Resilience!
2 Corinthians 4:8-9
8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
At one time Jesus told His disciples, “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” Truer words have never been spoken. This life is full of trouble and heartache and confusion, but for those who call themselves followers of Jesus there is hope and help in times of need.
In reading 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, I am reminded of a characteristic that lives within us as human beings; a characteristic I believe is given by God because we are made in His image. For lack of a better term, I refer to it as resilience. Dictionary.com defines resilience as the ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune; buoyancy. The Apostle Paul, the writer of 2 Corinthians, didn’t have Dictionary.com in his day, but it seems that he knew exactly what resilience meant. In fact, he was a walking example of Godly resilience despite all the hardship he endured for the sake of the gospel. He suffered beatings, stonings, cursings, whippings, imprisonment, shipwreck, and abandonment. If anyone could write the lines of 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 with certainty and conviction, it was Paul.
The passage clearly states what we are and what we are not. I’d like to list them for you.
We ARE… We ARE NOT…
Hard pressed on every side Not crushed
Perplexed Not in despair
Persecuted Not abandoned
Struck down Not destroyed
Maybe today, like me, you needed to be reminded of the things that we are NOT. No matter how hard life has struck you, the truth is that we are not crushed, we are not in despair, we are not abandoned, and we are not destroyed. although our bodies may be hurt, bruised, disfigured, or violated our spirits cannot be touched. Beneath these earthsuits live the real us. Our mind, will, emotions. Our spirit. Our heart. It is there that we are inhabited by God’s Spirit. It is there where we are strengthened and transformed by His Spirit. This world can’t touch that part of us…unless we let it.
Regardless of what you are facing today I encourage you to summon the resilience God has placed within you through His spirit. Defy the odds! Stand up and say, “I will not be destroyed!” Remind yourself that you are living to fight another day…and whatever comes tomorrow will have to submit to God’s will first. DO NOT lose heart Jesus has overcome the world and He is with you. Remember that this world is not your home. Don’t get too attached to its “stuff.” Or as Paul would say, its “Rubbish.” I will leave you with the last few verses of 2 Corinthians 4. Please, read them and allow God’s Spirit within you to fill you with the resilience you need.
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal
