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Easter comes and goes.
We are told stories from the Bible to give us resurrection hope.
Because Christ died and three days later He rose, we’re taught this helps us cope.
We have someone we can come to when we’re down.
We want to smile, but all we can do is frown,
The energy many had to face life’s struggles is less.
Perhaps, the joy you once had is fleeting.
Life in your heart is slowly beating.
People tell you better times are just around the corner.
Don’t give in.
Don’t give up.
Don’t surrender to hopelessness.
But what do you do when you’re all prayed out?
That better day hasn’t arrived.
You see others happy.
Their lives are going much better than yours.
They aren’t having to struggle to pay for the place in which they live, food, and the medications they need.
But perhaps what you’re seeing isn’t what’s really going on.
There are the rich who aren’t affected by the rising cost of living.
But most of us have either a moderate or low income.
Our perception of how financially stable people are and the reality can be two different things.
I know a Christian man who lives on credit.
His car is leased.
His home belongs to a governing Board of Directors.
He wears expensive-looking suits.
It’s all an illusion to make it appear to others he’s successful.
But if you didn’t know him, you would think he was a rich man.
He is looking at the wrong things for his validation.
His wealth is in Christ.
His worth is in Christ.
It’s challenging not to look to the world for your sense of value.
In order to be accepted the temptation is to blend in with the crowd.
Just because you’re a Christian doesn’t mean you’re not going to be caught in that web.
The alluring offering of worldly success can be difficult to resist.
These are hard times.
Salaries aren’t for the most part keeping pace with inflation.
Individuals and families are falling further behind every year.
It takes not just two pay checks, but often three or four just to survive.
This is causing people’s health to decline.
Burnout is everywhere.
I’m a Christian. Why am I not writing about things to make you feel life is wonderful?
It is a beautiful gift from God.
I’m writing this story because even among my brothers and sisters in Christ that’s not where they’re at.
We keep hearing sunnier days are ahead, but when you have to decide whether or not to buy a head of lettuce for $6.50 something’s wrong.
When people are sacrificing a healthier diet for cheaper processed food that’s not right.
When a woman in Canada has a heart attack because she can’t afford her heart medication that’s wrong.
When families lose their homes and all their assets because of medical illness that’s unjust.
When most people are one pay check away from being unable to pay their rent something needs to change.
When estimates are between 100 and 150 million people are homeless in the world that’s a serious issue we need to address.
When the gap between the rich and the poor widens that can only lead our economy downward.
People aren’t able to afford the goods and services they could when they had a larger income.
That takes a lot of money out of the economy.
Financial experts tell us not to lose hope.
We’ll have a thriving economy again.
But between then and now how do we live?
Should we feel guilty for not being joyful?
These are not easy days to have a smile on one’s face.
Grocery shopping is an anxiety-producing experience.
The choices between a healthy and less healthy diet are the painful decisions to be made.
Do you feel like that elderly woman, Clara Peller in 1984 Wendy’s commercials, who kept asking, “Where’s the beef?”
Do you find yourself wondering where’s the joy?
When does life get back to the way it was before CoVid and the war in Ukraine?
What if the answer is never?
What if the truth is the new normal will keep changing as circumstances do?
Are we prepared for that reality?
The healthy way of living is admitting we’re not always feeling the joy.
And that’s okay.
Think about Christ in the Garden at Gethsemane.
He wanted that dark hour of His crucifixion to pass.
Who wouldn’t want that given the opportunity?
But in the end He did the will of His Father.
Why?
Because just around the corner in three days from His death, He knew He would rise.
After an earthquake the boulder that entombed Christ’s body was rolled away by an angel of the Lord (Matthew 28:2-4).
Christ knew that He had an eternity with His Father in Heaven to look forward to.
Death couldn’t defeat our Savior!
Your hope and mine is just around the corner.
Whatever situation we’re going through either it will change or our attitude towards it will.
God wants to teach us what community means.
He has taught Karen and I what a blessing it is to give and to receive.
Many of us are okay with the giving part, but not so much with receiving.
It took us a long time to learn it’s a gift from God to receive from others.
I thought it was entirely up to me to provide for us.
God is our provider.
Often, our Father shows us His love through the compassion of others.
Love is a priceless gift. And yet, it doesn’t cost one cent.
Loving others is a present we can offer no matter how poor we are.
I know a young man in Africa who is one of my Christian brothers.
He and his family are thankful for one meal a day.
Bountiful living for him is two meals a day.
He still praises God for all he has.
Lord, help us to be thankful for all we have.
Give us open hearts to people in need, whether it’s someone we love or the stranger.
When life is tougher than we can endure, remind us that our hope is just around the corner.
It was for Christ when He died and rose again.
It is for us because of God’s willingness to sacrifice His one and only Son for our sins.
You can discover amazing things just around the corner.
Dr. Kevin Osborne is the Dean of Psychology and President of Student Affairs for St. James the Elder University. He is s therapist, writer, poet, and singer. He helps people in their inner healing journey. Dr. Kevin Osborne lives in Timmins, northern Ontario, Canada, with his wife, Karen. She is the Registrar for SJTEU. She is also a counsellor. Karen and Kevin are powned by their 20-year-old cat, Katherine, a.k.a. Her Royal Furriness, Princess Katherine of Timmins.
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