For my dissertation defense I have had to read countless books concerning black conservatives. One book that I read will serve as the inspiration for today’s thought. Jackie Robinson wrote an autobiography entitled I Never Had it Made. He details his life in this book, but there is one part that stood out to me. Robinson describes how he was drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson informs the reader that during the early part of the 1940s, Branch Rickey, the president of the Dodgers, was on a quest to find an African American baseball player who would integrate the sport. During this time, unbeknownst to Robinson, Rickey and his men searched the
The point of this story is that Robinson had no idea what was going on behind the scenes. He was completely unaware that baseball scouts were searching the nation, trying to find someone who would become the first to integrate major league baseball. He had no idea the discussion that was going on behind closed doors. He had no idea that his name was being thrown around, that his talent had drawn the attention of Rickey and others. In the beginning of 1945 he had no idea how much his life would change by the end of the year.
What is the spiritual significance? I tell you this story, because as I was reading it I began thinking about God and how this can relate to us as well. God works behind the scenes, just like Rickey did. He orchestrates things in our life unbeknownst to us. David had no idea while he was tending the sheep that God was going to use Samuel to anoint him king. But God was working behind the scenes. When he informed Saul that the throne would be taken from him, he already knew it was David who would take his place. Esther had no idea that she was going to be queen. But God already knew what He had in store for her when Vashti refused to go to the king. Moses did not know that he was going to go to Pharaoh and demand that he set the Israelites free, but God knew He was going to use him when he was in the wilderness.
God plans things for us without our knowledge. You might be working at an office, and don’t realize that God is about to open the doors for another opportunity to come. You might be going to the university and don’t realize that God has orchestrated a scholarship to become available where you study abroad. You might be the choir member who sings in the back row, and don’t realize that God is about to make you the choir director. You might be the Children’s Sunday School teacher, but don’t realize that He is about to make you the District President.
You might be the [fill in the blank]… but don’t realize that God is about to make you the first female…. You might be the…but don’t realize that God is about to make you the first minority…. You might be the…. But don’t realize that God is going to make you the first in your family to….. You might be the…. But don’t realize that God is going to have you do something that no one in your church has done before. You might be the… but don’t realize that God is going to have you be the first in the assembly to….You might be…..
When God does call us, that does not mean that we are going to have it easy. Continuing with the Robinson story, while Robinson would be the first black in the major leagues, this milestone would come with a heavy cost. He had to, as Robinson recalls “be one who could take abuse, name-calling, rejection by fans and sportswriters and by fellow players not only on opposing teams but on his own.” The nation was incredibly segregated at this time. Schools had not been integrated, a black person living in the south could not even look a white person in the eye, without fear of being lynched. I say this because the same is true for us. God might have something great in store for us, but it will come with a cost.
God told Jeremiah “before you were in your mother’s womb, I ordained you to be a prophet.” But then He went on to tell Jeremiah that the people would fight against him. David was anointed a king, but spent years on the run, fearing for his life, before taking the throne. Joseph was given a dream, but spent years in a prison. Deborah was a judge, and although the Bible does not say it, I am pretty sure some people were unwilling to accept that because she was a female.
These are all individuals who God called to do great things, but who had to go through trials and tribulations. The same can be said for each and every one of us. God might be calling you to do a great thing. He might be calling you to do something that no one else has ever done. He might be calling you to be the first female to do something. He might be calling you to do something that no one in the Apostolic Assembly has done before. He might be calling you to do something that no one in your family has done before. But there is a price to be paid.
You might be laughed at. Someone might tell you that you can’t do it. Someone might tell you that you don’t belong. Someone might tell you that God has the wrong person. Someone might laugh at your dream. They might mock what you are doing. Like Robinson, and like all the individuals from the Bible you might have to go through a lot in order to fulfill God’s plan.
Having said all of that, I want to end on a positive note. Just a few short days ago baseball celebrated Robinson’s legacy. It had been 60 years since he broke the color line. In celebration the Los Angeles Dodgers wore the number 42 to recognize what he had done. There is a legacy that you will leave if you are willing to do what God wants you to do. Joseph is remembered for saving the land during the time of famine. Deborah is known for being a great judge. David is known for being a great king. Jeremiah is known for speaking the Word of God. Mary is known for being the mother of Jesus. Peter is known for leading thousands to Christ on the day of Pentecost. Esther is known for saving the Israelites from destruction. The list can go on. Individuals known for what they did. They have left a legacy. Likewise, you too can leave a legacy.
If you endure. If you are willing to climb that mountain. If you are willing to be mocked. If you are willing to be alone. If you are willing to endure criticism. If you are willing…. You too can leave a legacy. Sometimes we don’t see the impact that we are making, but the impact we are making is no less great because of that. There are things you are doing today that are leaving marks for tomorrow.
Let me tell you a historical story. I promise there is a point at the end of this lesson. Thomas Jefferson. He is probably best remembered as the third president of the
What is the point of this? Where is the spiritual significance? I find
I will say, and I won’t apologize for stepping on toes with this one, that by not saying anything, by not taking a stand, by not risking our reputation, our title, our position in life, we are just as bad as those who see nothing wrong with what they are doing. It does not matter what we internally think if we are not willing to externally voice it. Let me be more specific so I make sense.
We have to be willing to lose out. We have to be willing to take a stand, no matter what the consequences are.
Let me say that there are greater consequences for remaining silent. In 1994 in the country of
Some people are so concerned about title, position, being liked, being accepted, that they are not willing to take a stand. They don’t want to be uncomfortable. They don’t want to be talked about, made fun, criticized. But I want to encourage you that we have to be willing to take a stand.
Is there anyone willing to stand up for the truth? Is there anyone willing to stand up for godliness? Is there anyone willing to stand up for holiness? Is there anyone willing to stand up and say “we can compromise no longer?” Is there anyone willing to stand up and declare “it is not title that we should seek, it is God we need to be after?” I leave you with this question, is there anyone willing to stand?
There is this song that I love so much. It simply says “Silent tears from the inside of your heart. When no one knows but you, what you’re going through. When your friends don’t understand that it is all in God’s hand, God hears your silent tears… Sometimes you’re hurting real bad and you really can’t seem to let it out, and it is like a knot in your throat. You really can’t tell anybody because you have tried that before and it seems like everyone got their own problems, but we came tonight to tell you that God hears your silent tears. You try to hold yourself together and go through the service as if nothing is going wrong, but on the inside you are getting ready to burst. Someone is hurting tonight and you have not told anyone about it.”
I think that this blog if it is not for anyone else, it is definitely for me. There are times when we go through so many things, but we go through them silently. We don’t let anyone know that we are in pain. We don’t let anyone know the agony that we are dealing with. We don’t let anyone know the trials or tribulations that we are facing. We don’t let anyone know the hurt that we are dealing with. It is not that we are on the brink of giving up on God. It is not that we are on the brink of turning our back on the Lord. It is just we are in pain. The mountains don’t seem to be getting any smaller. The desert does not seem to be providing any refreshment. There is no rest for what we are going through.
And rather than letting anyone know what we are facing. Rather than confiding in someone. We keep it all in. We smile. We laugh. We joke. We act like everything is going great. We raise our hands in church, we jump, we shout. And it is not that we are not sincerely praising God when we do this, but inside there is a pain that no one knows about. Our world is turning upside down. The pain, rather than subsiding only grows. The hurt, rather than going away, only gets bigger.
I don’t know if this blog is for anyone else. But I know it is for me. There have been countless times, when I have been going through or dealing with so many things. I smile, I laugh, I act like everything is okay. I act like my world is great. But the tears that come out at night. The pain that I hide. The hurt that I don’t let anyone see.
I want to let you know today that I don’t know if you are dealing with anything. I don’t know if you are facing a huge trial in your life and you have not let anyone know. I don’t know if it seems like you have been climbing this mountain forever and you have yet to reach the top. I don’t know if you feel like you have been in this valley for months and there is no ending in sight. I don’t know what you are dealing with. I don’t know what you are facing. I don’t know the hurt, I don’t know the pain, I don’t know what your ‘silent tears’ are. But I want to let you know two things:
God knows. He sees those tears. He feels your pain. He knows the situation. He, as this song says “knows your sorrow, He feels your pain. He is there to heal you, wipe the tears away. He has not left you.” When you feel like you are all alone, God is right there. When you feel like you can’t climb the mountain, God is giving you the strength. When you feel like the valley is never ending, God sees an end in sight. Those tears that you are not letting anyone else see, God sees. He is there.
And I also want to let you know that it is okay to be transparent. It is okay to let someone know what you are going through. And believe me, I am speaking to myself right now, because I tend to be incredibly private. I tend to keep everything inside of me. I tend to not want anyone to know what I am going through or what I am dealing with. But it is okay to be transparent. It is okay to call someone on the phone and just tell them “I need prayer, I have this situation I am dealing with. I have this pain that I have been facing.” It is okay to send an email, telling people “Pray for me because this mountain seems impossible to get over.” Not only is it okay to be transparent it is important that we are transparent. If you look in the Bible, David had Jonathon. Esther had the handmaidens. Daniel had Shadrach, Meshach and Adednigo. Paul had Timothy. These are all people who had friends, in other words, they did not go through things alone. It is so important that when you go through trials, when you go through tribulations that you know that you can turn to someone. That you know that you have a support system who is praying for you.
You don’t have to let those tears remain silent. You don’t have to fear letting someone know what you are dealing with. You don’t have to keep that mask on. Afraid to let anyone know what are you going through. You don’t have to keep the charade up, acting like you okay when you are dealing with pain. Today if you are going through something, as you are reading this, if you are dealing with a trial, if you don’t have the strength to climb the mountain, if you don’t have the energy to go through the valley, know that there are people who want to help you, know that there are people, if you just let them know what you are going through, they will pray for your burden as if it were their burden, they will cry out to God for you as if it were their trial they were going through. I love the song, I began this thought with, but I want to let you know, although God sees your silent tears, you don’t need to keep them silent, you can share them, you can reveal them, because there is someone who will unite with you and who will pray with and for you.
This past weekend I traveled to Chicago. My return flight was supposed to depart at nine in the morning. I got to the airport bright and early and was excited because I was even able to upgrade to first class for a very small fee. 8:30, the time to board arrived, and the attendant came over the intercom and announced that the mechanics were looking at the plane and it would be a couple of minutes before we could board. At nine she came back on the intercom and announced that our plane was not suitable for flying and that they were getting us another plane. A few minutes passed and the attendant informed us that another plane was not found and so our flight was canceled.
The funny thing is rather than getting mad that I had to find another flight, which ultimately resulted in me waiting in the airport for another four hours, traveling to San Diego and waiting three more hours before leaving for San Jose. Originally I was supposed to arrive in
I say this because how we respond to situations is so important. Often when things happen we get upset at everyone, including God. We ask Him why this particular thing is happening. Some people, in their fury, even turn their back on God. In the process of doing this, we fail to see God’s hand upon our situation. Can you imagine, what would have happened if the mechanics didn’t recognize the problem with the plane and it was cleared for take-off? God protected me and the rest of the passengers of what could have been a catastrophic accident. I still don’t understand the purpose behind the lost baggage, but I can make a spiritual connection. Sometimes it is clear why roadblocks are placed in our life. In other words, we can easily understand why certain things are happening. Other times, it is not so clear why we have to experience roadblocks, in fact it might seem to our natural eyes as something unnecessary. But God always has a perfect plan.
I think about when I first moved to
Today I was incredibly patient when it came to my cancelled flight, extended stay in the airport, and lost luggage. I will be honest and say I have not always been this way. There are many times when I have endured roadblocks and rather than accepting them, I have complained to God about them. I don’t know what ‘cancelled flights’ you are experiencing in your life but I encourage you to ask yourself “How am I responding to this unexpected news?” Cancelled flights mess up our whole plans. We expect to arrive at a particular destination at a particular time, but cancelled flights prevent that from happening. We have to wait around longer, and sometimes luggage we planned on bringing, gets lost in the process. Life is like that as well. Sometimes we have plans and designs for our own life, but God He says “I am going to cancel those plans, and I am going to create my plans.” He is saying “I am the pilot and I am changing the course your life is taking.” Not only does He change our plans, but like lost luggage, God removes baggage from our life that we don’t need. It might be uncomfortable, and it probably won’t be fun, but you will arrive at the destination where God wants you, and that destination is so much better than our own designed destination.