great job but we had to deduct points for tardiness. After I sent the email, my supervisor said he didn’t miss the deadline he actually beat the deadline by 2 minutes. A second later, he wrote back apologizing for missing the deadline. My supervisor then pressured me to make it right. I didn’t understand at the time because I thought it was only a joke. But, I sent an email letting him know that I was wrong. The next morning, I thought about it more and changed my mind. My supervisor was right to tell me to fix it because; although it was a joke, I realized the shear negative nature of the joke overpowered the compliment. I wrote him another email praising his work so that my intentions were clear and that he understood how proud I was of him.

This brings me to my sermon topic: Don’t allow your words to overpower how impressive God really is.

This theme has suddenly resurfaced in my life. My mom recently cleaned out her house and sent a box of stuff to my house. And included among it were some of my old sermons that I wrote over ten years ago and it just happened to fit nicely as a theme of overcoming adversity. Because sometimes things show up in your yard, sometimes things show up in your house, and sometimes even things show up in your bedroom when you are trying to sleep at night that cause you to think…what is this?

I’ve seemed to land on this recurring theme as I reflected upon the recent plight of the human race. I’ve seen where people are inflicting so much pain and stress through many avenues. The most prevalent of late has been bullying. The most recent has been these mass killings. It’s hard to live up to a “We shall overcome” mentality when others have purposed in their hearts to insure you never get the opportunity to rise to the occasion. On such occasions, I find it comforting to go to the Word of God and I wanted to carry you there with me.

2nd Kings Chapters 6 and 7

“15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. 16 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

This passage of scripture is appropriate for discussions about overcoming adversity because it highlights just one of the many examples of just how great is our God. To give you some background, Elisha was a prophet. Most often prophets were used by God when he wanted to give messages to people. But, God also trusted Elisha when he wanted to show his power. In this case, the Israelites and the Syrians were at war with each other. It was evident that the King of Syria thought the war was between he and the King of Israel. However, after reading this, you and I both have the understanding that God was in the midst.

Verses 9-10 “And the man of God sent unto the King of Israel, saying, “Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are come down. And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice.”

We learn from this verse that Elisha was sent by God to the King of Israel with a warning meant to protect the King of Israel from the Syrians. Isn’t it good to know that when we are fighting against the enemy that God is able and can protect us! Then in verse ten we learn that the King of Israel kept a watchful eye on the place he was warned from going. Because of his obedience, he was saved more than twice. The Bible reveals that the King of Syria was “troubled” by this. It confused him so much that he actually thought he was being sabotaged by his own people. He wanted to know which of his crew had been conspiring against him. And by verse twelve they pointed their fingers right at Elisha.

By verse 15 you can imagine the anger the King of Syria would have had by then. He was so angry that he sent adversity to Elisha in the form of a great host of both horses and chariots that surrounded the city. It was so disconcerting that Elisha’s servant was almost in a mode of panic stating “Alas, my master! How shall we do?” Elisha had to calm him down by saying “Fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.” When you are in a state of oppression and the enemy is trying to cause you to panic that’s when you have to stop and realize that you are on the Lord’s side. Just like if someone was afraid you were in a dead zone and they reach out with that infamous question…you can tell them, hey, I got the network and yes “He can hear us now.”

Now some of you may be thinking but that is Elisha. Of course, Elisha can overcome adversity. Elisha’s foundation, from the beginning, looks as if God would be there to take care of him no matter what. Elisha is a man of God. But I remember when Barack Obama first became the President elect and there were some people who did not vote for him. He had this to say in his November 2008 speech “To those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.” When these words were uttered, it opened my eyes to another aspect of a merciful God. I believe that God works on even those whose support he has yet to receive and he still will be their God.

Changing gears a little bit Matthew 5:44-45 states “…but I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Why would a God is not a respecter of persons ,tell us to do something that he doesn’t already do himself? If I am allowed to place a visual on God, I could see him as a master musician conducting an orchestra of instruments all in concert with each other. When you would think that God is ignoring the trumpets while he is focusing on the flutes, he is actually just waiting until the proper time. God knows the music so well that he’s never missed a note. For people still say that “He may not come when you want him but he is always on time.” And the music is still just a beautiful, under his capable guidance to this very day.

Some of you may still be concerned, thinking that God may not want to use me. Because you think, you may have made too many mistakes. But just one chapter over in 2nd Kings chapter 7 beginning at verse 3 there’s a story of four leprous men having a discussion as to what to do with their remaining time on earth. To get to this point, they had to be thinking that they were no longer of any use to anybody. They were put down to the point where they questioned their value. I know what it feels like when people constantly tell you that you can’t or you shouldn’t or to stop. I know exactly what it feels like when the physical body exercises specific limitations on you to where you feel like you are unable to handle certain tasks. I understand all too well how people try to shut you up, sit you down, or infamously pass you by. I know the darkness of depression, the frustration of fatigue, and the unfairness of the undervalued. But I also know a savior who will use the word to tell you it’s ok to open up your mouth and make a joyful noise anyway, I know a savior who will use the word to tell you to rise up and take up your bed and walk anyway, and I know the goodness of a savior who will not pass you by.

But back to the lepers for a few minutes. By verse 4 they were discussing their alternatives which seemed to be limited. - They weighed going into the city where the famine was and die of starvation there. - They weighed staying where they were and dying there - Or the final alternative which was to go into the camp of the Syrians, surrender, and risk being killed because they were the enemy The wonderful part about this whole story is the lepers chose the best chance at life. They chose to go to the camp of the Syrians just in case the Syrians would be merciful and spare them. This teaches us, in our own situations that we need to choose the best chance we have for life. That best chance is to believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins. Once you choose the life Jesus offers, you can rest in the fact that the battle belongs to the Lord. He begins to fight your battles for you. At that point, even things meant for evil will start to work out for your good.

The rest of the story revels that the lepers experienced this when they went to the camp of the Syrians. God had caused the Syrians to hear a noise. The noise scared the Syrians so badly that they abandoned the camp just in time. By the time the lepers arrived at the camp they were able to go from tent to tent and take whatever food and provisions they desired. God had provided for their welfare simply because they chose life. Not only that, God used the lepers to send the message to Israel that the Syrians were no longer a threat. He used the lepers to bring hope during the time of a famine.

We need to evaluate our responses to seemingly impossible situations during this time. Some of us need to evaluate if it’s an actual threat or if it is just noise. Noise was designed to scare your enemies; but it was meant as a tool of worship for God’s people. Some of us need to just make a joyful noise when we feel that a situation has become impossible in life, when we see no apparent way of escape, when all our resources are gone, make some noise.

The last point I want to make is that when the Lord appears to be taking his time during your situation, don’t use the time to be bitter. Those lepers could have made an excellent case for staying outside the camp and ruminating on how they were left to die. They also could have rationalized keeping everything for themselves. After all, they were considered rejects from society. What had people done for them except to isolate them and make them live outside of the camp by themselves? This would have been a wonderful way to get back at the people who isolated them. What irony, that those who rejected the lepers would end up dying of famine before those who had the leprosy. But the lepers never thought along those lines. They were so overwhelmed with the good that had befallen them that they recognized the moral obligation that they needed to share. But I know you want to know now when you will be able to overcome your adversity…and let me assert to you that We shall overcome.

-We shall overcome the weeping and wailing knowing that the Bible promises weeping shall endure for a night but joy comes in the morning.
-We shall overcome in the days when the prayers of the righteous avail much.
-We shall overcome when we aptly use the faith the size of a mustard seed to move mountains.

-We overcome because the Bible says no weapon formed against us shall prosper
And finally, we shall overcome because our God is an Awesome God who is the alpha and the omega and who has the final word on when we will overcome but if you are saved then you realize already that we shall overcome indeed.