The Lows Prepare Us

In our lives, we have the dreaded lows, the times where nothing seems to go right, the times that we want to give up, and sometimes for some, depression can slip in. But, what if we were to change the way we look at lows. What if, instead of looking at lows as a bad thing, we switch our mindset to see it as a growing opportunity. Today I want to talk about the time that the disciples had to wait.

Let me set the scene, Jesus had been arrested, tried, tortured, and then hung on the cross. Before all of this happened, things were looking pretty good; I mean, a few days before this, people were celebrating when Jesus and His disciples came into town, and now, they just saw their mentor, friend, and teacher die. The person that they thought was going to deliver them from Rome is in a tomb. Things are looking pretty bleak for them.

Before going any further, let's look at Peter during this time and the rest of the disciples. Yes, Peter denied Christ out of fear and was not recorded to be at the cross as Jesus died, most likely out of fear. There is only one disciple recorded to be there, and that was John. There could have been more, but it is not recorded, so let's assume that John was the only one there. This means that most likely, the rest of the disciples did not come due to fear. After the death of Christ, the disciples said that they were going back to fishing or their old life. In looking at this, it would seem that fear and then depression, to some extent, were very much present. This was a low time for them.

Then Christ rose, and this was when everything started to change for the disciples, Christ told them to wait for the Holy Spirit, and they did, and then they were changed, men. Yes, there is a lot more to this story than that, but for the sake of time, I want to focus on the fact that Christ came back and that changed them, and the fact that when the Holy Spirit fell on them, it again changed them. 

The disciples became fearless, they were able to do and say things that meant hardship and even death to spread the gospel, and they showed no fear. I believe that it is two-fold with their transformation. First, the Holy Spirit descended on them and did a fantastic work in their lives; however, we have free will and have to let the Holy Spirit work through us. That is where this low that they went through comes into play.

I believe that the disciples had to go through this low, where they were fearful, hopeless, and had a feeling of being let down that way when the time came for them when they needed to be fearless, hopeful, and to give the message of Christ they would be able to do so. When you hit a low and come back, things are different, and something that used to bring fear doesn't seem as scary anymore. For example, think about the first time you rode a bike; it was terrifying, but now, hopping on is nothing. I remember the first time I cut traffic on a motorcycle, it was absolutely terrifying, but now it is nothing to hope on a motorcycle and cut through traffic. I believe the same thing happened to the disciples, and it made them able to do what was needed to spread the gospel without fear and were able to change the world.

So next time you are going through a hard time, instead of letting it get to you, ask God what He is trying to teach you and how you can learn from it the most.