"He caused their chariot wheels to swerve and he made them drive with difficulty." (Exodus 14:15) "What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking can not be counted." (Eccl 1:15)
"I would not give a fig for the simplicity this side of complexity, but I would give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity." Oliver Wendell Holmes
There are things in this world that are broken, busted and bruised. Some things swerve, shift and shake. Unglued, rambling, rumbling and tumbling some things are falling apart. Philosophers talk about complexity in their thick books and long dissertations. They ramble along and get stuck. Some of us prefer denial. The simplicity on this side of complexity sounds like this: "It doesn't matter." "I don't care." "Let's party." "I have no problems." "Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die." This is beneath our dignity.
There are other people who look for the answers that are provoked by the problems. What shall we do... God? Christ is not the God of denial but the God of engagement. When life hurts it is not time for retreat but for engagement.
God said to Job "Now gird up your loins like a man, and I will ask you and you will instruct Me!" (Job 38:3) When God hurt Job, Job was full of questions. His chariot wheels were swerving. He was bogged down in complexity. God ministered to him by asking him 81 questions to humble him.
Job ended up on the other side of complexity. We are made for the simplicity on the other side of complexity. Christ is simplicity of the highest kind. Have you met seasoned experienced people who have clear eyes - fair as the moon, clear as the sun and terrible as an array of barriers? Song of Solomon 6:4
There are people like Joseph and Paul who despite the trouble did not withdraw but moved forward and found the ultimate solution for the swerving chariot and the crooked that stubbornly refuses to be straightened.
Recently one of our dearest brothers, John Von Buchwald, passed on to be with the Lord. We have seen God's great hand at work with everything crooked, even death. The crooked is made straight after all. (Isa 40:4) We have found simplicity that satisfies. We have found the "I Am" who stands with us in our trouble and makes a way in the desert. In the presence of Christ there is life rather than death, truth rather than a lie, and love that endures, bears, and believes all things. This simplicity is incredibly beautiful and glorifies our heavenly Father. Thank you Jesus.
Pastor Schaller
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