I’m sure that we have all met those people before who are all doom and gloom. You talk to them for a little bit and they just seem to have a knack at finding the clouds amidst the silver lining. You give them ten blessings and they’ll somehow find ten problems. On the other side of the coin, I’m sure we’ve all met those people before that seem to be totally disconnected from reality. The sun is always shining and the birds are somehow always chirping. You may enjoy being around them but you wouldn’t describe them as being down to earth. You certainly wouldn’t go to them with your problems because they simply don’t seem to have any.

I would imagine that most of us would aspire to land somewhere in the middle of that spectrum. In John 16:33 Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” I think we can all attest to the first part of this passage. In this world we all have had trouble. Trouble comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes but there is no denying that all human beings face it. Sometimes I try super hard to find a path with little to no resistance but somehow I always end up having to reaffirm this statement that Jesus made 2,000 years ago.

In this passage he also tells us to “take heart.” The Greek word for “take heart” is tharseō and it means to be of good courage. With all the troubles that we face, why in the world should we be courageous? Let’s be honest…there are very few people that I know that I would describe as courageous. Courage is hard to come by in a world where there is so much uncertainty. So what is the root of true confidence? I’m glad you asked (-; Jesus said that our confidence should come from the fact that he overcame the world. He overcame death, disease, sin and everything else that this world threw at him including all of our issues. He overcame.

We can have a realistic optimism as we pass through the trials of this life. We can know that in this world we will have trouble. We can go ahead and bank on it. That being said, we can also be of good courage because Jesus overcame the world. Now, it doesn’t matter to you that Jesus overcame the world if you don’t have a personal relationship with him. He died for your sins and rose from the dead to be in relationship with you. It’s nothing that you can earn but it is something that you must receive. If you do have a relationship with him, live in the middle of the spectrum. Don’t be one of those Christians that tries to turn a blind eye to the troubles of the world and don’t be someone who can only see the troubles of the world. Live with a realistic perspective of the troubles in the world while simultaneously holding onto a confidence knowing that your Savior overcame.