What Happened to "March Madness"?

March is the month for the NCAA men’s basketball annual tournament called “March Madness” – an event in which 68 Division 1 college teams are invited to participate.  In 1939, Henry Porter, an official with the Illinois High School Association, wrote an article called “March Madness” for the organization’s in-house magazine.  Later this term was adopted by NCAA officials for the tournament.

However. this year there is no March Madness – at least as it relates to basketball.  The basketball tournament was cancelled due to concerns about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  Obviously, this pandemic has put America and the rest of the world in a panic causing many different emotions including fear, nervousness, worry. anxiety, and stress.  COVID-19 is a virus we don’t want to get exposed to or infected with.  Nor do we want our family or friends exposed or infected.

So how should we handle these emotions that confront us because of the pandemic?  Where should we go to get comfort, encouragement and help in time of need?  In the Bible, Hebrews 4:16 gives us an answer. It says, “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”  In other words, we should turn to God.  The psalmist says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).  In John 14:11 Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

There are several implications for us in these scripture verses.  (1) We need to pray.  (2) God is the one who will help us. (3) We can expect God’s help even when we are in trouble.  (4)  Peace is available to us.  The common theme is that we need to turn to God and put our fears, our nervousness, our worry, our anxiety, and our stress in His hands.

Facing the Unknown

With the COVID-19 virus situation we are basically facing the unknown.  What joys will be ours?  What difficulties will we experience?  How will we respond to the positives and the negatives?  Many years ago, king Jehoshaphat of Israel faced an army that was huge and powerful and about to annihilate them.  In prayer, he came before God and said,   “We have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us.  We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.” (II Chronicles 20:12).  What great advice and a wonderful example he gave for us to follow.  When the unknown is before us – whatever that may be – we should keep our eyes on God.  Here are a few reasons why we should keep our eyes on God.

1)      God is more powerful than any situation we may face.  “Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you” (Psalm 66:4).

2)      God is always ready to answer us and show us what we do not know.  “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know” (Jeremiah 33:3).

3)      God wants us to come into His presence at any time—even when we are weak and weighed down with concerns.  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

So, how are you doing at facing a world with COVID-19?  Are you Unsure?  Tense?  Concerned?  Fearful?  Doubtful?  Discouraged?  Perplexed?  When faced with some of these feelings, try the Jehoshaphat solution.  Keep your eyes on God and entrust yourself to Him.  “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

(With some minor changes, this blog is copied from one published in 2013.)

The Right Source

A short time ago I was having difficulty with a computer program which was installed on my netbook.  I found myself checking out each of the tabs I found on the main menu of the program seeking a solution to my problem.  I even went into the help menu searching for assistance.  However, everything I tried did not address the problem.  Nothing worked.   Then, I decided I needed to go to an expert on computers, which happened to be my son.  I told him exactly what I wanted the program to do.  The expert made a few clicks on the mouse and in a matter of ten seconds or less the problem was solved.

The real difficulty was that I was trying to solve the problem by myself.  That was my first course of action.  I should have known better because I am not an expert when it comes to computers.  I should have gone to the right source immediately which would have alleviated my frustration.  This whole episode reminded me that the action I took was exactly that we so often do in life.  Instead of going to the right source immediately, we try to work things out on our own.

Living as a Christian often has its difficulties.  When difficult times come, our first action should be to go to the right source – to God, Himself.   In the Bible the psalmist found God’s help when he needed it.  He said, “O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me” (Psalm 30:2).  When Daniel the prophet faced difficulty he began “praying and asking God for help.” (Daniel 6:11).  These men took the correct action.  Scripture further reminds us that God said, “For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help  you”  (Isaiah 41:13).  God is always ready to help us whatever our difficulty.  When we experience setbacks in life, let’s commit ourselves to go to the right source first.  Let’s forget about trying to fix the problem ourselves.  Let’s seek God and His direction and be ready to experience the Biblical solutions He has for life’s difficult dilemmas.

The Touch of the Master

When we were younger and became sick or did not feel well we went to our mother and appreciated her tender touch.  That touch was all that was needed.  We knew her touch would help us through our difficulty.  As we grew into our adult years and became sick we longed for the touch of a doctor who could diagnosis the problem and give us an injection or a pill that would be a quick fix to make us better.  Chapter one of the Gospel of Mark tells the story of a man who had leprosy -- an infectious, communicable, debilitating disease -- which was incurable (in Biblical times) and resulted in death, usually within a decade.  The leper came to Jesus in faith acknowledging that healing rested in the hands of God and that Jesus had the power to heal him.  He said to Jesus, “If you are willing, you can make me clean” (Mark 1:40).   What we see next is Jesus reaching out to this man with compassion, touching him, and healing him with a simple command.  Here’s how the Scripture puts it: “Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”  Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured” (Mark 1:41-42).  

You and I need to experience the compassionate touch of Jesus, the Master – maybe not because of a medical condition, but because of a difficulty or a problem that we face.  We need to: (1) Acknowledge God’s power and sovereignty – “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” (2) We need to understand that Jesus feels a deep sympathy for us with a desire to help us – “Filled with compassion.”  (3) We need to know that Jesus is ready and willing to help us just as we are – “I am willing.”

Jesus is in the business of touching lives today.  It doesn’t matter who we are, what we have done, or the situation in which we find ourselves.  You and I can experience the wonderful touch of the Master – for cleansing, for healing, for restoration, for enrichment, for encouragement, for forgiveness of sins.  Are you willing to come to the Master for His tender touch to meet your need?

Handling Difficulties

A short time ago I was driving on the freeway in the darkness of the early morning when I heard a loud noise that made me blink and jump.  I thought something hit my windshield.  After slowing down, looking quickly across the entire windshield, I could see nothing and assumed something must have hit a different part of the car.  After arriving at my destination I examined the entire body of the vehicle, but found nothing unusual.  It wasn’t until later that day, while driving in bright light, that I discovered a small crack in the very lowest part of the windshield that begun to spider out.  For the sake of safety, the windshield had to be replaced.  I hadn’t planned for that difficulty.  It wasn’t something that was on my schedule.  But it happened.

The same can be said of life.  All of us begin the day assuming that everything will be just fine.  And then a difficulty occurs, be it large or small.  It may be sickness, the loss of a friend, an accident, a disappointment, the death of a loved one, the decline or loss of an investment, a cloudy day, a word of discouragement, a project that failed, an increase in the cost of goods or services, or a cracked windshield.  We don’t plan for difficulties or insert them into our schedule, but they will come.

When difficulties come, how do you handle them, especially if they are major?  One Biblical example comes from the life of Paul and Silas.  They were headed to a prayer meeting but ended up beaten and placed in jail by the city magistrates.  They didn’t sit and mope, lash out against those who mistreated them, or sit and worry about what had happened.  Instead, the Scripture tells us, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them” (Acts 16:25).  The end result was that the men were released and able to minister to the jailor and his family.  Concerning difficulties:  (1) Realize that difficulties will come for everyone; (2) Understand that Satan will try to use the difficulty to get you to turn from God; (3) Recognize that difficulties will last for varying lengths of time; and (4) Know that God will sustain you through the difficulty.  It might be helpful to remember that God says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (II Corinthians 12:9).  To that the Apostle Paul said, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong” (II Corinthians 12:9-10).

What difficult situation are you facing today?  Is it small?  Is it big?  Whatever the size, turn it over to God.  Strength and hope for navigating your difficulty of life will come to you from God, if you turn to Him for help.

Against the Impossible

When the Israelites left Egypt and concluded the time that God led them through the wilderness they were about ready to cross over the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 8:1-2).  God had promised the land to them but it was noted that when they entered the land they would encounter that which looked impossible.  In the land they would find nations that were much bigger and stronger than they were.  They would find huge cities with fortified walls that would be impossible to penetrate.  They would also be approached by the inhabitants who were so tall they were considered giants against whom no one could stand.  To the Israelites all of this would be impossible were it not for one thing – God would go ahead of them.  With His strength, with His power, with His wisdom, and with His promises He would be with them.  After alerting the Israelites to all of the potential problems God gave them this reminder.  “Today know this: GOD, your God, is crossing the river ahead of you” (Deuteronomy 9:3).

What seems impossible that you must confront today?  Is it something that is bigger and stronger then you?  Is it something that seems impenetrable?  Is it something against which you feel you cannot stand?  What a great comfort and assurance it would be to know that God goes before you into your “impossible situation.”  Notice a few things about the reminder that God gave.  First, The God of all strength goes with you.  “God…is”.  Second, God is a personal God.  “Your God.”  Third, God gets involved when you step out in faith.  “Is crossing ahead of you.”

Don 't wait until you get into an impossible situation to turn to God. Turn to Him today and let Him help you as you face that which seems impossible.

Where Can I Go?

When difficulties arise people want to know where they can go for a solution to their problems.  Many people turn to their doctor, some turn to pills and others turn to the Internet.  The individual going through a tough time may have a “best friend” with whom they share some of their experiences, but somehow they still feel uncomfortable talking about the problem they face.  As a result, most people try to address the problem on their own.  When no answers come, they sit and worry.

The best answer to the question of where we can go lies in the chorus of an old gospel hymn.  The lyrics state:

Where could I go?/ oh where could I go?
Seeking a refuge for my soul
Needing a friend to help me in the end
Where could I go but to the Lord?”

It is sad that even those who name the Name of Christ, and call themselves a Christian, often fail to follow the good advice in this song.  Jesus answered the question with a gentle but direct invitation when He said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).  There are four aspects to His invitation:

(1) Go to the divine source – “come to me” (Jesus).
(2) Benefit from what Jesus has to offer – “I will give you rest” and “you will find rest for your souls”
(3) Enjoy His gentleness – “I am gentle and humble in heart”
(4) Accept His help through the problem – “my yoke is easy and my burden is light”.

When difficulties beset you, don’t struggle on your own.  Turn to Jesus first, and let Him come alongside you to lighten your burden and help you endure.