Welcome to
Marriage in God's Hands.
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I am Alanzo Smith,
the host of this program.
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I'm June Smith.
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And today we are
going to talk about,
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Families in Crisis.
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But before we do so, we
invite you to pray with us.
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Our Heavenly Father, we
thank You for Your mercies,
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and for Your grace.
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We recognize that sometimes
our families are in crisis.
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And Lord, we need You.
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We ask that You'd bless us as
we go through this discussion.
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In Jesus' name, Amen. Amen.
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We're going to start out by
going to the story of Lazarus.
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Indeed, that was
a family in crisis.
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It's recorded
in John chapter 11.
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When Lazarus took sick,
his sisters sent messengers
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unto Jesus and they
said something like this,
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"Lord, he whom
Thou loveth is sick. "
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And according to
Ellen White and the Bible,
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Jesus did or said
nothing in three days.
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Three days passed and
He said nothing about it.
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But after Lazarus' death,
Jesus turned to the disciples
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and He said, "Our
friend Lazarus is sleeping"
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describing death as asleep.
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The disciples
understood to some extent, but
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they responded, "Well Lord, if
he's sleeping he's doing well. "
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It was like a
denial of the reality.
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And when Jesus realized that
they were denying the reality
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of what the situation
was, He turned to them
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and He said
plainly, "Lazarus is dead. "
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In other words, he's
not sleeping as you think.
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He is dead.
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I want to focus on the
response of the disciples.
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Because it seems as if
that's an act of denial.
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I remember Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
wrote about the first act
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an individual demonstrates
when there's a crisis.
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Why do people deny when
they're faced with a crisis?
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Denial is what is referred
to as a defense mechanism.
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When one hears sad news, it
could be perceived as a shock.
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And that could throw you
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in an emotional
state of disequilibrium.
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So what tends to happen is,
the way God has designed us,
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psychologically we say,
"No this isn't happening. "
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And it gives us
time to absorb the shock.
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So, there are
several factors then
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that influences your
stability to face crisis.
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Let us explore
some of them with you.
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For example, your emotional
stability, your emotional state,
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how secure you are as an
individual will determine
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how you can face the
challenge of a crisis.
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Another is what we call
the severity of the event.
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We live in New York
City and I remember very well
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the incident of 9/11.
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And it was such a
colossal problem that everyone
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in New York, and I would
dare say around the world,
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in some way or
form was affected.
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So when you have a severe
incident, the response will be
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very different
from maybe a local,
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or even an issue
that is personal.
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Another factor that influences
one's ability to respond
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to a crisis is the
proximity of the issue,
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the proximity of the event.
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For example, even though 9/11
affected just about everybody
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around the world, we
who were living in New York,
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we were affected
more than, say individuals
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living out in California.
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In the context of, we
were so close to the event
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I can remember vividly, I was
standing there in my living room
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when I watched that plane.
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And then when I had
to visit ground zero and
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go down there and be
a part of that process,
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that made the
crisis more painful.
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So the proximity determines
how we are able to handle.
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And of course, people who were
even within closer proximity,
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in Manhattan itself,
had a different response.
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They were physically impacted
and had to be responded to.
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Now, the level of support
that one has, that a family has
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when they're
going through a crisis,
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will also
influence their response.
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So there's a larger
network of family and friends
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that can fall in place and help
to pick up some of the pieces
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that allows an individual
to deal with the crisis
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a lot differently from somebody
who might be isolated from
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family or friends.
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And you're
problem solving skills.
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There are some
individuals who are able to
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face a problem, handle it,
and work towards a solution.
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There are others who run
away from their problems.
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They run away from their fears.
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The way we find
ourselves dealing with issues,
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how we address problems,
determine how we are able to
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manage them in the long run.
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Add this to our
personal characteristics,
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there are some people who
are, what we could identify as
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panic stricken.
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The slightest situation
throws them into disequilibrium.
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And there are other
people who go through challenges
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frequently and
learn how survive.
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And so, again, your
personal traits, in a sense that
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you are somebody who
is willing to stand up to
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the stress and
challenges of life,
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will be handled very
differently than somebody who is
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very weak and
emotionally fragile.
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So, when you are
going through a crisis,
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here are some of the
characteristics that you
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generally exhibit.
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First of all is
what we call shock.
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It's like, "Oh my God. "
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Or you say, "Wow, how
am I going to manage?"
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And you just loose
all sense of reality
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because you are so shocked,
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because of the
severity of the issue.
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Or you get really numb.
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It's almost like
you're frozen in time.
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Because you just
can't believe that this
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horrific
experience has occurred.
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Let me take you back to the
passage we were talking about,
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the Mary and Martha situation
with the death of Lazarus.
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And show you the emotional
response of these two sisters.
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In verse 21 of the passage,
when Martha saw Jesus coming
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she went to him and she said,
"Lord, if thou hast been here
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my brother
would not have died. "
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She was shocked
from the incident.
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She was numb because of
the sudden loss of her brother.
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But the irony about it
all, what happened here is that
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her sister Mary made a similar
response, as if to say that
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the two sisters had planned it.
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Because when you go to verse 32,
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she says the same
thing when she saw Jesus.
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In verse 32 she says,
"Lord, if thou hast been here
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my brother
would not have died. "
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So we're talking
about the emotional response
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that one gives to a crisis.
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It's shocking, it's
painful, it's there.
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Now we've been talking about the
family's response to a crisis.
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And we're saying there
are emotional responses.
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And now we're looking
at cognitive responses.
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There are times when one
goes through a crisis that
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cognitively, you
just get confused.
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You lose concentration.
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You sometimes blame
yourself that there's something
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you could have done differently.
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Or that you should have
done to prevent the situation.
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You begin to become irrational
in the way you perceive
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your realities here and
the future that's ahead of you.
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You sometimes have what
we call impaired judgment.
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Let's go back to our
story and show an example
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of an impaired judgment.
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Verse 23 of the same
passage we're looking on,
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John 11, the story of Lazarus.
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In verse 23,
Jesus said to Martha,
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"Thy brother shall rise again. "
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That's an assurance.
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"Thy brother shall rise again.
" meaning, "I have the power
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and I will do something. "
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But because Martha's
judgment was so impaired,
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she could not understand
the power of Jesus immediately.
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She projected into the future
and she was thinking of the
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resurrection back at
the coming of the Lord.
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She says, "I know. "
That's her response in verse 24.
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"I know that he shall rise
again in the resurrection. "
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Had it not been for
an impaired judgment,
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she would have been
able to say to herself,
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"This is the Messiah,
this is the Man who had been
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healing sick people, opening
the eyes of blind people, and
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all of those
things. He has that power.
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Yes, He can do
something for my brother. "
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But again, her
judgment was impaired.
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Now we have looked at
the emotional responses.
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We're looking at
the cognitive responses.
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Now let's talk about some
of the behavioral responses.
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Ineffective communication.
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When an individual is
going through a crisis,
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they don't communicate well.
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They use words that
suggest they don't care.
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Or they become careless.
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Or they just give up on life.
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And when you're talking to
them, they don't want to talk.
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And they're just not there.
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The stress is so great.
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So that's one of them.
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There's what we
identify as regressive behavior.
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That is, the person
who before the crisis
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was pretty much in control, who
could get up and take care of
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themselves and do what
they had to do to survive,
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now regressed to
almost infantile behavior.
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Where somebody needs
to take care of them.
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And they're almost
like a child again.
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And it's such a
sad thing to watch.
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Impulsivity.
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Sometimes individuals who
are going through a crisis,
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one of their
behavior response is that
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they just act out of impulse.
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They will just get up
and go start shopping and
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in one afternoon
blow thousands of dollars.
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They will just get up, jump on
a plane and just fly somewhere,
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leave their family, their plants
behind, their animals behind.
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Things like that.
They just act on impulse.
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It's just something
that happens regularly.
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Another behavioral
response is that they withdraw.
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They cut off everyone
that could be supportive.
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And they stay away from friends
and from their co-workers,
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or even church members.
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This is exactly what Mary did.
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Look at verse 20
of the same chapter.
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Then Martha, as soon as she
heard that Jesus was coming,
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went and met Him, but
Mary sat still in the house.
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She was withdrawn.
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The Messiah's coming, the
one person on planet earth that
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can help her, there
she was in her withdrawal.
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She didn't want
to face the world.
00:13:05.34\00:13:06.80
She didn't want to face anybody.
00:13:06.83\00:13:08.28
She didn't want to
go out and see anyone.
00:13:08.31\00:13:10.41
She's going through a crisis.
She wants to stay in her world.
00:13:10.44\00:13:12.97
She wants to stay by herself.
She wants to lock herself
00:13:13.00\00:13:15.48
in her room.
She did not want to.
00:13:15.51\00:13:17.79
Well, we're talking
about crisis facing the family.
00:13:17.82\00:13:22.68
And we want you to
understand, we have some others.
00:13:22.71\00:13:25.60
We want to talk about
the psychological response,
00:13:25.63\00:13:27.70
the spiritual
response, and some factors
00:13:27.73\00:13:30.30
that predisposes one
to acute anger and stress.
00:13:30.33\00:13:35.42
Listen, we want
you to be with us.
00:13:35.45\00:13:38.40
Don't go anywhere.
00:13:38.43\00:13:39.46
Stay there, we'll be right back.
00:13:39.49\00:13:41.76
There are many "How
To" books available.
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But there's one that's free
and perfect for every couple.
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How You Can
Build A Better Marriage
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is given in a light-hearted
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easy to read manner for
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and everyone in between.
Call or write for your copy:
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Welcome back to our program,
Marriage in God's Hands.
00:14:25.49\00:14:30.13
We are talking about
Lazarus, a family in crisis.
00:14:30.16\00:14:35.73
We have looked at some of
the responses that families
00:14:37.43\00:14:39.74
go through.
00:14:39.77\00:14:40.74
We identified the emotional,
00:14:40.75\00:14:42.93
we looked at the
cognitive responses,
00:14:42.96\00:14:45.06
we looked at the
behavioral responses.
00:14:45.09\00:14:47.19
Now let us identify some of
the physiological responses.
00:14:47.22\00:14:51.25
Chest pains.
00:14:51.75\00:14:53.27
When a crisis hits
you, sometimes your chest
00:14:53.30\00:14:58.93
tightens up and
you feel it here.
00:14:58.96\00:15:02.13
Now, for whatever the
reason, the pain is real.
00:15:02.16\00:15:06.22
Let no one deny you of that.
00:15:06.25\00:15:08.42
Some individuals have to
go and seek medical help.
00:15:08.45\00:15:11.72
But that's one of
the physiological signs.
00:15:11.75\00:15:14.23
Another is perfuse sweating.
00:15:14.89\00:15:16.93
People who get
anxious and/or nervous
00:15:16.96\00:15:20.28
tend to respond by sweating.
00:15:20.31\00:15:23.03
I remember speaking to a woman
who was actually in crisis.
00:15:23.06\00:15:26.08
And you could
literally see the drops of sweat
00:15:26.11\00:15:29.31
falling from her palm.
00:15:29.34\00:15:30.72
I've never seen that before.
00:15:30.75\00:15:32.40
Dizziness.
00:15:33.32\00:15:34.41
You can become very dizzy.
00:15:34.44\00:15:36.88
Fainting spells attacking you.
00:15:36.91\00:15:39.72
There is want is
called irritable bowels,
00:15:41.01\00:15:44.82
where the individual in crisis
loses control of the bowel
00:15:44.85\00:15:50.84
and wants to go to
the bathroom constantly.
00:15:50.87\00:15:54.71
There's also a
spiritual response.
00:15:55.49\00:15:57.74
And one of them that a lot of
people manifest is withdrawal.
00:15:57.77\00:16:03.30
Withdrawal from God.
Withdrawal from church.
00:16:03.33\00:16:07.50
Withdrawal from praying or doing
the things that you use to do.
00:16:07.53\00:16:12.23
That is
something that is harmful.
00:16:12.26\00:16:16.07
If you're in a crisis, the
last thing on planet earth that
00:16:16.10\00:16:19.36
you want to do is
to withdraw from God.
00:16:19.39\00:16:22.68
Sometimes there is an
over dependence on God as well
00:16:23.38\00:16:26.86
as a spiritual response.
00:16:26.89\00:16:28.39
Where the person feels
so vulnerable that they
00:16:28.42\00:16:32.74
become almost fanatic in
their religious experience.
00:16:32.77\00:16:35.93
And it's not that they
genuinely are seeking God,
00:16:35.96\00:16:39.19
but they're almost afraid that
if they don't pay this homage
00:16:39.22\00:16:44.81
to God as it were, that the
same thing could happen again.
00:16:44.84\00:16:47.76
And so it could be a withdrawal
as well as an over dependence.
00:16:47.79\00:16:52.63
We're talking about
the spiritual response
00:16:53.53\00:16:56.54
that individuals
sometimes give in a crisis.
00:16:56.57\00:17:00.24
There are times that people
not just withdraw from God,
00:17:00.64\00:17:03.98
but they become angry at God.
00:17:04.01\00:17:05.63
"Has God forgotten to be
righteous?" the psalmist asks.
00:17:05.66\00:17:09.92
Sometimes people
become so angry at God
00:17:09.95\00:17:13.33
that they want to
shipwreck their faith,
00:17:13.36\00:17:17.00
shipwreck their life.
00:17:17.03\00:17:18.54
The one being in the universe,
in the heavens, that you cannot
00:17:18.64\00:17:22.80
be angry at is God.
00:17:22.83\00:17:24.64
Why? He's your
Maker. He's your Redeemer.
00:17:24.67\00:17:27.32
He's your Sustainer.
00:17:27.35\00:17:28.65
And in Him you live, and
move, and have your being.
00:17:28.68\00:17:32.96
You cannot be angry at God.
00:17:32.99\00:17:34.57
And He is your Friend.
00:17:35.30\00:17:36.88
The responsive anger,
however, seems to be consistent
00:17:36.92\00:17:41.55
with what happens in
the grieving process.
00:17:41.58\00:17:44.04
In fact, Kubler-Ross,
who you sited earlier,
00:17:44.07\00:17:46.74
talks about the stages of grief.
00:17:46.77\00:17:49.06
And one of the
stages is actually anger.
00:17:49.09\00:17:52.01
So it's not unlikely or
inconsistent that a person
00:17:52.21\00:17:55.37
who is going through a crisis,
00:17:55.40\00:17:56.87
and is grieving and totally
overwhelmed with the situation,
00:17:57.17\00:18:00.22
will get angry.
00:18:00.25\00:18:01.94
But not every individual
going through a crisis
00:18:02.44\00:18:06.61
demonstrates negative
anger in the spiritual context.
00:18:06.64\00:18:12.40
There are some individuals,
their crisis drives them
00:18:12.43\00:18:16.87
closer to God.
00:18:16.90\00:18:18.20
Their crisis drives
them to the heart of God.
00:18:18.23\00:18:22.48
And so, they're able
to find peace and comfort
00:18:22.51\00:18:27.00
in the midst of their storm.
00:18:27.03\00:18:28.57
The story we're looking
at here of Lazarus' death,
00:18:28.60\00:18:33.44
here is the
spiritual response of Martha.
00:18:33.47\00:18:37.97
In verse 22,
after all the trauma,
00:18:38.00\00:18:40.20
and all that she was going
through, her denial and etc,
00:18:40.23\00:18:43.38
she said in verse
22 talking to Jesus,
00:18:44.18\00:18:47.17
"But I know now that
whatsoever You ask of God,
00:18:47.20\00:18:52.50
God will give it. "
00:18:52.53\00:18:53.95
In other words, she has
gotten to the point in her faith
00:18:53.98\00:18:57.19
and in her experience
where she realized that
00:18:57.22\00:18:59.95
"Yes, my brother is dead. "
00:18:59.98\00:19:02.30
"Yes this is a crisis
for me and for my family. "
00:19:02.33\00:19:05.98
"But I can't turn
away from the one source
00:19:06.01\00:19:09.19
that can help me most. "
00:19:09.22\00:19:10.67
So she goes to the
Source and she appeals,
00:19:10.70\00:19:13.47
"But I know now, I
know that if You ask God,
00:19:13.50\00:19:18.20
whatever You ask God,
God will grant it unto You. "
00:19:18.23\00:19:21.37
It's like saying, "Yes, I need
You to do something for me now.
00:19:21.40\00:19:25.24
Please ask God for
help on my behalf. "
00:19:25.27\00:19:28.70
Now, let us look at some of
the factors that predisposes
00:19:29.52\00:19:33.29
one to acute stress.
00:19:33.32\00:19:35.90
That is important.
00:19:38.19\00:19:39.32
Because depending
on what the individual
00:19:39.35\00:19:44.10
has experienced in the
past, your prior experience
00:19:44.13\00:19:48.26
with past stress will
determine how you respond.
00:19:48.29\00:19:51.53
There are individuals
who have the ability to cope
00:19:51.56\00:19:54.95
because they have gone
through certain challenges.
00:19:54.98\00:19:58.87
And as a result, they have
developed a coping mechanism.
00:19:58.90\00:20:02.39
Where as individuals who
have been hit with a crisis
00:20:02.42\00:20:06.42
for the first
time might not have the
00:20:06.45\00:20:08.57
coping mechanism with them.
00:20:08.60\00:20:11.26
Another is people or individuals
who have had severe loses.
00:20:11.72\00:20:16.10
If you've had a series of crisis
events, or other significant
00:20:16.35\00:20:21.99
loses in your life, then
when another crisis comes,
00:20:22.02\00:20:26.18
you are really
thrown for a loop.
00:20:26.21\00:20:28.74
So you could get into
what we call acute stress.
00:20:28.77\00:20:33.81
This is the most
severe form of stress now.
00:20:34.32\00:20:37.02
We're talking about
what could drive one
00:20:37.05\00:20:39.64
into that deep end of stress.
00:20:39.67\00:20:44.69
Chronic medical condition.
00:20:44.72\00:20:48.29
There are times when,
unfortunately and how sad,
00:20:48.80\00:20:52.63
the diagnosis from
the doctor is of such that
00:20:52.66\00:20:56.40
there seems to be no hope.
00:20:56.43\00:20:58.54
Or it is of such
that it's grave, it's bad.
00:20:58.57\00:21:03.75
And individual sometimes,
doesn't take this too well.
00:21:03.78\00:21:08.49
And it drives them
into deep depression.
00:21:08.52\00:21:12.58
So individuals who
have had these chronic cases
00:21:12.61\00:21:16.46
sometimes go
off into depression.
00:21:16.49\00:21:19.27
Another factor that predisposes
one to stress is the notion of
00:21:19.95\00:21:25.48
what we refer to
as family support.
00:21:25.51\00:21:28.40
People who have a
network around them,
00:21:28.43\00:21:31.64
who have friends or
family that they can lean on,
00:21:31.67\00:21:34.89
that they can call, and
that they think or believe will
00:21:34.92\00:21:38.69
come to their aid, are
more likely to survive crises.
00:21:38.72\00:21:43.76
But when they are isolated
from their family and friends,
00:21:43.79\00:21:47.40
then they're more
predisposed to acute stress.
00:21:47.43\00:21:50.69
And if they are
physically injured,
00:21:50.99\00:21:53.68
if you are
physically injured by an event,
00:21:53.71\00:21:56.70
like you have an accident.
00:21:56.73\00:21:59.47
And that accident has
left you incapacitated,
00:21:59.50\00:22:02.26
or whatever it is, some
people don't take that well.
00:22:02.29\00:22:07.45
"I was an athlete, I use
to run. And now I can't run. "
00:22:07.48\00:22:12.90
"I use to play a particular
sport and now I can't. "
00:22:12.93\00:22:17.25
Something has happened
and I'm not going to be
00:22:17.28\00:22:19.77
able to do that again.
00:22:19.80\00:22:20.79
?And when you say, "You
mean for the rest of my life,
00:22:20.82\00:22:24.36
I will not be
able to walk again?"
00:22:24.39\00:22:25.99
Or, "For the rest of my
life, I won't be able to sing?"
00:22:26.02\00:22:28.32
Or whatever the issue is,
00:22:28.35\00:22:29.71
that could drive
one into acute stress.
00:22:29.74\00:22:33.10
Another is what we call,
00:22:33.91\00:22:35.88
impaired
relationship with Jesus Christ.
00:22:35.91\00:22:38.63
Where your faith and
your Christian experience
00:22:38.66\00:22:42.53
is compromised.
00:22:42.56\00:22:44.03
People who are not able to
open their hearts to Christ
00:22:44.06\00:22:48.40
are likely to become vulnerable.
00:22:48.43\00:22:51.55
Because now they run away from
God rather than running to God.
00:22:51.58\00:22:56.55
Sometimes you have
family members and friends
00:22:57.42\00:23:03.20
who are going
through this acute stress,
00:23:03.23\00:23:06.76
who are going
through this crisis.
00:23:06.79\00:23:08.76
And you feel
crippled, you feel helpless,
00:23:08.79\00:23:11.87
and sometimes hopeless.
00:23:11.90\00:23:13.27
Because you
don't know what to do.
00:23:13.30\00:23:15.65
You say, "I'm
not a professional. "
00:23:15.68\00:23:18.21
"I don't know what to
do. How do I reach out?"
00:23:18.24\00:23:20.72
How do we reach out
to individuals who are
00:23:20.75\00:23:24.27
going through
these severe crises?
00:23:24.30\00:23:27.49
One of the most
difficult conversations to have
00:23:28.19\00:23:30.56
or experiences to face, is when
somebody is in a severe crisis.
00:23:30.59\00:23:35.61
What do you do, as you said.
00:23:35.64\00:23:37.47
And many people
don't respond because they
00:23:37.50\00:23:40.59
don't know what to do.
00:23:40.62\00:23:41.73
So, we'd like to look
at some of the guidelines
00:23:41.76\00:23:44.07
that one might use.
00:23:44.10\00:23:45.75
The first thing
we would identify is,
00:23:45.78\00:23:48.08
you want to
listen to this person.
00:23:48.11\00:23:50.40
Give them an
opportunity to tell their story.
00:23:50.43\00:23:53.33
To just vent, to just
talk about what has happened
00:23:53.64\00:23:58.80
from their perspective at least.
00:23:58.83\00:24:00.54
You don't have to comment.
00:24:00.57\00:24:01.68
You just need to listen
to what they have to say.
00:24:01.71\00:24:04.15
You notice we
didn't say pray first.
00:24:04.91\00:24:06.48
It's not that
we're underestimating or
00:24:06.51\00:24:08.71
undermining the power of prayer.
00:24:08.74\00:24:10.89
But sometimes,
notice I say "sometimes",
00:24:10.92\00:24:14.58
when individuals are
going through a crisis,
00:24:14.61\00:24:17.48
prayer might not be
the first thing you do.
00:24:17.51\00:24:20.64
Listen
carefully. Listen carefully.
00:24:20.67\00:24:23.55
Prayer might not
be the "first" thing.
00:24:23.58\00:24:25.88
You may approach the
person and you may say to them,
00:24:25.91\00:24:28.60
"Tell me how you feel. "
00:24:28.63\00:24:30.70
Let them vent,
let them talk out,
00:24:30.73\00:24:33.34
get it off.
00:24:33.37\00:24:34.87
Then you say, "I
hear what you're saying. "
00:24:34.90\00:24:38.35
"I understand your situation.
Let me pray for you. "
00:24:38.38\00:24:42.30
So, it's not that
prayer does not have
00:24:42.33\00:24:44.40
the power at the beginning.
00:24:44.43\00:24:45.74
But sometimes, prayer
becomes more effective
00:24:45.77\00:24:48.56
when you allow the
person to vent, calm down.
00:24:48.59\00:24:51.67
Then they can hear the prayer
and it becomes more effective.
00:24:51.70\00:24:55.44
Another thing you might do
is, in the crisis, there are
00:24:56.04\00:24:59.54
practical things
that need to happen.
00:24:59.57\00:25:02.35
If it's a loss, as in a death,
there's a funeral to plan.
00:25:02.38\00:25:06.47
There are other events
surrounding the situation.
00:25:06.50\00:25:10.68
So the individual going through,
or the family going through
00:25:10.71\00:25:13.50
the crisis, may need
support in that regard.
00:25:13.53\00:25:16.78
Somebody to contact the
people to make the plans.
00:25:16.81\00:25:19.70
To get the pastor to come
over or whoever it is that
00:25:19.73\00:25:22.57
needs to be there to
provide the kind of support.
00:25:22.60\00:25:25.30
Helping to transport
people who are coming in town.
00:25:25.33\00:25:28.77
Just the
practical mundane things.
00:25:28.80\00:25:31.14
We had a situation on my
job recently, where one of our
00:25:31.17\00:25:33.55
colleagues lost her husband.
00:25:33.58\00:25:35.16
And there was
nothing we could do.
00:25:35.19\00:25:37.83
And she was pretty affluent and
didn't need financial resources.
00:25:37.86\00:25:41.59
But we took turns in
just going to assist her with
00:25:41.62\00:25:45.55
much of the mundane
things that she needed to do.
00:25:45.58\00:25:48.94
So that sometimes, is
what might be helpful.
00:25:48.97\00:25:52.44
Another thing that we can
do to help people to grieve,
00:25:53.35\00:25:55.33
is to provide an
opportunity for them to reflect
00:25:55.36\00:25:59.22
on their significant other.
00:25:59.25\00:26:01.40
Allow them to
talk and get it out.
00:26:01.43\00:26:04.42
Because it does help.
00:26:04.45\00:26:06.04
The story of
Lazarus and his two sisters
00:26:08.56\00:26:12.03
is a story that helps
us to understand that,
00:26:12.06\00:26:15.77
as families, we
sometimes face crises,
00:26:15.80\00:26:19.45
and we have to go
through our crises.
00:26:19.48\00:26:22.13
But it's also a
reminder of, it does not matter
00:26:22.16\00:26:24.99
what the stress, what the
issue, what the problem is,
00:26:25.02\00:26:28.83
that we can find
help from Jesus Christ.
00:26:28.86\00:26:34.33
So we conclude...
00:26:34.36\00:26:36.16
One, families go
through severe crises at times.
00:26:37.06\00:26:41.64
And these crises can
render you dysfunctional.
00:26:42.34\00:26:45.92
They can cripple you at times.
00:26:45.95\00:26:48.07
Three, how we manage
the crisis will determine
00:26:49.24\00:26:53.37
how we survive the crisis.
00:26:53.40\00:26:56.29
But like in the case of
Lazarus and Mary and Martha,
00:26:56.49\00:27:00.77
don't you ever
forget who Jesus is.
00:27:00.80\00:27:04.73
He is the
Resurrection and the Life.
00:27:04.76\00:27:08.08
And the same Jesus
who had the power to
00:27:08.11\00:27:11.32
go to that grave and
say, "Lazarus, come forth. "
00:27:11.35\00:27:15.76
is the same Jesus
that you and I serve today.
00:27:15.79\00:27:19.57
So whatever your
situation, whatever your pain,
00:27:19.60\00:27:22.18
whatever your brokenness,
whatever your crisis,
00:27:22.21\00:27:24.92
there is that Heavenly
Father that you can go to.
00:27:24.95\00:27:29.44
And He will look
at your situation,
00:27:29.47\00:27:31.55
and in His great love
and infinite mercies for you,
00:27:31.58\00:27:34.43
He will say, "Come forth,
come from your brokenness,
00:27:34.46\00:27:37.50
come from your pain,
come from your anger,
00:27:37.53\00:27:40.13
come from your crisis. "
00:27:40.16\00:27:41.49
"Here is My love.
Here is my peace. "
00:27:41.52\00:27:44.14
God bless you.
00:27:44.17\00:27:45.55