| Have you ever been lost in the fog? Like, walking in the fog and you get lost? I have been a couple times. And for me, both times were pretty terrifying.
Years ago, I was moose hunting Northwest of Meadow Lake and it was a cold late November much like today. It was damp, cold and very foggy.
We were walking on a path, my brother and me and our guide, a cut line through a very thick forest. When we came to a fork in our trail I went one way and they went another. Did I mention it was foggy?
The trail wound down hill and into a valley where the fog was thicker but it was precisely in that valley where the moose tracks we were following lead and so down I went, deeper into the valley and deeper into the fog. Just a bit farther along I heard a sound, the sound of crunching footsteps of a beast in the snow and of branches breaking and I knew what it was - a moose. But it was just too foggy to see it and so I followed the sound off of the trail and into the fog and deeper into the valley. As the moose moved so did I. The only trouble was the moose knew where he was going and after a bit, I realized I was not at all sure of where I was going. So, I doubled back but I must have started in the wrong direction and then I got that panicky feeling that only those who have been lost before understand.
I came to the place where I saw my own footprints in the snow and I knew that I had gone in a circle. And at that moment I just sat down and then I tried to calm down but as soon as I sat down I realized how cold I was and how far I was from the truck. Even if I knew where to go, I was a long way away, and that fog was so thick I could hardly see my feet. So I just waited, frustrated and cold and anxious and pretty scared, just waiting for the fog to lift. Eventually I heard my brother and I cried out “where are you?” and he said “right here” and he was like 200 feet away. When I found him all he said was, “ you’re such a baby”. Fog is a terrible thing to be lost in.
Sometimes life is a lot like that. It just gets really foggy like when we get pushed into a season of heartbreak beyond our ability to endure or like when the sting of death overwhelms us and we are forced to kiss a loved one goodbye for the final time. That’s when fog shrouds our lives.
Or how about the pain of separation and divorce and the relational loss of your closest friend? The grieving fog that divorce forces us into can feel so lonely and helpless.
There are lots of foggy patches in life like depression that holds you down and steals your passion or when that addiction, the one we simply can’t seem to put away for good, raises its ugly head and we are helplessly engulfed in its despair. Or how about loneliness, or financial failure, or relational breakdowns or marriage problems or the dozens of sins that so easily entangle our progress. You know.
There are a thousand roads in life that lead us into the fog, a thousand, and it is with a full understanding of all of those roads and with complete clarity of how heavy the fog can be that Jesus spoke these words to His followers:
“Blessed are those who mourn . . . for they will be comforted.”
Matthew 5:4
I read that this week and I said to myself, what was Jesus thinking? You’re blessed if you are in mourning? I mean, does He even know mourning really means: “To have a deep sense of loss, helplessness and despair.”
And Jesus said you are blessed if you have a deep sense of loss, helplessness and despair? That just didn’t sit that well with me so I dug a little deeper.
Another version of Jesus’ words said this: “You’re blessed when you’ve lost what’s most dear to you because only then can you be embraced by the one most dear to you. ”
Matthew 5:4 (The Message)
Those words unlocked something for me. Jesus said it’s only in the middle of mourning, it’s only when mourning has broken into your life that we feel God so close. It’s only when we face deep sorrow or heartache or loss or loneliness - only in that dense fog – that we can be embraced by God at a different level more than we ever have been before.
Jesus says there’s something about being lost in that kinda fog that allows us to see and feel God closer; closer than what is the normal experience. And so that’s why He says there is a blessing when you’ve lost what’s most dear to you because that’s the only place you find the embrace of God at that kinda level. What He was saying was this: In some ways you can’t get to that level with God on any other road other than mourning.
So, why would we talk about all this kinda stuff in church 10 days before Christmas? Isn’t Christmas supposed to be about joy and peace and love? And isn’t this season all about celebrating and Christmas parties and family gatherings and great food? Well, the answer to that is yes and no.
For a much greater percentage of this city than you or I might realize, that is if your life is going very well this season, a lot of people this Christmas face heartbreak or loss or death or an addiction. Because it’s Christmas, it just makes that pain even greater and the fog even thicker and harder to navigate through. One writer described facing a loss at Christmas like this. He said at Christmas:
“It makes us a little crazy. It creates an aching distance between ourselves and that which we wanted to hold onto as solid ground.”
Jay Marshall
Let that sink in for a minute.
So today, during this Christmas season, I just wanted you to know the truth about life. There is great fog that visits our life from time to time and for a lot of people sitting right here, you’re in it right now.
Christmas is a brutally hard season for a lot of people. When it’s your first Christmas without a loved one or when it’s your first Christmas that you’re alone or when it’s Christmas and you’re engulfed in sadness that you can’t explain or wrapped up in addiction that you can explain but can’t seem to beat or if you’re in a family or relational conflict this season, if that’s you - then what I’m gonna say next is for you. All that is very real and there is a way to find some comfort and some direction and maybe even a little joy in the midst of the deep fog you find yourself in this Christmas.
And, that is to become aware that you are not alone in the fog. You are not lost in the woods because God is still with you and guiding you and that is precisely where this great paradox of blessing lies. It is actually in the fog where you will find God and His love and His embrace and whenever you find God’s love and embrace there is great blessing.
I want you to listen to some powerful words from Scripture, some of them written right out of the fog. The Bible says this:
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
And the God of all grace, who called you, (after you have suffered a little while), will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.”
1 Peter 5:6-7, 10-11 (New International Version)
Notice how that echoes Jesus’ words. You are not alone in this world. You are not alone in your pain, in your suffering. You are not alone.
The apostle Paul said it like this in the book of Corinthians:
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles.” Hear that.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4a (New International Version)
God is more than aware of all the atrocities and anxiety and challenges we face in our lives and it is precisely during those moments when He is closer to us than ever before.
You know, for 1000’s of years, people have been crying out to God from the middle of their pain and fog. Listen to this:
“For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.”
“Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay.”
Psalm 40:12 and 17 (New International Version)
“How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death”
Psalm 13:1-3 and 5a (New International Version)
I am dying here God, in the middle of this pain. I am dying in the fog. “How long O Lord. Will you forget me forever?”
Those words were written 3000 years ago by a man whose enemies pursued him day and night and whose sins chased him even harder. The human condition has almost always been in mourning of one kind or another. There is loss and suffering all over this world because of war, corrupt leadership, famine, disease, abuse, relational breakdown, marital unfaithfulness and the list goes on and on and on and we cry out to God and we hope that He hears us. And He always does.
Listen to how David sums up all his questions to God about how long his suffering will last:
“The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. The needy will not always be forgotten.”
Psalm 9:9 and 18a (New International Version)
Psalm 13 says this, “but I trust in your unfailing love O God.”
Now, at a moment like this there are 2 groups of people in this room. The first group thinks things are going okay, no big heartaches this Christmas and this message is not hitting home. Here’s a suggestion as you sit and continue to listen. Pray for that family you know who lives on your block or plays with your kid on his hockey team who are going through trouble. Pray these words and truth into their lives.
The second group is everyone here who finds themselves in a measure of pain or suffering or frustration this Christmas. Here’s a challenge. Don’t run from these words. Listen intently, open up your heart.
You know during that first Christmas, the very first one I mean, Mary and Joseph were walking in the fog of life as well. It’s almost like Christmas started in the fog. Think about it. There is no way that a teenage girl like Mary could ever understand what it might mean for her to carry God’s child. It had to be an awesome and frightening experience.
Relationally, she had to be in great conflict with her very strict Jewish family, as she would be judged very harshly by not only her family but also her whole community for showing up pregnant. She was a committed Jewish follower of God and she was pregnant outside of marriage. That just didn’t happen in strict God-fearing Jewish homes in the 1st century. And if it did happen, there must be appropriate reaction and judgment.
Don’t you think that kinda reaction from family and friends would create some mourning in Mary’s life?
Just think about her and Joseph feeling that kinda pressure and that kind of ostracization and then having to travel because of a government decree to a different town in her 9th month of pregnancy on the back of a donkey where they end up not in a hotel, because the hotels were full. Bad move on Joseph’s part. He should have called ahead. And so Mary, this teenage first-time mom has to give birth basically by herself in a stinky old stable where animals slept. I mean Joseph was there, but speaking from a husband with experience in these matters, Joseph wasn’t much help to Mary. He probably said, “breathe honey” at the wrong time and she would have just got mad at him.
With Pam and I, my role was support; ice cubes, counting, water, and saying “breath now.” We’re well into this deal and she is in a tough spot and she says, “Dean could you rub my legs?” I said “sure.” As soon as I tried, “don’t touch me!” I just wasn’t much help and neither was Joseph.
But, realistically, don’t you think that even Mary the mother of Jesus was in a pretty foggy place that first Christmas? Relational conflict, uncomfortable surroundings, some frightening experiences and some major confusion about the future; none of which she had any control over. And yet there she was. You’ll be surprised when you read it, as she was pretty calm in the fog.
You know what always amazes me when I read the story of that first Christmas? What always amazes me was how peaceful it all seemed. In the middle of all that was going on around Mary and Joseph, there still seemed to be kind of a sense of awe. Not only were they just okay with their circumstances, many of which were hard and outside of their control, but they actually felt blessed and in awe. Why? Because in their distress God met them. And in their fear and frustration, they were not only embraced by God but they knew they were being led by God through the fog of their circumstances.
Their faith actually became stronger the farther they walked into the fog. Mary really was blessed as she lost what was most dear to her; as she lost her family and her identity and her childhood and her safety and her comfort. See, as she felt she was losing all that in the fog, she was gaining greater clarity and trust in God’s love and His hand on her life. Folks, my message and our take home from God today is pretty simple. If you find yourself in a place of loss this Christmas and it’s just way more real to you than anyone knows, you are not alone and there is comfort.
Two things we can do to find comfort; two actions, faith steps, you can take right here today to lift the fog a bit.
Acknowledge your loss and mourning this Christmas season. Don’t try and chase it away with another Christmas parcel or with lights and fancy wrapping and bows or another party. These things are great, but people, we have to learn to open ourselves up to the darker sides of life we face. When we do, things like anger, and confusion and tears may accompany it and those can be frightening feelings, but we have to learn how to acknowledge that stark uncomfortable reality. If we’re lost in the fog, then you and I better face that feeling sooner rather than later. So, if you’re grieving, let yourself grieve this Christmas. It’s okay. If you’re hurting, let the pain sweep over you. And if your sin is in front of you face it, or if your addiction is out of control, just acknowledge that it’s unmanageable and get some help.
See folks, all the joy and love and lights that gush this season cannot change the reality of where your life is at. If you’re in the fog, acknowledge that. And to be honest, that is part of what we wanted to give you an opportunity to do today, to simply take that piece of paper you received when you came in and use it to acknowledge that you’re in the fog and name that thing that you’re crying out to God about. How long O God? Will you forget me forever?
Name it. If it’s divorce, write it down on that paper to acknowledge that this is where your pain comes from. If it’s betrayal write that down.
If it’s depression or anxiety or cancer or health issues, write that down. If it’s that awful addiction, write that down. If it’s the anger you feel about how someone else has hurt you, write down anger. Acknowledge it. Work with me here a bit.
There is an incredible healing power that happens in our lives when we acknowledge what it is that is causing that feeling of loss or grief or mourning. You have to have a clear picture of what that looks like, of how dense the fog really is. You have to be able to know what it is that you’ve lost and acknowledge it before the fog will ever begin to lift. Take a faith step, write it down, be courageous.
And then here’s the second action to find some comfort that we gotta take. After we acknowledge, we must RECEIVE.
What did Jesus say; we’re blessed in the desperate seasons of life when loss is all around us. We’re blessed because in that dense fog we can receive the embrace of God.
See, Jesus promised to not only bring comfort to our lives but He promised to be our comfort. He promises to walk into the deepest and darkest and most painful parts of our lives and embrace those events or sins or moments with us.
I gotta tell you, I have witnessed a lot of tragedy in people’s lives over the course of the last 20 years in this job, lots of tragedy, but none as profound as I felt this week with such young vibrant lives ending so abruptly.
Unless it has happened to you as a parent losing a child or watching a child in danger of losing his life, I don’t think we can ever imagine it. But I gotta tell you, just watching Don and Jeanette Block and their sons and their extended family’s faith during this past couple of days was unreal, as their son’s life has teetered on the edge.
People, they have felt God’s presence in the midst of great tragedy and fear and panic in the very worst moments of life as a parent and as brothers. They have been comforted by God himself and they are being carried by a God who desperately loves them and it is an incredible thing to see.
See, God has promised to not only walk with us in the fog but to carry us if we can’t make it alone. That is an incredible blessing, and yet there is great mystery here. Because in order to really allow God to embrace you or heal you or carry you or forgive you or begin to mend up your life or marriage or family - in order for that to happen it takes a step of faith. And people, that is the mystery of God. He will not intrude but He waits. He waits near to us and when we are ready to receive Him and to receive His love and His healing, THEN He steps in.
There’s a Christmas song I love, a simple song “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” We might sing it again on Christmas Eve, but there’s a great line in there for us today:
“where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in.”
People, listen to me. If you open your life up in a new way to Jesus today, if you activate your faith and just say I want to receive you Jesus, He’ll enter your life and circumstance like you never dreamed possible. His love will enter in to your soul at a level you can’t imagine. That’s the mystery of Faith. When you and I are willing to receive, Jesus enters in and when Jesus is with us everything changes. Everything changes.
Some of you guys need reminding of that even if you’ve been walking by faith for years. You need to know that by Faith, in a moment you can receive the power of Christ to heal you or mend up your life or forgive you or give you the power to forgive someone else.
In a moment by faith you can receive power to bottle depression or beat an addiction or patch up a broken marriage. That is what Jesus does, He mends what is broken and He walks with or carries the broken-hearted and it is an amazing and awesome blessing.
But the mystery is still in the step of faith. If you’re in the fog, acknowledge it and then receive.
Again, we want to give you an opportunity to act on your faith and to step out on that which God is speaking to you about. Two steps:
Paper. Writing down that word was the first step of acknowledging that you’re in the fog, that you want God to know what that thing is: a heartache, a sin, a relationship, an addiction, or a loss.
As we close, we’re gonna take another faith step to also receive from God in the midst of the fog. At the front and on the way out there are glass vases. Place that paper in them. As you do, know that it symbolizes that you are not in it alone. That you want God to meet you in the fog with that step of faith. “God, I receive your love.” |
