People in the Middle

March 23

Read: Ecclesiastes 3:1-13, 8:6-8

People in the Middle

I was meeting with my friend Brian Onken the other day, and as we spoke with one another and read the scriptures together it became quite clear to me that God has made us a “people in the middle”. God has seen fit to show us the beginning and the end, but as far as the middle goes… well frankly… we don’t always get a very clear picture of “how we get there from here”. Each and every day we wake up and live life in the “middle”. As sure as we are of our final destiny / outcome (resurrection and the new heavens and earth) we don’t really get to know exactly how we get there. “…We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Rom. 8:28) Yet, we are not always sure exactly HOW we will end up in that “goodness”… and Romans 8:28 is weak medicine when we find ourselves in fray. Brian made a great point as we sat and shard with one another, we really don’t often expect what is coming our way. I agreed. I have begun to think that is EXACTLY how God wants it. This “mystery in the middle” may be precisely what keeps us dependent on HIM.

The greatest moments in my life have been the most “unexpected”… not necessarily “unexpected” in the macro sense (the large overarching view) but more so in the micro sense… the moment by moment small details sort of way. Here are a few examples: I knew when my wedding day was scheduled back in 1999. I had a general sense of what was going to happen that day. I had NO IDEA how I would react that moment I saw Olivia in her dress for the first time walking down that aisle. I thought I knew how I would respond… I had a plan for how it was supposed to go… but I had no idea. It was so far beyond what I expected or anticipated. I may have known the “end” of it all, but the real beauty was in the “middle”. Another example comes from the summer of 2020. I was in the midst of a crisis of my faith… probably the lowest point of my life… when God sent an elderly woman from Casper, WY to Melbourne Beach, FL to meet me. I had no idea what was coming that day I went out to the beach. I didn’t anticipate ANYONE else there. That is when this woman came up to me and spoke to me words that came from the Lord… words specifically for ME. I had been crying out to the Lord to meet me… to speak to me… to reveal himself to me. I had been reading the scriptures, praying, going to the places that I EXPECTED to find the Lord. Those usual places had “run dry”. I was at my wits end when the Lord met me there on the beach in the words he was delivering from a stranger named Liz. This woman had been sent to Melbourne Beach, FL from Wyoming by the Lord who told her that there was “ministry for her” waiting in Melbourne Beach. (So crazy! She rented a VRBO for 2 weeks and I met her on the last day she was there. She walked that same stretch of beach each day she was there.) What is the point?

The most powerful, beautiful, and easily recognizable as from God sorts of moments come when we surrender to being dependent on the Father and embracing the moments of “not knowing” how things will unfold. The best man-made plans also serve as the the best distractions from the Lord. When things start unfolding according to our plans, we are tempted to trust our plans more than the Lord. This is not to say we should not make plans… but rather that we should surrender our plans to the Lord and recognize that we will probably end up “unsettled” or “disrupted” a lot more often than we expect!

This is living life “in the middle” between the concrete-ness of our past (hind-sight being 20/20) and the assurance of our ultimate future in Christ. I am convinced the best, most God-filled moments will come when OUR plans are disrupted and God sends us our own “black swan” events. Life in Christ is a life of “expecting the unexpected”. God is most likely going to solve the problem you have in front of you today in a way that you DO NOT expect. Because you are not expecting the solution to come from where it is coming from, you are probably looking someplace else for it. Because you are looking someplace else for it… you don’t see it on the horizon. The ENEMY tells you, “God is not coming. There is no help for you.” This is a lie. Help IS on the way. GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN YOU. He wants you to turn your eyes upon him. I am reminded of the lyrics:

“O soul, are you weary and troubled?

No light in the darkness you see?

There’s light for a look at the Savior,

And life more abundant and free!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace.”

(Here is a LINK to a fun / quirky version of this song to listen to today!)

What should we do then? Turn our eyes to HIM. Embrace the unknown. Recognize that we will not be “settled” in this lifetime… we live “in the middle”… we are ALL in process… the best is yet to come. Trust God’s GOODNESS. (cf. Hebrews 11:6) If we are not convinced of his GOODNESS, we will be crushed by the uncertainty of normal life. Nothing “bad” is happening to you that is uncommon… it is simply LIFE. God meets us in the midst of life and carry us forward…brings us through. We see this in Ecclesiastes:

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven…

(God) has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end…

For there is a time and a way for everything, although man's trouble lies heavy on him. For he does not know what is to be, for who can tell him how it will be? No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death.”

We don’t get to know the details of the middle… we just get to be dependent on the Father. We get to know the “macro”… the big picture items… but the “micro” details God works out and keeps us guessing. This is the way… the most beautiful way. God will meet us most deeply in these unforeseen moments. They are THE BEST. So here is to being a “people in the middle”. Celebrate not knowing how it will all get worked out. Look forward to the unexpected ways Jesus is going to show up. Trust his GOODNESS. Don’t be afraid. Love you guys. - JDP

PS- Thank you all for your patience. I have been battling a bit of depression lately and it has zapped me… but The Lord is good and pulling me out. He is showing up. I am trusting him “in the middle”. I am sorry for not writing the last few days. It is actually one of the things that brings me the MOST joy. It is good to be back.