Of Deadlines, Deadbeats, and Dead Ends

"For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living." -Psalm 116:8-9

Deadlines scream: "Change this diaper." "Finish that paper." "Fax this letter." "Make that sale." Gotta hurry. Get it done! Get it out!! Now!!! Their tyranny leaves us breathless.

Deadbeats clamor: An overbearing boss. A rebellious child. An angry spouse. On my nerves, in my face, at my door. They kill the joy of loving, daily.

Dead ends loom: The money is gone. The marriage has failed. The cancer is back. No hope. No way out. It's over. It's done. They choke the hope of living.

In these tyrannical, loveless, hopeless days, God sings:
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?

He's not immune to our daily deaths. He just sings because he knows that his promise of victory isn't a 'wait 'till you're really dead and six feet under' promise. The promise of victory is now. He rescued David from the pit of despair more than once. He guaranteed Paul that nothing would ever separate us from his love. He assured Peter of a new birth into a living hope that would never fade. He sealed our claim to abundant life in his Son, Jesus.

So, go ahead and say, "Give it your best shot, deadlines. God's got it under control. Go ahead and make my day, deadbeats. God loves me too much. And take a hike, dead ends. God's hope is too real to deny."

* * * * *

You're my life, now and forever. There's no deadly foe that can destroy the life to which you called me. I'm alive!

Taken from More Precious Than Silver. Copyright © 1998 by Joni Eareckson Tada. Used by permission. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

Blessings,


Joni and Friends
www.joniandfriends.org