CHILDREN OF THE RESURRECTION

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From Susan Hillis:

My Heart Breaks, Too

These 3 words -- Children of the Resurrection -- seemed to jump off the page this morning, as though I had never before seen them hiding there in Luke 20.  If the truth be known, at time it feels more like they are 'children of the crucifixion' than 'children of the resurrection' -- yet that former term never once appears in the Scriptures.

My witty husband has often quipped, "the Sadducees were Sad-you-see, because they didn't believe in the resurrection." But how often do I have to fight my tendency to focus more on the suffering of the dying Savior on the cross,or the suffering in myself and those I hold most dear, than in the glorious redemption of an empty cross and an empty tomb? 

Here is a cross our son Alex built in the vacant lot next door so that he would be uplifted when he walks the dog over there and prays.

"Mom, I am praying God will make me like David."
Me, "That's an amazing thing to pray...in what way do you want to be like David?"
Alex, "I want to stand before giant problems in life unafraid, because I know what God can do with my small pebbles and slingshot."

I  have been facing this over the past several weeks, as several of the teen agers in and close to our family have faced broken hearts. Although I am usually pretty happy, I have found myself often just sitting and crying. Literally. The situation became quite acute this week when one of our kids had to face a crisis on the very afternoon that he needed to study a lot for a huge midterm. Unable to study, he felt doomed to fail, because a heart that throbs makes it difficult for the brain to function! I empathized, but I cannot help him if I am believing the same lie he is -- that our suffering dooms us to live as failures. 

Help is on the Way

 All I knew to do was to pray and to speak truth, "I know the Lord is bigger than our problems, and that He is able to help you to do well on this midterm tomorrow. You must trust Him to help you do the work you need to do tonight."

After about 30 minutes of fruitless struggle, I hear my child say these words, "I feel like my normal self, mom;  it doesn't make sense.  I have such a sense of peace. I am studying fine! How do you think it happened?"

I reply, "This is how Jesus is to us; he helps us in ways that are way beyond what makes sense."  (And I think of one of my favorite verses....Ephesians 3:30 - Jesus can do "exceedingly abundantly above and beyond all we can ask or imagine" - and He did!)

"He can do it that fast?"

"Yes, He can do it that fast!"

And the end of the story is that the feared test was passed with flying colors - a solid B!!! 

Children of the Resurrection

Lord, we thank you that we, together with our children, are what you say we are....children of the resurrection. Lord, help us to see them and ourselves with Your eyes. We look forward to that day when "all ecstasies and intimacies will be with God."  (Lk 20:36, MSG) As my friend, Kay Warren says in her new soon to be released book, Choose Joy, we want to practice living that way now!! Take a moment to listen to Kay speak of the Joy that Jesus had, a joy that far surpassed the heartbreak, by clicking here.

What Does Children of the Resurrection Mean for You?

Simply speaking, it means that Jesus' expectation for you and me and our families is hope and life.  He said so. "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever (this includes you and me and our children) believes in Me will live, even though he dies." It's like what Louie Giglio said in the opening message at Passion 2012 on Jesus raising to life the son of the widow of Nain..."both the crucifixion and the resurrection are critically important but if I had to choose which of the 2 is most important I would say the resurrection." 

Recently I searched the gospels for every time Jesus tells the disciples he will be crucified, trying to find even once when He stopped there. I failed. Every one of His 12 mentions of His crucifixion--one for every disciple!-- includes the certainty of what's next "AND (not perhaps) the third day He will be raised." 

Let's trust the Lord to raise up His image in us and in these 'children of the resurrection' whom He has entrusted to our care!! 

Always raised,
Susan