Rejected or Protected From Too Much Popularity?

Protected or rejected? That’s the question.

Once there was a very young prince named Joash (II Kings 11:2). They protected him, but did he feel rejected? After all, he didn’t go out much, if ever. He had zero contact with his peers. In fact, he stayed inside a back room for most of his young life. He had no public voice. As for his activity on social media, who could speak of it?

He wasn’t popular. Few knew about him. For the most part, he got ignored.

Imagine living year after year in the same room, looking at the same four walls, and having to keep very quiet about it.

Every time you want to speak, you hear, “SHHHH!”

Joash stayed hidden in a secret place for six years. Did he understand why? We don’t know. He was a mere babe when the tragedy occurred. What we do know is that popularity has a downside. Fallen leaders becomes targets for attack. So do their children.

Sometimes children shut up inside a room may feel rejected. Have you ever felt isolated or rejected? If you have, perhaps – just perhaps, it’s because God was protecting you.

Who knows how old Josiah was when they told him that his brothers had been killed? Their own grandmother Athaliah had them murdered so that she could rule the land. After her son Ahaziah died, she took over. She must have had a strange mindset to kill her own grandchildren.

Obviously she thought she knew best, but God had other plans.

But wherever she went, silence was sure to follow. All talking must be kept to a whisper, because the moment she found about this king, all would be lost.

Life outside that room was dangerous. Whatever isolation Joash felt inside the bedchamber served to protect him from his wicked grandmother.

Did he ever feel abandoned? If so, he wasn’t alone. He had a caretaker, a nurse who looked after him. We’re never totally in our troubles. Even if everyone else leaves us, God is still there.

“When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” Psalm 27:10

 

Advertisement

From Shards of Shattered Homes New Heroes Arise

I. Shattered Homes: Signs of a Villain at Work

His home life: shattered. His peace: stolen. The world as he knows it: blown to bits.

Jesus said, “The thief (meaning Satan the accuser, also known as the devil) comes to steal, kill and destroy.” (John 10:10). The major villain of the story, Satan works behind the scenes, taking every chance he finds to ruin people’s lives. Unfortunately, he often succeeds.

Yet from shards of shattered homes, new heroes arise. This is a common superhero theme. Take the comic book figure Superman, for example, the hero from the exploded planet. He gets torn from his parents and his home gets shattered – literally. But after he lands on earth, he discovers he has superpowers which he uses for the good of all mankind.

Moses is another example. The “thief” in his day, Pharaoh, stole the Hebrews’ joy, killed their male babies, and destroyed their happiness. To save his life, his mother sent him sailing away from home. After he grew up, he led his people – his “shattered home,” if you will – out of bondage. With power from above, he freed them from the evil Pharaoh’s grip. Moses was like the superhero of the story, while Pharaoh played the villain role.

From a Christian viewpoint, the devil was and is the real villain, however. His influence results in many a shattered family. He enjoys ripping homes to shreds, leaving children with no sure place on which to stand. After all, how can they build their lives on sinking sand? Such “houses” always crumble. When storms beat on them, they sink. “And great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:27)

II.  Brokenness May Help Provide a Cure

The resulting brokenness,  however, may serve as a vessel to release the new hero into his destiny. That’s because, as he bursts forth from the eggshell that once shielded him, he discovers a new level of freedom. People who “walk on eggshells” no longer step on him. The Spirit of resurrection life he’s found in Christ gives him breath (see John 10:10 and Romans 8:2). He doesn’t have to feed off bland egg white anymore, but feasts freely off kernels of truth he finds inside God’s Word (see Deuteronomy 8:3 and Matthew 4:4).

Moreover, as he grows, he sees he can’t fix windows shattered by idolatrous points of view. But as he gazes at the only Rock worth serving, he gains a new perspective: who he is  and what he’s called to do. As he sees God work bad situations in his life for good,  he learns to trust Him more.