BOUNCING BACK (part two)
There are many personal stories of people who bounced back from a bad situation. We're bouncing back from the pandemic with vaccinations and loosening COVID restrictions. People have bounced back from having COVID. Churches have bounced back from having to shut down for a period of time. And you may know of churches that have bounced back from losing people or from a church split.
We know people who have bounced back after a medical procedure or diagnosis. People who have bounced back from losing a loved one. People who have bounced back from an addiction or from incarceration. Sometimes people take a hit financially through bankruptcy or job loss and they bounce back from that.
Last week we looked at the story of Joseph. He bounced back from multiple situations. He was sold into slavery by his brothers, yet he chose to continue to serve God and he made a good impression.
Potipher's wife took notice of Joseph, but not for his godly qualities. When he dismissed her sexual advances she cried rape and he was thrown into prison. Again, he made the most of his situation. Eventually, he was released and made 2nd in command.
During the famine, his brothers came to Egypt to buy food. They saw Joseph but they didn't know it was him. After a while he revealed himself to them. They were terrified but Joseph assured them they didn't need to worry. He knew God allowed all this to use him to save lives.
Joseph wasn't the only one who bounced back from multiple hardships; Paul did too.
1) But...
2nd Cor. is a good book to learn about Paul's hardships. In Chapter 4 we find the familiar verses 8-9, "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."
Paul states the negative reality followed by the positive reality. Yes, we are feeling pressure all around us but that pressure isn't crushing us. It's uncomfortable, but we're dealing with it. Some people thrive under pressure; it gets them pumping, gets their juices flowing, kicks them into high gear.
But for others, being under pressure is unnerving; it can even cause them to snap and go off or perhaps have a nervous breakdown. For some, pressure causes them to throw in the towel and go hide. Some try to deal with the pressure by using drugs, alcohol or something else.
Then there are those who don't like it but they don't let it stop them. That was Paul. Despite the pressure he was under, he wasn't going to compromise or cave in. He mentioned being perplexed; which is being baffled or confused. Being perplexed can be debilitating. When we're in a situation where we don't know what to do we can shut down or even panic. We feel like something needs to happen right now but we don't know what.
Being perplexed can be nerve-racking but Paul said he wasn't at the point of despair. His perplexity was problematic but it didn't mean the situation was hopeless. We're never in despair when we have Jesus. We may be confused, but he isn't.
And if we don't figure out what to do before the buzzer goes off it's not a hopeless situation. Things may get worse, we may feel bad that we couldn't come up with a solution in time, but that doesn't mean we might as well give up. Part of bouncing back is staying the course; even if it means having to do something different.
Then Paul said he was persecuted but not abandoned. Dealing with persecution can make us feel like Jesus has left us alone to fight the battle. It can feel like he's not doing anything about it; but that's not true. Those who persevere through persecution know that Christ is with them, despite the harsh treatment they're dealing with.
When we go through persecution and mistreatment; when we suffer for doing good, we can get to where we want to give up. Forget this; if being vocal for Jesus is going to get me persecuted then I'm just going to keep my mouth shut and blend in from now on. If doing the right thing is going to get me in trouble anyway why bother?
Jesus warned his disciples that since they persecuted him they would persecute them too. But he would also remind them that he would be with them. Knowing this can help us bounce back and keep going. It's about honoring God for what he's done; It's about loving and serving God despite what happens.
Paul said he was struck down but not destroyed. Things don't always go the way we want them to; no matter how well we do. We might do everything right but there are factors outside of our control. And those external factors may cause things to not turn out well; resulting in us being struck down. We gave it our best but our best wasn't good enough. How do we bounce back from that?
Paul may have hit the canvas and lost a match or two but he wasn't destroyed. He figured as long as I'm still here I'm going to keep doing the right thing no matter what.
In this list we see the hardship followed by the positive reality. Looking at the positive side of things enables us to bounce back. If we just focus on the hardship we'll be overwhelmed and weighed down. We won't look for the light at the end of the tunnel because we're convinced there isn't one.
Paul acknowledges the harsh reality of the situation but he also gives the reason to hope. I may have been hard pressed but I wasn't crushed. I may have been struck down but I wasn't destroyed. I was knocked out of the game for a minute but now I'm back for the attack. This is a bounce back attitude.
2) Yet...
Chap. 6, has another list of difficulties coupled with the bounce back reality.
2 Cor. 6:3-10, "We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything."
When Paul says, 'we commend ourselves' it can come across as if he's praising himself. But commend also means to convey, entrust or give. Paul expresses the ways he had given himself over to the Corinthians in every way. Paul needed to say this to combat the false prophets who were trying to discredit him.
Notice in vs. 4-5 how everything is plural: troubles, hardships, distresses, beatings, imprisonments, sleepless nights, hunger. Just going through all this once would be traumatic; Paul dealt all of them multiple times; yet each time he bounced back.
Within this list of difficulties Paul inserts the words-great endurance and hard work: two things that are indicative of a person who bounces back.
Then Paul includes a list of virtues: purity, understanding, patience, kindness, love and truthful speech. If we had to go through all these painful occurrences, it would be easy to compromise on these virtues. It would be hard to maintain purity when those around me who are living an impure life don't seem to have the problems I do.
It would be easy to be unsympathetic, thoughtless and inconsiderate. It would be easy to be impatient, unkind, unloving. It would be easy to lie and deceive to try to avoid any further hardships. How did Paul do it? He mentions three things-the Holy Spirit, the power of God and using the weapons of righteousness.
We need to walk in wisdom, discernment and holiness. We need to operate in God's power and God's strength. We need to put on the armor of God and fight against the devil's schemes. If we are going to be bounce back warriors of the faith we need the tools Paul mentions to get through the things we will face as Christians.
And we will need consistency. Notice Paul says, through glory and dishonor; through good report and bad report. Whether they were being seen in a good light or a bad one; whether they were being talked about in a good way or a bad way, they remained consistent. Whether there was good news or bad news; they didn't let it change the way they operated.
That's the difference between operating in feelings vs. the Spirit. When times are good; I'm good. When the news is good, I'm good. But spin that around and it won't be good. We can't bounce back from things when our loyalty to God is dependent on how things are going. We need to continue to be godly despite our changing circumstances.
Then, similarly to his wording in Ch. 4, Paul gives us another bounce back list in vs. 9-10; except here he uses the word yet instead of but. Dying and yet we live on; beaten and yet not killed. Have you ever been so sick you thought you were dying? Have you ever just felt so bad you wanted to die? For Paul, the times he was beaten, flogged or stoned, he literally was dying. But he took his survival as an opportunity to bounce back and continue the good fight.
Sorrowful yet always rejoicing. When Paul said in Phil. 4:4, 'rejoice in the Lord always', he wasn't implying you need to be happy 24/7. That's unrealistic and this verse in 2 Cor. supports that. Sometimes we are sorrowful. We're sad, we're depressed, we're despondent; we're at a low point in our lives. Paul had sorrow too. What did he do to bounce back? He rejoiced!
Rejoicing when I'm sorrowful doesn't seem realistic. Did Paul just paint a smile on his face and pretend? Was he just going through the motions? No. I'm sure there were times when it was harder to rejoice, times when he had to push himself to rejoice, but it wasn't an act; it was genuine. How could he do that?
Although Paul was sorrowful, he countered it by focusing on the reasons he could still rejoice. Rejoicing doesn't pretend the sadness isn't real; it's deciding there is still something positive to focus on despite the sorrowful state I'm in right now. That's the mindset that enables us to bounce back from our sorrows.
Paul goes on to give more bounce back statements: poor, yet making many rich. Being poor can easily get you down. You're frustrated and angry over your situation. You wonder if things will ever improve. There were times when Paul was without food and shelter. Yet we see he was willing to be helpful to others despite his situation.
He took up collections to help other churches. I could see Paul being in need yet finding joy in collecting for the needs of others. And though there were times when he didn't have the financial resources to make someone materially rich, he always had the godly resources to help people become spiritually rich.
Paul could've became consumed with focusing on himself and his problems but he didn't. His bounce back ability came in the willingness to do what he could with what he had for someone else. Having an others mindset and a servant's heart helps us to bounce back.
Then Paul finishes up the verse with having nothing but possessing everything. This is key. We can focus on what we don't have. We can compare ourselves to others and complain that we don't have it as good as so-and-so. We can get upset at God for depriving us of the 'good life'. Or...we can look at our lives from a different perspective and realize that if we have Christ we have everything.
That's what Paul did. There were times he had nothing; no possessions, no support, no companions. But he knew he had what was most important; Jesus. Paul could be content in every situation because of what he had in Christ. We will be able to bounce back every time when we know that if we have Jesus we have everything.
3) In danger, yet...
Later, in chapter 11 Paul gets descriptive about some of his troubles and hardships.
2 Cor. 11:24-27, "Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move.
I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked."
What a list! I can't imagine going through what Paul did. When you consider all of the hardships he lists in chapters 4, 6, and here in 11, that's a lot of harrowing situations. Can you imagine the toll that would take on a person? Being constantly on the move, constantly in danger, suffering from exhaustion and hunger; having to deal with being cold and naked. Being incarcerated, all the beatings; being stoned and left for dead.
These are the circumstances Paul found himself in over and over. How much can one man endure? It would seem impossible to bounce back from all this; yet he rebounded from them all.
2 Tim. 3:10-11, " You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them."
Paul could bounce back from all the things that happened to him because he rejoiced in the Lord rescuing him from all his perilous situations. We might be upset or discouraged when we find ourselves in difficult circumstances. But when the Lord rescues us and provides the way out we are relieved and overjoyed.
And we respond to that rescue by bouncing back and carrying on. God rescues us for the purpose of continuing to do his will and share the story. Paul shared the story with Timothy. "You know about the things that happened to me". That's part of the purpose for the rescue-so we would have a testimony to share. And it's not to brag about how tough we are; it's to bring glory to God.
Paul continued to operate in the virtues he listed in chapt. 6. He never gave up on the things of God; despite suffering for Christ. For Paul, Jesus came first and doing his will mattered most. We can bounce back when we make it about Jesus; not ourselves. We'll go through times of sorrow and anger. We'll be afraid sometimes that things won't work out.
Paul was shipwrecked and left floating in the open sea all night and into the day. Talk about having a reason to be afraid. Will this thing I'm clinging to keep me afloat until I'm rescued? What if there's a storm? What if a shark or some other predator gets me? There were plenty of reasons for Paul to wonder if he would make it.
Then when daylight came he could rejoice that he made it through the night but now he would have to contend with hunger, thirst and the sun beating down on him for who knows how long? Yet he clung to hope and bounced back. If Paul could bounce back from all the things he went through we can too.
If Daniel could bounce back from the Lion's den so can we. If Shad, Rach and Benny could bounce back from the fiery furnace so can we. If Jonah could bounce back from being inside the belly of a great fish for three days, so can we.
General George Patton defined success as, "how high you bounce when you hit bottom". What have you bounced back from? A cancer diagnosis? A loved one's death? A job loss? An addiction or some other sin?
Have you ever bounced back from something that you didn't think you would? While you were going through the worst of it you thought it was all over. You wanted to wave your white flag of surrender and give up; but you didn't. You clung to that glimmer of hope and you pressed on. Now you're able to look back and see how you came back from the brink of despair to where you are today.
Are you going through something right now that has brought you down, perhaps to the point of wanting to give up? Take courage, with the Lord and the help of others you can bounce back from anything.
