When the state of the world has you down

Is it just me, or does every year feel heavier?

Maybe it’s part of growing older, but it seems like each year is full of more bad news, more bad circumstances, more bad actors in government, and more people making bad choices that hurt others.  Overwhelming no longer feels like a “sometimes” word…it’s become the norm for many of us, with the exhausted pigeon meme aptly describing our lives.

For those of us who believe in Jesus for eternal life, we have a great comfort available to us – the promises made by God in the Scriptures.  Whenever the state of the world has us feeling down, we often turn to verses emphasizing our heavenly future to give us both comfort and perspective:

Philippians 3:20
Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Revelation 21:4
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.  Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

There are many other verses that look forward to eternity future, where God tells us about our glorious destiny together with Him as an encouragement while we wait for that time to arrive.  But when dwelling on this truth, I’ve detected a subtle undercurrent of self-centeredness in myself and, based upon the behavior of many other Christians, I don’t think I’m alone in my selfishness.

Oftentimes, when I think about eternity future…my focus is very me-centric.  I don’t like the pain I’m dealing with now, so I can’t wait until the day that all pain is gone.  I don’t like the government leaders I have right now, so I look forward to when Jesus will be the one in charge.  I don’t want to live where so much hate-filled rhetoric comes from so many people, so I want God’s eternal peace now.  I’m tired of all the ignorance, fearmongering, violence, and selfishness I see online and in the news…and I’m just ready to go to heaven right now.

All those things about eternity future are true, and God has promised that future to those who believe in Jesus for eternal life…but we tend to forget that we were once part of the crowd we now want to leave behind:

Titus 3:3-8
At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures.  We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.  But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

This is a trustworthy saying.  And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.  These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

Paul’s instruction for Titus’ message to his churches in Crete is clear – Don’t forget where you came from.  They have the same opportunity to be saved as you did.

Paul wants Titus to stress these things because remembering them and living out that new identity in Christ is excellent and profitable for everyone – not just for believers, but also for those who are still foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved.

So yes, we are to look forward to eternity future.  We can draw hope from knowing our destiny is secure in God’s promises.  But don’t let our eternal status lead us to feeling superior, smug, or above what’s happening in the world around us.  When we are careful to devote ourselves to doing what is good, we point them toward the God who saved us.

Because…at one time we too were just like them.  Don’t forget where you came from.  And don’t forget that the only reason for our salvation isn’t because of us.  It’s all because of His mercy.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

It’s not going fast enough

Last weekend, I put a lot of work into our lawn.  I borrowed a friend’s lawn tractor and pull-behind aerator.  I methodically drove all over our grass, pulling up plugs of dirt.  There are many benefits to doing this – improved drainage; loosening of any compacted soil; allowing water, air, and nutrients to penetrate deeper into the soil; and the stimulation of grass root development so you have a thicker, healthier lawn.  After aerating, I then spread grass seed, fertilizer, and lime.  It was several hours of effort to do all this work, even on our small-size lot.  I definitely felt a bit tired that evening, and even had a little arm soreness the next day due to pushing the spreader for laps around our grass.

On Monday, I was looking out one of our back windows at the lawn, feeling a little pride in the effort I had given over the previous days.  I then jokingly quipped to my wife, “Why don’t I see any grass yet?  I put in all that work, why hasn’t it all grown up by now?”

Although my questions were asked with my tongue firmly in my cheek, there was a little bit of familiarity to the impatient feeling that I was mocking.  How many times do we begin to put in effort on long-term projects, only to quit out of frustration that we’re not seeing results fast enough?  How many of these sound familiar?

·       I lifted weights this morning, how come my biceps aren’t bigger and stronger?
·       I ate a super healthy salad for lunch, why don’t I see my abs?
·       I’ve been putting money all year into my retirement account, how come it isn’t fully funded yet?

Ok, so maybe you’re not that impractical.  Let’s try these, instead:

·       No matter how many times I talk to my daughter, she still struggles.  I don’t know what to do next.
·       Being fully open and honest with our customers is cutting into our bottom line.  Maybe I don’t have to tell them everything.
·       I’m tired of taking care of things around the house without being recognized or appreciated.  Maybe I’ll just quit doing it until someone notices.

When we don’t see an immediate return on our efforts, it’s easy to want to throw in the towel and coast.  And, short-term, there may not be any immediate consequences.  However, we need to take the long-term view to see clearly…and I’m not talking about a decades-long viewpoint, either.  By “long-term” we need to be viewing life from an eternal perspective.

I find it interesting that Paul says this to the believers in Galatia:

Galatians 6:2
Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

He then says a few verses later:

Galatians 6:9-10
Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up.  Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.

The law of Christ refers back to Jesus stating the greatest commandment – to love God and love others as yourself (Mark 12:29-31).  We fulfill Jesus’ expectation of His followers as we take care of one another. 

The incredible thing is that Jesus doesn’t just tell us to do this “Because He said so”.  Instead, we will reap a reward from God as a result of following Jesus’ example.  While some people have recoiled at this, claiming it’s improper to think that God would have to “bribe” us to do good things.  To that line of thought, I would simply ask: “Do you not reward your children for a job well done?  Do you bless them and give them greater opportunities as they show themselves capable and worthy?”  God is treating us in the same manner.

However, there is an important stipulation to this reward…it’s not immediate.  Note what Paul says – Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up.  God has in mind a proper time to give us the reward, and that will only come if we don’t give up.  Persistence (continuing to give the same level of energy) and perseverance (continuing when challenges arise) are key to obtaining God’s rewards. 

Notice, too, there is no indication that perfection is needed…but we need to keep the long-term mindset in order to keep on loving God and loving others, even if we don’t see immediate results.

Keep Pressing,
Ken