They say that "if anything can go wrong, it will." This little truth is known as Murphy's Law and, if I've learned anything in life, I've learned that this is crazy true! No kidding, I've even gotten to the point that when I start a new project, I allot extra time in my schedule for Murphy Moments.
Now, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one to deal with this phenomenon on a regular basis. Perhaps never does this curse strike more than when I'm getting ready to go on a youth trip. A few trips stand out in my memory... Trip 1: I was taking our youth to Kansas City, MO for a huge youth rally in the middle of a very hot summer. Literally a day before we were set to leave I found out that the AC had stopped working on our church bus. And wouldn't you know that no rental company in our town had a van available? Trip 2: Then there was the time that we were headed to the Atlanta airport to fly to Ecuador for a summer mission trip. Well, ten miles out of town, Wayne ran the van out of gas! Being a mile from the nearest exit meant we were sure to miss our flight without some divine intervention. Trip 3: Last April. While driving a group to Fort Worth for a conference Wayne, again, ran the van out of gas (I know you're thinking that, perhaps, my middle name is Murphy). And then there's this last weekend. We left for Pigeon Forge, TN for a conference. On our way out of town, I stopped to fill up the van only to find that someone had, literally, cut the gas fill line so they could siphon out the gas! By the way, these are just the ones that really stick out in my mind...there have been SO many more Murphy Moments!
If you're anything like me you've had your fair share of "Why me?" moments. These times leave us wondering what we did to deserve the problems that have cropped up. In our minds, there is no correlation with anything we've done and direct consequences which we seem to be enduring. Last week we looked at the reality of pain, suffering and hard times. We concluded, based on what we read in James that we should EXPECT hard times, EMBRACE them and ENDURE them. Though we talked about how to deal with them, we never even touched on the source of said troubles. Where do all these things come from anyway? Instead of "Why me?", shouldn't we really be asking "Why at all?"
Well, Ole James answers this question for us. In James 1:13-18, Jesus' half-brother reveals the source of all the pain, suffering and trouble in the world. Check it out! First of all, he makes it clear that these things do NOT come from God! In verse 14, he says, "But each person..." In saying this, James identifies the real source of pain, suffering and hard times...people! We live in a messed up world. And, it's not just messed up on the surface...the whole system by which the world operates is messed up. Think of it this way...it's not just that our bearing is off (thereby, leading us down the wrong path)...the problem is that our actual compass is jacked up! In other words, we live in a chaotic, messed up world where horrible things happen in seemingly random ways AND it's all because our sin, both generally and specifically, made it this way!
Generally speaking, the presence of sin in the world has acted like a cancer on creation...breaking it down, messing it up, and progressively pushing the world closer and closer towards destruction. The cumulative effects of our sin has destroyed the original creative order. Hurricanes, tornadoes earthquakes, cancers, diseases, etc. all exist because our sin has cumulatively tainted the system of how the world works. Specifically, the consequences of our sin affect our lives and the lives of people close to us. Drunk drivers destroy families, sexually promiscuous people spread around diseases, addictions of all types drive us towards ever deeper dependancies, adulterous relationships destroy families, child-molesters destroy children, abortionists destroy babies, etc. Generally AND specifically our sin has messed up this world and, now, we suffer the consequences and are spinning out of control. The truth is that every time something goes wrong, or turns out bad, or produces suffering and/or pain, sin is to blame. And because we're the authors of sin...ultimately we're to blame!
So...you and I are the real source of Murphy's Law. There it is... And, when it comes to how we got here, there is a definite sequence. Again, according to James, our sin begins with desire. These desires are the natural drives that we have that push us towards pleasure and happiness. The problem comes when we allow these drives to get out of control and tempt us to pervert the good things God has given us for our own selfish purposes. Notice...James doesn't say these desires are sinful. Sin doesn't happen until we act on the temptation to fulfill these desires! So desire, left unchecked, leads to sin. And sin ultimately leads to death and destruction...both generally and specifically. So...it's not just that pain & suffering are caused by our sin...the whole reason that death exists is because of our sin! Our sin leads to death!!!
So...if you don't like pain & suffering & hard times, the only logical thing to do is to break the sequence of sin in your life. Now, here's the kicker...YOU CAN'T BREAK THAT SEQUENCE! Your own sin has, actually, rendered you helpless in this area. You're broken just like the rest of creation! The bible says you and I are "slaves" to sin. Enter God... According to James, while we are the source of all things evil, God is the source of all things good. If you've experienced any good in your life, guess what...it didn't come from you! It came from God. And, He's provided another good thing...salvation. By turning from our sin and trusting in what Christ has done in His atoning death, paying the price for sin, we, through the power of His indwelling Spirit, have the ability to break the sequence of sin in our lives. And, as we do so, we become agents of change in the world in a good way! If our sin progressively makes the world a worse place to live in, it only makes logical sense that our sanctification will make it better. God doesn't want to just save you...He wants to make you a conduit of change for the world.
So...the next time you are in one of those "Why me?" moments, remember...it really is your fault! And mine...and every other person in this world. Our sin has stunk up the world! Thanks be to God that He's busy doing something about that in us and through us. So, you can either be a little "Murphy" in this world or you can be a little "Jesus". What's it gonna be?
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