by leaps and bounds

Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last. My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together (Isaiah 48:12-13, NIV).

I recall, from my childhood, two men in our community who physically seemed larger than life. Since I was a small child, I’m not sure how tall or heavy they really were. However, to me, they were very imposing men.

Bernard was one of them. He was a tall, broad shouldered man with a really long beard. I remember him always wearing coveralls and always being accompanied by two huge dogs. He was a war veteran who rarely spoke to anyone. Honestly, I was somewhat afraid of him. 

Clarence, my next door neighbor, was the other man. He was also a big man who lived alone and didn’t seem very friendly. 

One day, Clarence came over to our house carrying a brown and white puppy. I saw him talking to my dad. Somehow he talked Dad into letting me have the puppy. He brought it to me and said, “Here boy, I thought you might want your own dog.” Brownie was my companion for years, and I looked at Clarence in a totally different way. My perception of him had been inaccurate.

Sometimes our perception of God is the opposite of my perception of these men. Instead of God being larger than life, we make our problems bigger than Him. I encourage you to make God big in your life. Start by looking at the Biblical description of Him.

His Word alone was sufficient to bring creation into existence. Hear the words of Jesus in Matthew 4: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” His Word is powerful; His Word is bigger than life to us. Now, look at the description of His presence. 

In Isaiah 66:1, God declares, “The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.” His presence is imposing! He occupies all space, time, and eternity. Yes, He is bigger than life — but so is His love.

Do you know that God loves you so much that He is thinking about you right now? Psalm 139:17 states that His thoughts toward you are precious and great in number. Make no mistake — He wants you saved and He wants you blessed. All you need to do for that to happen is to make God big in your life.

Dave Snyder is an Ordained Bishop with the Church of God – Cleveland, Tennessee. Before entering the ministry on a full-time basis, he was a school teacher. He also coached middle school basketball for eight years.

Dave and his wife, Sara, have two children  — Craig and Karen. They also have one ten year old granddaughter  — Breanna. 

Dave and Sara pastored in West Virginia for thirty-six years. Sara is now retired from the banking industry, and Dave is retired from pastoring. However, Dave currently serves as prison Chaplain for the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation. 

Writing essays, articles, and devotionals is a real passion for Dave. He also enjoys playing musical instruments and singing.

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, E’-li, E’-li, la’-ma sa-bach’-tha-ni? That is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46)

And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:8).

Music is an interesting and integral component of the human experience. From generation to generation, it evolves into different styles, rhythms, and lyrics. Despite the changes, music always reflects various elements of life as we know it.

Keys and rhythms come together to reflect positive experiences such as joy and victory. Keys and rhythms also come together to reflect negative experiences such as grief and loneliness.

Many years ago, a unique folk song was written. One section of the song had only two keys in it — both minor keys. The combination of the two minor keys formed a foreboding, lonely sound. The music and lyrics together gave the impression that the singer was living life in a minor key.

Jesus came to this earth for the total human experience — including loneliness. When He cried out, “Why have you forsaken me?” He was experiencing life in a minor key. However, He didn’t stay there. We don’t have to stay there either. As long as we belong to God, loneliness is not a permanent or hopeless condition. It is certain, though, that we will at times live life in the minor key of loneliness.

We experience loneliness when we are abandoned by people. The Bible gives us real life examples for us to glean from. Briefly, let us look at three of them.

Joseph was favored by his father and chosen by God. Have you ever wondered how he felt when his brothers left him?

Paul was excited to have a Christian brother like Demas to help him in his ministry. In II Timothy 4:9-10 you can feel the pain in Paul’s words, “Demas has forsaken me because he loves this present world.”

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed alone. Then His disciples deserted him when He needed them the most.

In our lives we experience this in various ways. Many feel the sting of loneliness when a spouse walks out. Parents experience the empty nest when the last child leaves home. As Christians we stand alone when we choose to please God rather than go along with the world’s views.

We experience loneliness when we suffer persecution. Elijah fled from the wrath of Jezebel. Stephen faced the mob all alone — simply because he preached the truth. Our persecution may not seem as severe, but sooner or later some form of persecution will come. It may be in the form of lies intended to ruin our reputation. It may be simply being ostracized at our workplace. However it happens, it is a lonely place.

Scripture shows us that loneliness is a common experience. If God is with us, we are never truly alone. Loneliness is not the end of it all. Let us revisit our earlier examples to see how things worked out for them:

Joseph became the second most powerful man in Egypt.

Paul continued his ministry and wrote a large portion of the New Testament.

Elijah went on to anoint two kings and his own replacement, Elisha.

Stephen was stoned to death, but had an enormous impact on the life of Paul.

Jesus died, rose again and lives to be our intercessor forevermore.

Every now and then, life hits a minor key. Remember, the minor key is only part of the song. The presence of God in our lives makes it all beautiful music.

Dave Snyder is an Ordained Bishop with the Church of God – Cleveland, Tennessee. Before entering the ministry on a full-time basis, he was a school teacher. He also coached middle school basketball for eight years.

Dave and his wife, Sara, have two children  — Craig and Karen. They also have one ten year old granddaughter  — Breanna. 

Dave and Sara pastored in West Virginia for thirty-six years. Sara is now retired from the banking industry, and Dave is retired from pastoring. However, Dave currently serves as prison Chaplain for the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation. 

Writing essays, articles, and devotionals is a real passion for Dave. He also enjoys playing musical instruments and singing.