The Gift of Desperation

For our date night tonight, Carol and I had dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, Los Cabos, and enjoyed a free concert put on by KXOJ that starred David Dunn and Among the Thirsty. All are incredible musicians with a desire to serve God and the music that God makes through them is amazing. If you're unfamiliar with their work, I recommend "Completely" by Among the Thirsty and "Today is Beautiful" by David Dunn. 

In between songs, each talked a bit about their life experiences and the ways that God teaches us wisdom. Mr. Dunn spoke of an analogy in which his nephew, who was 3-years old at the time of the story, had a meltdown at Disneyland because he wasn't able to push his younger brother's stroller. It is from witnessing this event that taught him how much kids are a real example of our sin self. Kids have no masks to hide their desires, their anger or their frustrations with life. They lay it out for everyone to see and experience and regardless of the reality of the situation, all they can see is the immediate source of their problem. David pointed out how, if his nephew would have just looked up and away from the source of his problem, he would have realized where he was, that the problem really wasn't that serious, and that his father already had the matter well in hand.

An interesting point, and a very truthful one at that.

The more direct point made during the concert and the focus of the remainder of this post is when Among the Thirsty's front man, Ryan Daniel, discussed how desperation is a gift, because it isn't until we reach the point of desperation, the end of ourselves, that we are able to truly see how much we need God. He likened his point to the book of James, chapter 1, when James instructs that we should take Joy in our trials, because it is those things that will take us to the point in which we recognize just how much, how desperately we truly need God. It is also at that point, that we begin to understand the power of the gift that we have been given in Jesus.

One part of his illustration that was very clear and powerful is this, "If you put your identity in something that can be taken away, it will destroy you."

If you see yourself defined by anything worldly - your social status, your job, your possessions, even by your role in your family or church - all of these are things that can easily disappear without notice. When they're gone, all that you valued in yourself, all that you believed about who you are, is gone. 

Period. End of story. 

And to help drive that point home even more, there is nothing - NOTHING - that is of this world that is not temporary. Carve your name on any mountain you want, or as many as you want, and all it takes is a little earthquake to shake you up. Bury your name at the bottom of the sea, and one day when the seas boil, the only thing your identity will be is all wet. as it says in Matthew 24:35, "Heaven and Earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away."

Anything you can think of in heaven or earth won't last. Every building laid low, mountains ground to dust. The world will be a level playing field, because everything that you used to build you up will be gone, nothing more than dust, and probably much less.

God, however, is the only perpetual provider that lives outside of our short-term universe and only He can be the immortal presenter of our principled presence, the keeper of our incorruptible character, and the irreversible vigilant preserver of our vindicated value.

Whatever your struggle is right now, I would make two recommendation. First - As hard as the struggle is, as big as the problem seems to be right this minute, stop. Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Then, turn around and open your eyes. Tilt your head back and look up, down or to the side, any direction other than the one that points right back to the issue at hand. 

The second thing, which immediately follows the first, is to pray. Don't pray for the problem to be resolved or the issue to go away. Pray instead, either for the wisdom to use the situation for good or for help reaching your point of desperation. Either one is a much better direction than focusing solely on the problem and wishing for it to be taken away. 

We wouldn't grow if things were just taken away. Better to humble ourselves, to accept with pure joy whatever trial we are facing and give thanks to God for every moment of it, than to ask God to take away something that He is going to use to make us stronger and wiser.

Instead, turn your face into the storm and pray on. 

Pray for the end of you. 

Pray for the gift of desperation.