Born for Adversity

Adversity is our lives is real. There is nothing like hardship to make you question the reality of God’s existence. Whenever you and I are plowing through rough times, one of the important lessons we can learn is to draw strength from others. The Bible tells us that a friend loves at all times, and that a brother is born for adversity. This week, I learned the truth of that verse.

This past week has been one for the ages. It started when we discovered that my mother-in-law was rushed to the hospital with a stroke. At almost the same second, we learned of a death in our family (brother-in-law). After a night in the ER and a day in the hospital, we agreed to bring mom home to live with us until she could get better. What we soon discovered was the stroke had made her combative and angry. Raging for the next couple of days and nights, we agreed to bring her back to her home, (she lives a couple of hours away), but as soon as she walked into her apartment, she changed her mind. So back to our house we went. That evening, she started raging again, refusing medications, and claiming that we were holding her hostage. The events were so bad that once again we had to seek medical help and take her to the hospital. During this time, both cars broke down, (one of them got impounded), the dog chewed up glasses again, and life in our house got flipped on its head.

But through it all, a Christian brother of mine walked with us. When the car broke down (miles from home in a strange place with my wife and kid inside in the middle of the night), I called him. He came to our rescue. When I needed help getting the two blown out tires repaired for my other car, he opened his wallet because mine was empty. When I needed help figuring out how to get some things done during this crazy week, he took his time to help run errands. Get groceries. Go to the bank. He sent me a link to a job. He prayed for God’s blessing on this transition to retirement. He offered advice and a listening ear. Basically, he loved on me and my family, by putting his life on hold to serve us. Over the years, this Christian brother with a heart of gold has endured my whines, encouraged me with his words, and impacted my life with his deeds. There are not enough ways to say thank you.

(I wish I could say that I have been as good a friend to him. It seems as if he is always helping me. He would tell you that is not the case, but I suspect it is).

I am struck by the fact that God knows our need for connection so much that He literally creates certain people for times like these. We often say that someone is “born” with a skill and we mean that somehow cosmically they were supposed to do that one thing. (He was born to play ball, born to lead, born to sing, etc,). We imply that in God’s grand plan that this person was designed to be great at that one trait. When the Bible tells us that a brother is “born” for adversity, it makes sense that our loving Creator purposes certain people to be in our lives at just the right moments. Their purpose is to be Jesus to us when no one else will.

It is His way of reminding us that there still hope. Even though things are crumbling around us, and we are unsure of God’s love, we can hold on to the reality that somebody cares. When our faith grows weak, we can rely on their steadfast love. Like the four friends carrying the lame man to Jesus, God uses a person (or persons) to carry us and when they do, God blesses and performs His wonders.

The greatest example of being born for adversity is Jesus, of course. He was born for the cross. His purpose was to come to this earth, teach the ways of God, and then offer his life willingly as punishment for our sins. He endured beatings, beyond what we could even imagine. He was wounded for our transgressions. Pierced for our inequities. The judgement intended for us fell on him. And he endured this without ever uttering a word of protest. He was truly the Lamb of God born to give his life as a ransom for us all. Nothing else matters than the fact that God so loved the world, He gave His one and only Son.

Today, I need you to live up to your purpose. I need you to be a brother born for adversity. Perhaps there is someone in your circle of influence who is struggling. Their faith is ebbing and they are wondering about God’s care and provision. They might need some food, a bill paid, or just someone to talk to. Perhaps they need a visit in the hospital, or a hug and a whisper of love. Perhaps they just need you. (If you cannot think of anyone, you need to widen your world a bit).

So today, I want to say thank you to God for providing such a friend as the one who ministered to us this week. (You know who you are). Truly, you have been Jesus to us. And perhaps that is what God intended for your life all along.