Hold On

“Hold on to what is good.”

1Thessalonians 5:21 NLT

 

 

I wish I could say I knew her, but I can’t. We went to support her daughter but we didn’t know her mom. We heard about her, we heard the stories, but time didn’t allow us to get to know her. If she was anything like her daughter whom we’ve come to call friend, than she was an awesome woman. The funeral reflected that.

 

Her longtime best friend stood and talked and gave us story after story of her resilience and fun-nature ways, and her quips. The woman, who was gone, was full of quips. She had a line for just about anything. We laughed at all of them.

 

Her family remembered one of her common remarks. When tough times were ahead, she told the ones she loved, “Make a stiff drink and hang on to the kitchen sink!”   (I think I may use that every now and then!)

 

Days have passed since we gathered, but I have thought about the really, really tough times. The times where life seems to keep throwing us curves. The days where we shake our heads and say, “Really God? —Another thing piled on me?”

 

And what can we do?

 

We certainly can’t go around grabbing stiff drinks and hanging out in the kitchen all day (well…, not every day).

 

But we can hold on.

 

And what we hold on to, matters.

 

The kitchen sink works for only so long.

 

I need something stronger. How about you?

 

I love the word picture in Paul’s words:

“I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Philippians 3:12

Just like us, Paul is saying he needs to hold on to something strong–so he moves towards God. But the end of the verse shows past tense—God has already taken hold of him–of us. Beautiful!

 

We run towards Him, only to understand He is already holding on.

 

We have the world to contend with. That’s for sure! The curve balls, the pains, the trials—well, they keep a-comin’. And quite frankly does anyone see them ever stopping? It’d be nice to think there is a limit, and after that limit has been reached we’re done. The bad stuff is over. We get to brush our hands back and forth and say, “whew, my time has passed.”

 

But we all know that won’t happen.

 

Sometimes it feels like a conveyor belt stacked up at the ready.

 

So what do we hold on to?

 

May I suggest our Savior?

 

In the middle of a book that is all about the grief and destruction of the world around him, Jeremiah throws in a profound statement in Lamentations.

He understood.

He wants us to understand.

 

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”  Lamentations 3:23

 

We ALL have struggles. Please, please never forget that—we ALL do. Don’t fall into the trap believing you are alone. You aren’t. If it’s not your exact struggle, it’s a struggle nonetheless for the person next to you.

 

But…

 

It is what we do in the midst of those struggles that set us apart.

 

We can give up or we can hold on.

 

We can think all is lost or we can know it will get better—in His timing, in His way.

 

And there is where we rest.

 

In His mercies.

 

Which are new every day.

 

Because He is faithful.

 

Because He loves you.

 

Because He’s already holding on.

 

So in the turmoil, hold on.

Hold on to that promise.

Hold on to the One who will restore.

And listen for Him to say,

“If you think this is the best it can get—you ain’t seen nothing yet!”