I once heard Pastor Tommy Nelson say, “If your circumstances dictate your perspective on life, you’ll never be happy.” He’s right! So what should dictate our perspective? Carson Wentz has something to teach us on that. If you don’t keep up with the NFL, Carson Wentz has been absolutely killing it this year at QB for the Eagles. He’ll almost make a Cowboys fan wanna pull of the Eagles…almost.* Sadly, Carson suffered a season ending torn ACL on Sunday. In the video below you’ll see and hear his Christ Centered message to his fans following the injury.
A few standout Wentz quotes:
“I have a ton of faith in the Lord and his plan”
“I just know the Lord’s working through it. I know Jesus has a plan through it.”
“This will be just a great testimony as I go forward”
“I have the upmost confidence in his plan. His plan is perfect. If we got everything we wanted in life it would be a disaster.”
These are words of a man of faith in the face of adversity. It’s this type of faith that gives us the right perspective.
A group of guys and I have been studying the life of the Apostle Paul on Tuesday mornings. This morning we talked about all that Paul went through and how he always maintained his composure. Like Wentz, Paul was calm and collected even when circumstances were far less than desirable. This perspective is available to all of us who have our faith in Christ. Philippians 4:4-7 says, Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
I jotted down a few things this morning that I need to remember in order to keep my perspective in the face of adversity. Maybe they’ll be helpful to you:
- God is sovereign and over all things. (Psalm 115)
- God loves me, as evident when I look at the cross. (Romans 5:8)
- The presence of God in turmoil is better than comfortable circumstances without him. (Psalm 46:1-3)
- We can merely go through circumstances, or we can GROW through them. (James 1:2-4)
- The Bible is full of stories of faithful people who went through very difficult times. Job, David, Joseph, Daniel, Paul, JESUS—Just to name a few. I’m in good company. Suffering is part of the Christian faith until Jesus returns. I won’t be the exception.
We don’t know what today holds, but we do know who holds the day!
Pastor Roy Layman 