I have sporadically seen a few videos from Rob Bell's Nooma series in the past, but have never really been able to analyze them. What a good interactive and entertaining way to kick off Lunch For Three! I have embedded the video below, please view and comment!
Nooma 001|Rain
"Things dont always work out the way we want them to, or the way we think they will. Sometimes we dont even see it coming. We get hit with some form of pain out of nowhere leaving us feeling desperate and helpless. Thats the way life is. Still, it makes us wonder how God can let these things happen to us. How God can just stand by and watch us suffer. Where is God when it really hurts? Maybe God is actually closer to us than we think. Maybe its when were in these situations, where everything seems to be falling apart, that God gets an opportunity to remind us of how much he really loves us. " NOOMAtube
There are a few key elements that really stuck out to me while watching Rain. The one thought that kept coming back to me was the comment the Rob made when he said, "It's not IF the rain comes, but WHEN the rain comes." It's inevitable, we live in a fallen world and we will experience pain, we will experience disaster, and we will experience death. Despite what we may think, when we are hurting and when we cry, we are not alone. In Matthew 11:28 Jesus says, "Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest." Why does this continue to be such a tough concept for us to understand? Because we are stubborn and think that we can handle life on our own.
The father son analogy that Rob uses in this video is very powerful. The imagery of the crying baby can be understood by all who have suffered before. And it is in our times of pain that the devil will strike. Do you ever feel like everything seems to go wrong all at the same time? I know I have. You lose your job, a loved one passes away, and you get in a car accident, all in the same week! While we are at the bottom and feeling helpless, sin creeps into our lives and begins to instill the doubt into our mind. If we have such a loving God, how can he allows us to have this much pain? Just like Rob's son in the video was focused solely on the storm we tend to focus on the root of our problems rather than lift them up to the Lord. Admitting that we cannot do it on our own is the first step to submitting your life and your problems to Christ.
Life can be messy. People get sick. Accidents happen. Life's not easy. Unfortunately all of these statements are reality. Accepting that "I am Lost, I am hurting, and that this sinful nature is really screwing things up for me" is where the rebuilding begins. Once we are able to open our eyes and see the light through the pain, we will realize that all along our Lord has been right by our side whispering to us "I love you buddy, we're gonna make it!"
ah i love this one! it gives me goosebumps!
ReplyDeletei feel like temptation is always the strongest when we're in the eye of the storm...because at that point, we're seeking any kind of instant gratification that we can get..so we seek to find it from sources other than Christ...because it's easier. it's quicker.
but it's not lasting fulfillment. soon, it drains...and you find yourself back at square one.
you're so right...life is messy. it is completely and utterly messy. but how comforting is it to know that in the midst of our struggle, the Lord is holding us tight and whispering those words...protecting us.
as Christians, we are going to suffer. we are going to be persecuted. and our limits are going to be tested to the extreme. the comfort in that? knowing that your Savior is holding you tight, protecting you, and increasing your strength at the same time.
i love it!