The best conjunction of all time.

My single, all time favorite word in the entire Bible is "but".

I swear, it gets me every time. There are huge sections of scripture that are honestly just sad and whiny and pathetic and BLEGH! Like Psalm 13:

"How loooong, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?? I have sorrow! Answer me! Light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death" (my very loose paraphrase, of course). And then right when it seems like there's really no hope. No answer, no resolution, or relief.

BUT!!! But, but, but, but, BUT! ...and my heart sings because I know what's coming!!!!

"BUT I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will SING to the Lord, because he has dealt with me bountifully."

And then there is the Ultimate 'But' Passage: Ephesians 2.

Oh, my glory. Take all of the scriptures from me, but please don't take my Ephesians 2 (it's also in Titus 3, so don't take that one either... or Psalm 9... or 5.......)

"...you were dead in your sins, following the prince of the power of the air...we were children of wrath ... BUT GOD! being RICH in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our sins made us ALIVE together with Christ..."

Oh, oh, OH! I love it. I love that we can mount up all this ick and sin and sorrow. Just keep piling it up. C'mon, throw a little more death in there, a little more pain. Give it all you've got. A little more stress and disappointment. It doesn't matter because, "... He had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation for the sins of the people." (Heb 2:17)

Jesus died THROUGH all that mess and lived again on the other side. So we can rejoice our brains out because of that one little, seemingly insignificant conjunction, 'but'.

Whew!! And I plan on doing just that for all of eternity.