Will it Ever End? Oh, I Hope it Will Last Forever!

Read: Psalm 13:1-6; Exodus 2:23-25; Romans 8:18-25

This week, on August 28, the Sphere in Las Vegas premiered The Wizard of Oz, using both traditional technology along with AI to tell the story of Dorothy and her friends and their travels along the Yellow Brick Road. Imagine the sound. 160,000 speakers were employed in order to make the auditory experience amazing so the audience could feel as if they were traveling right along with Dorothy on her way to see the wizard. Though it is very likely that everyone who saw the iconic story knew its details, they surely looked forward to the extravaganza, and in my own childlike way, I used to anticipate viewing that same story, not in a lavish setting, but in my own home. Not with rich sights and sounds, but on the small TV that had tin foil flags attached to the antenna to help the picture come in better, and it wasn't only Dorothy's adventures that made the evening memorable for me. May I explain? Before the production even began, it was a fun time for me because we had popcorn and Coke. Soft drinks weren't a common treat in our house; so, getting out the big glass and filling it with ice and soda pop was a treat. If you put in several ice cubes and a little soft drink and let the ice melt, the allotted pop lasts longer. Yes, I know it gets watered down, but it seems that you get more when you stretch it out that way. I didn't want the treat to end. 😊

Isn't that how it is when we are experiencing something good? Even something minuscule? The beauty of an embrace or the scent of a rose. We want them to last forever. We would like to freeze time, but we can't. How different it is when we are experiencing a painful thing. Again, it might be the sting of a wasp or the thoughtless word that continues to come to mind unexpectedly. We want it to end in the same way that we want the joyful experience to linger.

How thankful I am that we have a Heavenly Father Who doesn't ignore or minimize our sadness or pain. Even though we often have questions that we can't yet answer, the Bible tells us that we aren't alone. There is One Who cares about both our sadness and joy. One Who reassures us that the bliss we sometimes experience will one day be on-going and the sorrow that we face will come to an end. So, let's look into God's heart and be reassured concerning His overarching plan.

We're not alone when we wonder and cry out "how long." The psalmist wondered that same thing, Psalm 13:1-2. Maybe it is good that we don't know all the details of his struggle. We don't know its length or what area of life was involved in his pain. If we knew, we might feel shame concerning our own lament and questioning or we might think him to be a whiner. Instead, isn't it good that his questions remind us that others have felt as we do? We are not the only ones who sometimes want to know how long?

We'll return to the psalm later, but for now, let's look back into Israel's long-ago history.

I love Exodus 2:23-25 because in these verses, we are permitted to hear God's thoughts concerning His people. If we didn't have these verses and others like them such as Exodus 3:7, we would wonder what God was thinking concerning His people. Why? Because God's people whom He had promised a land flowing with milk and honey were slaves in Egypt and had been in that position for many, many years. What had happened to the promises God had made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? We learn in the verses in Exodus 2 that God hadn't forgotten His people. In fact, we read the beautiful words that say He had heard their cries, had seen what they had endured and had remembered His promises. In short, He was concerned about them, and their suffering in Egypt would come to an end. What a good word this is for us too. We're not in Egypt being forced to make a quota of bricks as God's people were; however, we face circumstances that sometimes seem daunting and unending to us too. How good it is to be assured that Israel's God is also concerned and at work in our lives too. No, we don't know when any given trial will come to an end, but thankfully each one is finite.

In Romans 8:18, Paul the apostle says an interesting thing. He says that what God has in store for His people is so wondrous that it can't be compared to the pain we experience here on earth. The Bible never says that we don't experience all kinds of heart aches and sadness. Only that the joy that is to come is infinitely greater than what we deal with now. Sometimes, we can't fathom how that can be true because our view is so cloudy now, 1 Corinthians 13:12. What we do know to be true is that the same God Who was concerned about His people in Egypt has that same heart of love for us.

Why then do some painful things go on so long? Again, the scriptures don't often give specific reasons. What we know for certain is that all creation, including us God's image bearers presently groan. Why? Because we aren't yet living in the world as God intended it. No wonder we cling to the glimpses of beauty and joy we experience. No wonder we look for the painful things to be at an end. We along with creation groan.

Longing for God to bring about what was always meant to be, Romans 8:19-25. None of God's creation, including us, His image bearers, are experiencing the freedom and beauty He intended for us.  How long will this present time of waiting for all God has for us last? We don't know, but one thing is certain. One day, all that is so upside down now will one day be flipped right side up. May God be praised because one day, His kingdom will come and His will, will be fully done on earth as it is presently done in heaven.

Let's return to Psalm 13. Yes, the psalmist began with wondering words, but in verses 5-6, he ended the psalm with words of triumph and trust. That is because he looked at God's unending love and salvation. Trials and attacks from the enemy would be overcome by God, and in verse 6, he remembered that God had, even in the midst of whatever he was enduring, been good to him. I don't know what the sound and color experienced by those who were at the Sphere on August 28 was like, but it was surely very different than what my family members enjoyed decades ago on our small TV. Back then, we couldn't have imagined 160,000 speakers pouring out sound or AI enhancement. AI wasn't even known then. If man can invent amazing things, how much more wondrous will it be when God makes all things new! His kingdom that will be unsurpassed with beauty that He alone can provide. His kingdom where He will be with us, His born-again children. A holy and unfathomable God Whose love and provision are limitless, Revelation 21-22. A God Whose wisdom leaves even the most intelligent of people in the dust.