God’s Gift in Our Struggles

Hebrews 5:8-9 -- God’s Gift in Our Struggles

Son though [Jesus] was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.

I just finished reading Ken Grimwood’s Replay, a novel about a 43-year-old protagonist, Jeff, who finds himself dead and reborn into his 18-year-old past. The interesting twist is that Jeff remembers everything about his future and has an opportunity to make changes; he gets an opportunity to redo the poor choices of his past. What a fascinating concept! The novel, however, takes a selfish turn. Jeff chooses to lie, cheat, and scheme his way through the "replays" of his life. Gratuitous sex and gambling, for example, are part of his new life plan. And the results are bleak.

I can’t help fantasizing about what I would do differently if God gave me the gift of a do-over. There are many moments in my past where I made selfish, immature, dangerous, and destructive choices. And many times I dream about changing those choices. It is this fantasy, moreover, that attracted me to Grimwood’s book. But the more I read, paused, and examined the self-destruction of Jeff’s “replaying” the past, the more I realized that even through our poor choices, failures, and foibles, God blesses us . . . abundantly.

Replay conveys an important theme: Live life in the moment. No matter how many times Jeff finds himself dying and being reborn as a young man, the reader notices a pattern: Do-overs lead to just as many disappointments. Life, instead, is about making best out of living, even when it is riddled with our human faults. And if we look carefully at life, examining where God is present, we can choose to recognize God’s grace and blessings in any situation. We can make a moment of failure and defeat a moment of character building and spiritual strengthening.

Replay reminds me to look at the blessings in any situation -- yes even the most painful ones. Because in faith, God can bring promise and renewal through the most evil moments. Easter is a clear reminder of that.

Have a blessed week!

Stan