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by Kevin Pauley
"Your heart must not be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if not, I would have told you. I am going away to prepare a place for you. If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come back and receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also. - John 14:1-3 HCSB
There once was a king who lost a war and as a result was exiled to a distant country. When he arrived, he found that quite a few of his previously captured subjects had also been exiled to the same place. He went to visit one of his loyal subjects in the man's modest home. When the subject saw that his king had been captured and exiled, the subject broke down and wept. However, as he cried he also smiled, rejoicing because he stood in the presence of his king.
We Christians have been described as pilgrims in a strange land.[1] We have not been promised an easy path.[2] We have not been promised health and wealth as a result of our faith. We are told that some saints trusted God and were tortured, preferring to die rather than turn from God and be free. They placed their hope in the resurrection to a better life. Some were mocked, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in dungeons. Some died by stoning, and some were sawed in half; others were killed with the sword. Some went about in skins of sheep and goats, hungry and oppressed and mistreated. They were too good for this world. They wandered over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground and get this! All of these people received God's approval because of their faith![3]
So we are strangers in a strange land, longing for our home. We have been specifically warned that the way will be rough and that we will probably not fare particularly well in this world. So should we be gloomy? Should we be downtrodden? Should our religion be characterized by weeping and walking around with a glum expression on our faces? Should pious people be miserable and melancholy? Absolutely not!
So how can we find joy in the midst of life's difficult circumstances? Where can we find that perpetual spring that takes away thirst altogether; that wells up from within providing eternal life?[4]
The Master one day stood and shouted to the crowds, "If you are thirsty, come to me! If you believe in me, come and drink! For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within." When he said "living water," he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him.[5] We can find joy in the midst of our tears because we stand in the presence of our King.
Kevin Pauley is a pastor and writer. He lives in Illinois with his wife, Lynn, their five children and two dogs. His internet address is Berea.
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