Yesterday I watched a movie about how Händel's Messiah came about.
It was an interesting story, but what really hit me was the description of the
3 parts of the oratorium. I am not an expert in it, and still isn't, but the
description provided in the movie hit me as a perfect description of my life.
The first part was about faith and hope, the second part of suffering, the third
part about the redemption and salvation.
I have experienced in my life the conversion that brought so much faith and hope
into my life and into the life of my family. This period lasted a quarter of a century
for me, I was healthy, strong, my work life although challenging prospered (and
still does). I raised a family of healthy kids together with my wife.
A couple of years ago I started up the second phase in my life. In the footnotes of
a speech by Neil L. Andersen I read a passage that made all the sense in the world
to me.
Quote: After days of ‘suffering,’ you are tired. After weeks of ‘suffering,’ you are exhausted. After months of ‘suffering,’ you begin to lose your ground. After years of ‘suffering,’ you submit to the possibility that you’ll never get better again. Hope becomes the most precious, and elusive, of gifts.
I definitely did reach the phase where you submit to the possibility that you will never
get better again. At the same time I still knew what the path was and that the path
leads to this glorious third phase of redemption and salvation. I still have no idea
about how this miracle will happen, but I've seen so many times that what has
happened in my life is the will of God and that it teaches me lessons that I could
not have learned in any other way.
For those that read those words I hope that you can learn your lessons with less
painful experiences. But if necessary, submit to the suffering and keep your
hope and your faith and rest assured that the Lord is with you in every step
of the way. I learned a lot about how Jesus felt those last days in his life through
my sufferings and the Lord prepared me to be a better servant in his kingdom.
It was an interesting story, but what really hit me was the description of the
3 parts of the oratorium. I am not an expert in it, and still isn't, but the
description provided in the movie hit me as a perfect description of my life.
The first part was about faith and hope, the second part of suffering, the third
part about the redemption and salvation.
I have experienced in my life the conversion that brought so much faith and hope
into my life and into the life of my family. This period lasted a quarter of a century
for me, I was healthy, strong, my work life although challenging prospered (and
still does). I raised a family of healthy kids together with my wife.
A couple of years ago I started up the second phase in my life. In the footnotes of
a speech by Neil L. Andersen I read a passage that made all the sense in the world
to me.
Quote: After days of ‘suffering,’ you are tired. After weeks of ‘suffering,’ you are exhausted. After months of ‘suffering,’ you begin to lose your ground. After years of ‘suffering,’ you submit to the possibility that you’ll never get better again. Hope becomes the most precious, and elusive, of gifts.
I definitely did reach the phase where you submit to the possibility that you will never
get better again. At the same time I still knew what the path was and that the path
leads to this glorious third phase of redemption and salvation. I still have no idea
about how this miracle will happen, but I've seen so many times that what has
happened in my life is the will of God and that it teaches me lessons that I could
not have learned in any other way.
For those that read those words I hope that you can learn your lessons with less
painful experiences. But if necessary, submit to the suffering and keep your
hope and your faith and rest assured that the Lord is with you in every step
of the way. I learned a lot about how Jesus felt those last days in his life through
my sufferings and the Lord prepared me to be a better servant in his kingdom.
