Wednesday, May 27, 2020

We Remember (May 31, 2020)

It’s finally starting to feel a bit more like summer!  The weather is warming up.  That surprising snow that we experienced earlier in May has finally stopped (I sure hope we don’t get any more!).  The birds have been busy.  Plants are growing.  Projects are getting tackled.  I have a tiny bit of sunburn.  (Yes, I applied sunscreen.  No, it’s not terrible.  Yes, I will apply more sunscreen in the future.)  It’s starting to feel like summer.

Another thing that is a clear sign that summer is starting…Memorial Day.  

Memorial Day is usually the marker, the signpost, the indication that summer is beginning, and most of the time, we like for that day to be a lot of fun.  Often, Memorial Day is marked with celebration.  Pools get opened.  Parties take place.  We have parades.  We eat hot dogs.  Typically, we want to start the summer off with a bang, get it kicked off in style.

This year, Memorial Day (like Mother’s Day/Easter/lots of other days) was a bit different.  Most parties were canceled.  There weren’t big parades and gatherings.  Public pools haven’t opened.  There are even talks of a meat shortage (although I’m not sure that it applies to hot dogs). 

Hopefully, though, we have still remembered.

Hopefully, even though we haven’t had a parade, we’ve remembered.

Hopefully, even though we haven’t had a party, we’ve remembered.

Hopefully, even though we haven’t gone and done a cannonball in our favorite public pool, we’ve remembered.

Hopefully, even though we can’t find Johnsonville Stadium Brats (a personal favorite that has been sold out for a while) and have to eat classic hot dogs, we’ve remembered.

Hopefully, we’ve remembered that Memorial Day is not a holiday that was ever really about any of those things in the first place.  Sure, Memorial Day marks the start of summer.  Sure, the parties and the parades and the celebrations are great.  Sure, we enjoy getting summer started off in the “right way”.  Sure, we have missed all of those things.  But, we all know that these things were never really at the heart of Memorial Day.
Hopefully, in spite of Memorial Day (and life) being “different,” we’ve remembered.  

We’ve remembered that Memorial Day is and has always been about honoring those women and men who have died while serving their country country in the military.  

Hopefully, we’ve remembered that Memorial Day is about sacrifice, and not just some little sacrifice either.  Memorial Day doesn’t point to the “I’ll let you have the last piece of candy even though I really want it” type of sacrifice.  Memorial Day is when we remember those who have paid the ultimate price, have given their most cherished resource, have laid down their lives.  

Sacrifice. 

It’s why we have the holiday.  It’s why we have a 3-day weekend.  It’s why we have parades and parties and celebrations and eat hot dogs at the pool with our friends.  Hopefully, we’ve remembered.

It’s easy to get frustrated when we’re asked to live differently.  It’s easy to get angry when things change and we can’t do all of those activities that we want to do.  It’s easy to get upset about our parties being canceled or the store being out of our favorite brats.  

It’s easy to forget.  

Hopefully, we’ve remembered. 

Hopefully, we’ve remembered the price that was paid, the lives that were laid down, the holes that have been left and will never be completely filled.  

Hopefully, we’ve remembered those who are still hurting, those who are still grieving, those who are still mourning.

Hopefully, we’ve remembered those parents who have lost their children, the grandparents who have lost a grandchild, the children who have lost a parent, the spouses who have lost their life partner, the sisters and brothers who have lost a sibling, the friends who have lost their companions, the communities who have lost their citizens, the veterans who have lost those who were closer than a relative, the neighbors who have lost part of their community, the uncles, the aunts, the nephews, the nieces, and on and on and on.

Hopefully, we’ve remembered.

Hopefully, we’ve remembered the hurt.  The heartache.  The pain.  The suffering.  The loss.  The tragedy.

Hopefully, we’ve remembered.

But, if I’m honest, sometimes I forget.  Sometimes, I forget that Memorial Day isn’t just some holiday about me having fun and eating yummy food.  Sometimes, I forget that the freedom that I enjoy did not come easily and is not maintained cheaply.  Sometimes, I forget.  I forget.  I forget about the sacrifices that have been made, and I have to wonder, “Why?”

Why do I forget?  Is it because remembering is painful?  Emotional?  Difficult?  Is it because I’m just forgetful?  Or, is it because I get so self-involved that it never even crosses my mind to remember?  That I’m too worried about eating my favorite kind of grilled meat?

Hopefully, we’ve remembered.  But sometimes, we forget.

This year, I hope that in the middle of the abnormal circumstance of Memorial Day, 2020 that you actually had an opportunity to remember.  Remember the lives, remember the service, remember the gift, remember the sacrifice.  Remember.  Even as you read this and Memorial Day has passed, it’s not too late.  Remember.

Memorial Day provides an opportunity for us to remember those who have given their lives in service to their country so that we who are reading this can be free.

Of course, this idea of sacrifice for freedom is not one that is limited to Memorial Day.  In fact, as powerful, as meaningful, as awe-inspiring, as selfless as the sacrifices that have been made on our behalf are, they still pale in comparison to the sacrifice that has been made for our freedom by Jesus the Christ.  Lives that have been laid down in service should be remembered, should be honored, should be celebrated, and I do not wish to take away from that fact.  People have given their all that we might be free.  They should be honored.  They should be remembered.  However, the freedom that we have received from the hands of so many is still not sufficient.  It’s still not enough.  Though it is remarkable and appreciated, it does not set us completely free.  We’re still bound in chains to sin, to death, to suffering, to heartache, to hurts, to failures.  Even as we remember those who have laid down their lives for me, we need more.  

We need Jesus.

I’ve said it before, and I will say it again, true freedom can only be found in Jesus.

John 8:36 states that “if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

I’ve asked before, and I will ask again, have you found that freedom?  

    • Have you found the freedom that can come only from the Son? 
    • Do you know what it means to be free, truly free, completely free?  Not just free to drink when you want to drink, or go where you want to go, or eat what you want to eat, but freedom from guilt, freedom from shame, freedom from the darkness, the cloud, the stain of sin?  Have you found freedom in Christ? 
    • Have you found the freedom that can only be yours by accepting the sacrifice that Christ has made on your behalf? 
    • Have you witnessed the love of God in Jesus and have you responded to his grace?
    • If so, do you remember?

Memorial Day has come and gone.  Unofficially, summer has started.  It’s easy to get busy and to forget, but I want for you to take some time and remember.

Remember that you are free this day because of those who have sacrificed on your behalf.  Give thanks to God for them.  (If you are able, give thanks to a family who has lost a loved one through their service.)

More importantly, remember Jesus.

Remember the One who knew no sin, who had no stain, who lived his life perfectly, who walked with the Father without shame, without blemish, without defect.  

Remember the One who “did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  (Mark 10:45)

Remember the One who was not deserving of death, who had done no wrong, who had committed no offense, and yet who sacrificed, who laid his life down, who died for me, for you, for us.

Remember Jesus.

Remember Jesus in the way that you live.  Remember Jesus in the way that you speak.  Remember Jesus in the way that you love.  

In all things, at all times, in all places, no matter the occasion, remember Jesus, and may His love, His grace, His mercy, His Spirit ever fill you with peace, with hope, with joy, with love, with freedom.  Now and forevermore.

~ Pastor Chris

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Lost (May 24, 2020)

This week's devotional is brought to you by Christa.  Enjoy!  ~ Pastor Chris

By the time you read this, Chris is probably on his way to Ohio for a funeral service.  Although he is honored and humbled to be the Minister at his uncle’s funeral, this was not something he thought he would be doing right now.  Just a few weeks ago, Chris last saw his uncle over a video chat on the computer.  His uncle was all smiles and completely healthy.  One month later his uncle is no longer with us.  His death, caused by a very aggressive brain cancer, was sudden and unexpected.   

You can imagine how the family is feeling…devastated, heart-broken, hopeless.

Have you ever felt that way before?  Devastated?  Heart-broken?  Hopeless?  

Maybe your situation was different, but the emotions were similar…an overwhelming sense of loss.  You felt like you lost hope.   You felt like you lost faith. Even Jesus felt lost to you.

What do we do when we feel so lost?  What do we do when it’s hard to find Jesus in all of this?

Did you know that at one point even Mary, Jesus’ mother, had a hard time finding Jesus?  

His mom!

I don’t know about you, but I usually know where Silas is.  It’s this keen hawk-eye ability that I think most moms have with their children.  No matter what they are doing or where they are, our “mom sense” is on high alert.  

And yet, Mary the mother of Jesus…the mom of the King of kings, the mom of the Savior of the world, the mom of the Alpha and the Omega…has lost Jesus!
Luke 2:41-45 tells us how it happened.  

Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends.

This story is the only Biblically recorded account from Jesus’s birth to His adult ministry.  There are probably multiple explanations why we are given this account.  But could one reason be because we all seem to “lose” Jesus at some point in our life?  We’ve all been traveling down the path of life, and all of sudden we’ve lost Jesus.  How?  Here’s a few reasons…

-Sin
-Avoidance
-Rebellion
-Blame
-Busyness
So, what do we do?  What do we do when we lost our way…when we lost Jesus?

Well, what did Mary do?

She went looking for Him!  
When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him.  -Luke 2:45

They were already a day’s walk into their 3 day journey when they realized Jesus was missing.  But as soon as they realized He wasn’t there, they went back.  

It doesn’t matter how long you have journeyed, how far off you have strayed, how lost you feel - go back!  Go back to Jesus.

Can you imagine how desperate Mary and Joseph must have been?  I can picture them asking the other travelers, “Where is Jesus?”

On the streets of Jerusalem, “Where is Jesus?”  

In the marketplace, “Where is Jesus?”

They searched.  And searched.  And searched.  For three days!  Until finally they found Him.

After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished.  -Luke 2:46-48a

Jesus wasn’t with the relatives.  He wasn’t on the streets of Jerusalem.  He wasn’t in the marketplace.  He was in the temple.

Mary had to have been relieved.  Her son was found!  After three days of frantically searching!

Jesus responds to their searching with this question,

“Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” -Luke 2:49b

And I wonder if Mary thought to herself…if only I searched there sooner.  How did I not know that there is where Jesus would be? 

When we are lost, we should be desperate to find Jesus.  But, sometimes like Mary and Joseph, we are looking for him in all of the wrong places.  We say we want to find Him, but are we really going to where He is? 

Or, at the end of the day do we realize another day has passed where we didn’t find Him again?

You might be asking the same question as Mary did when she was searching for Jesus…”Where is Jesus?”

Where is Jesus in my pain?
Where is Jesus in this mess?
Where is Jesus in our world?
Where is Jesus in my problem?

So…Where is Jesus????

He is right beside you.

Maybe Mary and Joseph’s biggest mistake was they assumed Jesus left Jerusalem.  Could our biggest mistake also be that we assume Jesus left us?  In our problems, pain, and trials we might not be able to see or feel Jesus, so we assume he left us.   But just as Jesus never left Jerusalem, He has never left you either.  Jesus was in Jerusalem, right where He needed to be. 

And He’s right where you need Him to be too.  With you. 

His “Father’s Business” IS ABOUT BEING WITH YOU and offering you:

-Love
-Hope
-Forgiveness
-Redemption
-Strength
-Healing
-Restoration
-Unity
-Direction
-Wisdom
-And so much more.

Is something on this list lost from your life?  Maybe all of them?  It doesn’t have to be.  Jesus can give you all that you need.  

You just have to go to Him. You might search and search and search…but all of you have to do is turn to Him.  He’s right there.  He never left you.

So, GO FIND JESUS!  He will be right where you need Him to be….right beside you.

You are in our prayers!  

~ Christa

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Moving On To Perfection (May 17, 2020)

I mentioned in a previous devotional how one of the things that has kept me busy during this strange time of the coronavirus is the remodeling of one of our rooms in our house (well, our entire upstairs really, but that sounds too overwhelming.  We’re just fortunate that our house isn’t very large!).  It’s kind of a long story as to how the rooms needed redone, and the process isn’t finished, but we’re moving towards completion…slowly.  One day at a time.  Step by step.  Or maybe inch by inch…centimeter by centimeter?  Some days it feels like progress.  Other days it feels like regress.  Then, there are days that feel like no-gress (I just made up a word that had “gress” in it to mean “stay the same,” neither forward nor backwards.  You’re welcome to use it.  No-gress.).

One of the main steps in this remodeling process has been the the drywall.  Let me just tell you.  DRYWALL IS MISERABLE!!!!!!  I have great respect for those who are able to hang and finish drywall proficiently and smoothly.  As for me?  I’m not a fan.  Let me explain how this works for me.  

Step 1: Measure, Cut, Hang.  First, measure the wall.  Then, measure the drywall.  Once you think you have that figured out, you cut the drywall to size.  Next comes the fun part…hanging.  This requires a decent amount of muscle and flexibility as you try to hang these huge, unwieldy sheets without throwing out your back, sweating profusely, and praying that you made the cuts in the right spot (particularly around outlets and switches).  Then, you find out the cut was a little bit off so you take the sheet down and start again.  Measure.  Cut.  Lift.  Once it’s right, screw the thing into the wall.  Oh, but you can’t just put screws in there all willy-nilly.  You have to hit the studs and screw to just the right depth.  If the screw is too high…you’ll see them forever.  Too low…they’ll pull through the paper and won’t hold the drywall up properly.  By the way, each sheet requires a fair number of screws.  That’s step one.  Measure.  Cut.  Hold.  Measure.  Cut.  Hold.  Screw.  Screw.  Screw.  Screw.  Repeat.  

Step 2: Mud & Tape.  This is what I like to call “hide the mistakes” time.  Put an extra hole in the drywall?  Mud and tape.  Have a gap that’s a little too big?  Mud and tape.  Carve your honey’s name into the drywall to profess your undying love?  Mud and tape.  Now, again, you can’t go about it all footloose and fancy free.  You have to take your time, work with precision.  If you leave a ridge, it will look like a mountain range once you paint.  A little divot…the Grand Canyon.  Mud performs best in thin layers, each section requiring at least 2-3 layers with a recommended 24 hours of dry time in between.  Mud.  Tape.  Mud.  Mud.  Mud.  Mud.  And mud some more.

Step 3:  Sand.  & sand & sand & sand & sand.  All of the mud that was applied in step 2 needs sanded.  That stuff doesn’t just dry all flat and smooth.  It needs some more attention to get there.  Enter sanding.  You have to knock off all of the rough edges, flatten out all of the peaks.  Blend the transitions between the sheets to look as if it was all one board for all of its life.  It’s tedious.  It’s tiring, and it makes quite the mess.  Fine, white dust travels everywhere.  Every.  Where.

Step 4:  Inspect & Paint.  At this point, it’s time to say that the drywall is done.  Good to go.  So, you look over the wall and evaluate.  Have I gotten out all of the bumps?  Have I filled in all of the dips?  Is there anything on this wall (or ceiling) that is going to stand out?  Do the corners look good?   Any blemishes or flaws?  If so, fix them.  If not, paint.  Now, most of us know about painting.  Again, not always some easy-peasy thing.  It takes time.  Rolling it on, not making a mess, filling in the corners, multiple coats.  On and on and on.

Step 5:  Enjoy.  Look at your work and be proud of your accomplishment.

Do you know what happens if you skip out on any of the steps?  Enjoyment does not come.  Do you know what happens if you don’t perform the steps well?  Enjoyment does not come.  Do you know what happens if in Step 4 during the inspection stage you say “Eh, it’s probably good enough”?  Enjoyment does not come.

In my haste and my desire to be done, I rushed the sanding a bit.  Then, I rushed the inspecting a bit.  I wasn’t trying to do that, but I did.  I didn’t look at the wall closely, I didn’t inspect it with precision (in part because of haste, in part because of limited experience).  So, we moved into painting too fast.  Guess what?  The paint really, really shows the mistakes.  Big bumps and mountains on top of where screws should be hidden.  Large ridges for seams.  Valleys and gashes in places where there should be nothing but drywall as smooth as glass.  Miserable.  At that point, there were two options.  Live with it, or do it again.

Do you know what’s worse than sanding the drywall for the first time?  Sanding it the second.  After it has been painted.  Now, instead of just drywall mud there’s paint that has set and drywall mud.  Plus, the chances are high that you’ll sand too low and have to reapply mud…only to sand it again.  How do I know?  Well, I mentioned earlier…DRYWALL IS MISERABLE!!!!!!

Getting drywall that is smooth and white and flat and nice is no easy task (especially if you don’t completely know what you are doing).  Granted, people who know what they’re doing can get it done quickly and proficiently, but even then it takes time, talent, effort and a whole lot of mess.

But what does this have to do with us?  Surely, this whole thing can’t just be about drywall.  Right?

Of course not!  Here’s the thing.  We, like drywall, are hopefully moving on to perfection, moving on to be more like the person we were designed to be.  Drywall is designed to be hung in a way that the finished product is flat, smooth, seamless, but a lot of work is required to get it there.  We, too, are created with a design, with a purpose, to be like Jesus, and it takes work to get us there.

Step 1:  Measure, Cut, Hang.  Take “measure” of your life.  Decide how you will live it, choose which path to follow, and then go that route.  Recognize the true hanging.  It happened quite literally, and I’m not being flippant.  Jesus was hung, on a cross, for us.  For me.  For you.  That’s step one.  We have to accept the gift that was given for us, recognize that our lives need to be built on Christ, receive the salvation that God offers us through Jesus and let everything else be built on that foundation.  If we don’t start there, we’re lost for sure.  It would be like hanging drywall on a rotted frame loaded like termites.  It might hold for a while.  It might look good from the outside, but it won’t last.  Our lives need to be built, our drywall needs to be hung, on Jesus…who hung on a cross for us.

Step 2: Mud & Tape.  Once we know Jesus, there is more to the relationship than just acceptance of salvation.  There are gaps to be filled, holes to be patched.  We have to recognize that even after we have accepted Christ, we’re not done.  We haven’t reached fullness.  We’re still moving on to perfection.

If I hung the drywall without finishing it, it would be terrible!  You’d come to my house and see the walls and wonder, “What’s wrong with this guy?”  “He’s acting like he’s done, but you can still see the screws, the gaps, the blemishes!”  Sure, the drywall would be up, but it wouldn’t be completed.  

We, too, need some finishing.  God’s grace is sufficient.  The price that Jesus paid is enough.  I’m not talking about earning our way into heaven, or gaining God’s favor or anything like that.  What I am saying, is that we need to allow God to fill in some gashes, to cover some scars, to smooth out some rough edges, to fix some imperfections.  Even after we come to know Jesus, we need to allow God to continue to work within us that we might be more like Him.  We need some mud, some tape, and a whole bunch of sanding.

Step 3:  Sand.  Too often, in our Christian walk, we want to skip ahead to the paint.  “I’m done God.  Don’t worry about it!  Nobody will notice the flaws!  Let’s get some paint on it!  Let’s just be done.”  But God knows better.  He knows we need the grit of the sandpaper to smooth out some rough spots, to knock down some edges, to transform us to be more like we were intended to be in the first place.  If we skip over the sanding and just throw the paint on…guess what?  The blemishes still show.  The ridges stand out even more, and the process becomes even more difficult.  Years lived with the patterns of pride or selfishness or any other imperfection are harder to erase when they have become ingrained and part of our pattern.  It’s better to let God deal with them right away, to be a willing participant, to allow God to do the finishing.

You know there’s an obvious trait about sandpaper…it’s rough.  That’s by design.  It’s made to be rough so that it can remove material.  I imagine if the material, such as the drywall mud, could talk, it would exclaim “Why are you using that rough stuff on me?  I don’t like it!  I prefer my bumps, my ridges.”  But that’s what is necessary.  Sandpaper needs to be rough.  When you lose the roughness, the grit, the sandpaper is no longer effective.  

There are times in life when the season that we’re in gets rough.  When that happens, when life gets rough, when the storms come, when the sandpaper is rubbed, allow God to work.  Allow God to use the tough situations to smooth you out.  Allow God to knock down the blemishes, to remove the imperfections, to shape and to mold you to be like you were designed, made in the image of God, moving towards perfection.

Step 4:  Inspect & Paint.  As we continue with God, we need to inspect our lives, compare them to the Bible, look to see where we are coming up short…better yet, allow God to speak to us about where we are coming up short.  Keep looking.  Keep inspecting.  “Paint” the walls that have been victorious, celebrate the growth and the removal of old sins and stains, but allow God’s light to shine to continue to reveal your weaknesses, to make you more like Jesus.  Allow more sanding where necessary.

Step 5:  Enjoy.  This can accompany all of the the steps.  Life isn’t completely like drywall.  It’s not all misery and suffering.  There is joy, there is happiness, there is hope.  Enjoy the blessings of the Lord and the relationship that God offers to have with you throughout the whole process.

I want to close with a Scripture.  It doesn’t have much to do with drywall…they had other ways of finishing their walls when the Bible was written.  But, it does talk about building…specifically building your life on the firm foundation (& building something that would be of value, lives that reflect God’s glory).  May we heed this advice, place our lives in the hands of the Master Carpenter, the Top Notch Professional Drywall Finisher, and may we continue to be shaped by God to be more like the Son, Jesus.

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.  If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.  If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.  If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.
~ 1 Corinthians 3:11-15

~ Pastor Chris

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

It's Time to Rejoice? (May 10, 2020)

Have you ever been reading the Bible and thought to yourself, “I’m not sure if I like that verse.  I’m not sure if I like what I’m reading here.  God, are you sure?”  I know that I’ve had that experience.  Frequently.  There are passages of Scripture that are challenging.  There are sections that I read and after having read them I feel a little beat up, a little worse for wear, and I don’t always like reading those verses.  Don’t get me wrong, there are a ton of passages that don’t make me feel this way, and I’m not criticizing the Bible.  There are plenty of passages that are encouraging and uplifting and inspirational, and I hold the Bible to be God-breathed.  But, every once in a while, I read or re-read a section or a couple of verses, and they cause me to pause, to question, to evaluate and ask, “Seriously?” 

Don’t believe me?  Let me share part of one with you.  

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials…
~ Romans 5:3a

Maybe you don’t take issue with the above verse, but I find it difficult.  I find it hard.  I find it challenging.  I find it contrary to my natural response.  I even find it contrary to what I want to do.  Paul is writing this letter to the believers in Rome, and he says that when problems and trials come, we can rejoice.  Rejoice?  About problems?  No thank you.  I prefer deliverance and resolution as quickly as possible.  Problems come?  FIX IT!  Get it resolved.  Trials?  Let’s figure out how we can end this thing.  The sooner the better.  Rejoicing when they arrive?  Not so much, and yet, this is what is in Scripture, this is the Word of God.  I have to address this verse, this concept, even if it is hard.  

I’m not going to lie.  This is a tough passage for me.  I don’t like it.  I wish that it said, “We can escape when we run into problems and trials.”  At minimum, I’d settle for “We can complain when we run into problems and trials.”  But that’s not what Paul says.  Instead, he says “We can rejoice…”  At problems.  At trials.  Let me think about that again for a moment…Nope.  Still don’t like it.  Rejoice at victory?  Yes.  Rejoice at birthdays?  Yes.  Rejoice at being able to fit an entire cream filled donut into my mouth?  Yes.  Rejoice at problems?  No.  At trials?  No.  Or as some other translations say, rejoice at suffering?  No thank you.

It seems like Paul and I have a disagreement.  Paul says “rejoice”.  I say “avoid, resolve, or complain.”  So who’s right and who has the problem?  Does the problem lie with me, or is it with Paul?  (Please say Paul.  Please say Paul.  Please say Paul.)   

Coincidentally, right in the middle of writing this devotional, I stepped away from the computer for a bit.  During that time I happened to read in James.  Let me tell you what he said.  

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds…   ~James 1:2

Seriously?  What are the chances?  Are you kidding me here?  It’s like God arranged this circumstances to make an even better point.  (Don’t you just love it when your coincidences are arranged by God?  I do.)  I had not planned to read that verse.  I didn’t remember that James began in that way, and yet, when I opened my Bible to read James, there it was “Consider it pure joy…when you face trials…”  Uh oh.  Now Paul and James are on the same page, teaming up against me!  Maybe James has the same problem as Paul.  They can’t both be right!  Can they?  That would mean that I’m the one with the problem.  

Ok.  Ok.  It’s obviously my issue.  The problem lies with me.  The problem is mine, and that is why I have a hard time with the verse (and the one in James too!).  They point to a problem within me.

You see, I want to escape problems.  I want a hassle-free life.  I want to avoid trials and hardships and anything that would cause me a moments discomfort.  If I can’t avoid problems, then my second preference would be quick resolutions.  Problems come, problems solved.  5 minutes max.  If that doesn’t work, then I at least want my third preference, the right to moan and whine and complain.  Option 1:  No Problems.  Option 2:  Fast Solutions.  Option 3:  Free License to Complain.  It turns out, my options stink.  My preferences in dealing with problems are actually the problem.

Paul and James knew something better, they had an option that was higher than mine.  They had it figured out.  Not only could they manage in their trials, in their suffering, but they could rejoice.  As hard as it seems and as contrary to my nature that this is, I’m the one with the issue.  I need to change.

But how?

If we back up a little bit in Romans to verses 1 & 2, Paul says this:

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 

Paul indicates that he has been “justified through faith.”  It’s one of those “churchy” sayings that can lose meaning, but let’s remember what Paul is talking about here.  Paul is saying that he has been made right with God, that his sins have been forgiven, that he has been made clean, that he has been restored in his relationship with God, that he has been “justified”.  How has this happened?  It was not by his works, not by his merit, not because he has earned anything, but only because he has put his faith, his hope, his trust, his life in Jesus Christ.  Jesus made it possible for Paul to gain access to the grace of God.  Jesus made it possible for Paul to be counted as a son of the Heavenly Father.  Jesus made it possible for Paul’s sin and stains to be washed away.  So Paul could “boast in the hope of the glory of God.”  Because of Jesus, Paul could boast about what God had done for him.  Not only could Paul do that in the good times, but as verse 3 continued, “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials…

Paul had put his sufferings in light of what he had been given in Jesus, and it was no comparison.  Paul recognized his weakness, his faults, his flaws.  Paul knew his guilt, and he understood that he had no business being “made right” with God.  He hadn’t earned it.  He didn’t deserve it.  He wasn’t owed God’s grace or favor.  And yet, he was given the greatest gift that he could ever imagine.  So, even when he faced problems and trials, he could rejoice.

Not only that, but Paul also knew a side benefit.  Trials and problems produce results.  Listen to how he continues in verses 3-5:

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.  And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

  • Problems help us develop endurance, or perseverance, the ability to last, to stick with it.  
  • Endurance develops strength of character, makes us better people, more like Jesus, the kind of people that I want to be, the kind of people I hope that you want to be as well.  
  • Character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.  As we become more like Jesus, more like the person we were created to be, we can have confident hope that we will be saved, that we will enter into God’s glory, that the present sufferings won’t last.  
  • This confident hope does not disappoint.  It’s not just wishful thinking.  It will come to pass.  How do we know this?  Because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.  God has already given us God’s very presence, a gift like no other and a sign of what is yet to come.

Paul (and James… and others.  Yes, there are even more verses in the Bible that say same thing!) could rejoice in suffering because they saw the larger picture.  They recognized what they had already been given through Jesus, that they did not deserve the grace that they received, the life that they had been offered.  But not only that, they also knew that suffering, that problems, that trials produced results.  They produced endurance and strength of character and an increased hope of salvation and a reminder that they had already been given the Holy Spirit.  So, even though they didn’t seek out a trial, when one came, they could rejoice.

Friends, I don’t necessarily like it, it won’t necessarily be easy, but I need for this to be my response to difficulties, to trials, to suffering as well.  I need to have this be my outlook.  When problems arise, I need to be more like Paul, to have them in the larger context of my life, including what I have been given through Jesus and what can be gained through endurance.  How about you?  Can you have this mind as well?  Can you ask God to enable you to rejoice, even in difficulties?

Even now, we are asked to endure, we are asked to persevere, we are asked to continue to face trials and hardships.  

The Bishop has written a letter to the pastors within the conference indicating that United Methodist Churches will not be re-opened for public, in-person worship until June 1 at the earliest.  Not only that, but our county must be in the “green” zone according to the state of PA in order for us to be able to gather together.  At minimum, we’re asked to hold off our gatherings for 4 more Sundays.  We’re asked to persevere.  It’s a challenging request.  It’s a difficult proposition, but it remains.  

The larger challenge…how will we respond?  How will we respond to not being in church?  Beyond that, how will we respond to the limitations within our lives that are impacting our way of living, our livelihood, our friends, our families?  How will we respond to the continued threat of hardship, of trials, of difficulty, of suffering?

My hope is that somehow, by the grace of God, the Holy Spirit will work within us and we will be able to respond like Paul, that we will rejoice…even in times of trial, even now.  It’s time to rejoice.  Personally, I need God’s help in this response, but I am confident that he will continue to work within me (Philippians 1:6).  May God continue to work within me, within us, to make us more like his Son, Jesus for God’s sake and Glory.  Amen.


~ Pastor Chris