No Fear in Love - 1 John 4:18

No Fear in Love

In his first epistle, John offers a compelling legal argument about God’s perfect love.  In 1 John 4:18, the great Apostle of Love offers a four-point, line of reasoning.  “There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”  John assures early disciples the perfect love of Almighty God completely annihilates fear.  In Christ, God most clearly and uniquely reveals His perfect love for humankind.  This truth liberates us from fear of death; and empowers us to receive abundant and eternal life.

“There is no fear in love.”  Fear and love cannot coexist in the same heart.  If we are in love, we should not live in anxiety and dread.  Threat of loss or injury (emotional, physical, or financial) should not preoccupy our minds and hearts.  Love enables peace and freedom.  People in love rely upon a foundation of trust, commitment and fidelity.  They don not ruminate about possible loss of their relationship or any probability of harm.  If each person applies perfect love in Christ, it eliminates fear.

“But perfect love drives our fear.”  By love, the Johannine evangelist means God’s agape as revealed in Christ and explicitly defined in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.  Perfect love is patient and kind.  It does not envy nor does it boast.  It is not rude, self-seeking or easily angered.  It records no wrongs.  It shuns evil and rejoices in the truth.  It always protects, trusts, hopes and perseveres.  Perfect love never fails.  Accordingly, perfect love annihilates fear.

“Fear has to do with punishment.”  For many years, countless preachers utilize the fear of hell as the main reason to seek salvation.  They portray God as a vengeful and wrathful autocrat who anxiously awaits the opportunity to send sinful and guilty people to the burning lake of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Overemphasizing eternal damnation devalues God’s unfathomable love.  In the gospel of love, John says in the immortal sixteenth verse of the third chapter, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” 

Furthermore, the evangelist says, “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world might be saved through Him.”  It is hard to love genuinely when you are afraid of the person whom you love.  If you constantly flinch and anticipate danger, you can never know beauty and peace in perfect love.  Fear coerces love as a means of possibly avoiding punishment rather than freely sharing feelings, devotion and commitment.

“The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”  Allowing God’s perfect love to penetrate your soul and determine your identity most reliably removes fear.  Imprisonment to fear prevents joy and wholeness.  You have a fundamental choice of stumbling and bumbling through life with meager hope of acquiring love or developing willingness and discipline to more greatly ascertain perfect love.

God’s perfect love accomplishes more than removing fear.  It cultivates inner healing and wholeness.  God’s love frees you to become the very best child of God of which you are capable.  Love in the covenant of marriage provides a foundation for success in your dreams and goals.  This longsuffering love relationship eliminates questioning self worth and proving you are lovable.  Trepidation that another person may not appreciate your unique character disappears in the light of perfect love.  Instead, you live imaginatively by developing one’s God given talents and abilities to the fullest extent of one’s natural endowments.

Pause and Pay Attention – Part Two

The mustard seed is the smallest of all seeds, barely fitting between thumb and pointer.  Yet, it symbolizes faith necessary to move mountains.  Jesus does not require “superlative” faith.  He advises we exercise faith in its most simplistic way.  Miracles necessitate we genuinely believe Almighty God performs extraordinarily through us.  The boy’s demon possession (Matthew 17:14-23) provides the disciples with a chance to actualize and utilize God’s power.  Had they paused and paid attention to a special invitation of God’s grace, they would have been His instruments of healing.

How do we practically follow the unction of the Holy Spirit?  First, we may ask the question in different ways.  When do I feel energy from the Spirit of God?  Do I sense any strong emotions - joy, gratitude and cynicism? Our German brothers and sisters characterize this spiritual discipline as the process of “Examane.”  This is a two-fold approach of evaluating consciousness and conscience.  Pay very close attention to what is on your mind.  What central thoughts weigh on my mind?  Focus upon matters of your heart.  What are my predominant affections?  Resist busyness, which we often confuse with faithfulness, actually substantially undermines it.

“Examane” helps to assess whether you are operating on an empty spiritual tank.  Busy people often do so.  They give until they completely deplete themselves.  Instead, they withdraw and refuel spiritually.  They take time to replenish mind, heart and spirit.  Contrasting images of reservoirs and canals illuminate differences between people operating on emptiness or fullness.  Empty reservoirs soon create problems for persons who depend upon them.  Canals never run empty.  They connect to oceans and receive constant supplies of clean, fresh and flowing water.  Daily self-evaluation empowers you to become a divine channel.

At the end of the foregoing passage, Jesus instructs His disciples about the purpose of His earthly ministry.  He tells them He will be betrayed into the hands of evil men.  They will kill Him.  On the third day, He will rise to new life.  Jesus is saying, “Pause and pay attention!  I will teach you the lesson of new life.”  I imagine they ask questions about this strange teaching.  In response, I suspect Jesus tells them to listen very carefully.  They witness, heretofore, countless healings and miracles.  They hear many sermons on the kingdom of God.  They stay up late into the night hearing His teachings on the love of the Father.  None of it compares or surpasses teachings on the resurrection.  In today’s parlance, Jesus says, “Pause and pay attention fellows.  You ain’t seen nothing yet.  Please hear what I’m telling you.  The greatest miracle in the history of the universe waits.  You will most assuredly miss it if you fail to pause and pay attention.”  Finally, I pray you will develop a daily habit of “Examane” as you pause and pay attention to God’s daily invitations of grace.

Peace in the Storm

I summarize a Palm Sunday sermon, “Finding Peace in the Midst of the Storm,” with practical recommendations for applying spiritual principles in scripture.  Inner healing and wholeness are gracious gifts for believers who work for them.  As “the spiritual life is not a theory,” spiritual principles have little benefit apart from applicability to life.  I, consequently, hope the following suggestions yield God’s peace in your life.

As it relates to personal development and spiritual growth, PMS stands for prayer, meditation and self-evaluation.  Prayer opens the door to God’s peace, which transcends all human understanding.  In Philippians 4:6-7, Paul encourages the church to forsake anxiety and present their requests to the Lord with thanksgiving and praise.  God’s peace guards your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.  When we meditate, we listen as the Holy Spirit speaks through the small voice within us.  We raise our minds to a spiritual level that surpasses physical and daily concerns.  Meditation also involves self-evaluation.  Essentially, we determine why we lack peace.  The spiritual disciplines of PMS additionally incorporate daily Bible study and quiet time.  Norman Vincent Peale offers a helpful formula for combating fear.  (1) Don’t panic!  (2) Get organized.  (3) Think.  (4) Pray.  (5) Apply what you have learned.

Second, acquire an intricate knowledge of God’s unfathomable love for you.  An infinite God who loves limitlessly will not allow life’s storms to conquer you.  Consult the following passages to begin a comprehensive Bible study on the love of God in Christ Jesus: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, John 3:16-21, 1 John 4:18, and Lamentations 3:22-23.  There is, moreover, the blessed assurance of David in Psalm 37.  “I was young and now I am old and I have never seen the righteous forsaken.”  God does not leave us nor does He forsake us.  In addition, He always provides for us.  In Genesis 22, Abraham discovers He is Jehovah-jireh, the Lord who provides.  God provides even in storms.  Lastly, Psalm 139:13-16 inimitably describes God’s profound love for us:  “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.  When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.  All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Third, lose yourself in service to humankind.  Loving our neighbor as ourselves is the second greatest commandment.  Jesus insists we lose our lives in order to save them.  Life appears as one big storm when one considers innumerable problems that plague humanity.  It is overwhelming to think about crime, HIV/AIDS, military conflicts in the world, homelessness, teen pregnancy and drug trafficking.  Some believers escape these problems by simplistically relegating them as the products of a sinful and fallen world.  Others avoid them by asserting salvation of the soul is the response to these multi-faceted social dilemmas.  Yet, I recommend we regain visionary impulses of the early Church.  I believe a cure exists for all diseases and social challenges.  If each believer dedicates himself to solving one problem, he finds peace in God’s divine plan of reconciliation. 

Fourth, a life with integrity yields tremendous inner peace.  In Mark 4:35-41, Jesus sleeps on a cushion in the back of the boat.  His rest symbolizes peace in the midst of life’s storm.  Just sleeping without tossing and turning means you have found it!  However, if our actions do not cohere with our rhetoric, it is highly probable we will not enjoy blessed rest.  James advises we let our “Yes” be “Yes” and our “No” be “No.”  Living with integrity of word and deed is the surest pathway to finding peace.

Maintaining an Attitude of Gratitude

Maintaining An Attitude of Gratitude

Each day, we offer thanks over our meals.  Saying our “daily grace” is a simple spiritual ritual possessing potential to spur personal development and spiritual progress.  “Daily grace” reminds us of Almighty God’s enduring goodness and provision.  It is by God’s grace we eat, have shelter, work and educate our children.  Jesus tells us to consider the lilies of the fields and the sparrows of the air.  Just as God supplies their needs, He takes care of us.  “Daily grace” yields thanksgiving for people and opportunities that enrich our lives.  Offering “daily grace” before each meal compels us to remember brothers and sisters who are less fortunate than we are.  With hearts of gratitude, we seek to be a blessing in appreciation for our bountiful blessings.

The psalmist proclaims, “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, our God.”  Thanksgiving is the essence of praise and worship.  We adore the Lord through songs, prayers, and acts of gratitude.  God is always good to us whether we are aware of His many kindnesses or not.  Even when life’s circumstances eclipse Him, He remains good to us.  In fact, theologians insist one of God’s distinct characteristics is “omnibenevolence.”  Kindness is inherent in His actions and will.  It is good to offer daily thanksgiving with praise and worship to God for His many splendid blessings.

Difficult circumstances usually tempt us to suspect God abandons us.  We quickly ask, “Where is God?”  “Why is He allowing this to happen to me?”  Is faith useless?  Are we left alone to ferret out life’s challenges?  The Bible contains many promises of provision.  Genesis 22:1-19 records a test of Abraham’s faith.  After fulfilling the magnificent promise of giving Abraham an heir, God directs Abraham to Mt. Moriah with the explicit instruction to sacrifice Isaac upon an altar.  There, Abraham prepares the altar, the wood and the fire.  Isaac asks, “Where is the lamb?”  Abraham replies, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.”  In obedience, Abraham raises the knife to slay Isaac.  But an angel of the Lord stops him!  Abraham’s willingness to offer Almighty God his beloved son, Isaac, enables him to pass this test of faith.  As the story concludes, a ram caught in the thicket becomes the sacrifice.  Essentially, God provides for us in all situations. 

David cites another significant promise of God’s provision in Psalm 37:25-26.  “I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.  They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be blessed.”  God takes care of our needs just as He clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds of the air, neither of whom is prone to worry about their daily subsistence.  The righteous will not be forsaken!

Paul admonishes the church to “give thanks in all circumstances for this God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)  Whether we are facing job, marital, familial, health, financial, emotional, and psychological challenges, we ought to give thanks to God.  The confluence of these challenges presents an opportunity to develop personally and grow spiritually.  As we confront these dilemmas rather than avoiding them, we become stronger people.  (Romans 5:1-5 and James 1:2-4)  Tribulation builds patience in us.  Tests build character symbolic of a refiner’s fire, which burns dross and impurities off of gold and other precious metals.

We give thanks in our daily affirmations.  I suggest we recite names of spouses, children, extended family, friends, colleagues and other primary persons each day.  As we give thanks for them, we strengthen our relationships.  Additionally, we express thanks for our material blessings, health, jobs, and good fortune.  In offering gratitude, we rarely complain about them.  We appreciate various ways in which they enhance our lives.  By giving thanks, we increase the value of life’s simple things.

Nothing to Fear

Nothing to Fear

As a Pastor, I read Larry Burkett’s book, Nothing to Fear: The Key to Cancer Survival, intrigued about his suggestions for anyone facing this monumental challenge.  His writes this short book (157 pages) with very accessible and helpful prose.  His recommendations easily apply to any situation.  First, he insists persons dealing with cancer thoroughly research the disease.  Indeed, “knowledge is power.”  One does not feel like a victim if one has information.  Second, Burkett forcefully asserts patients assume responsibility for their health.  Cancer patients should not uncritically accept the opinions of physicians. 

Third, he strongly encourages patients to explore “intellectually respectable” alternative treatments.  Burkett posits strengthening the immune system may be a greater benefit and lead to longer survival than traditional treatments.  He suggests patients think outside of the box.  Fourth, Burkett emphasizes benefits of good nutrition.  Finally and most significantly, he passionately encourages his readers to find the “peace of God that passes all human understanding” (Philippians 4:7) He attributes its acquisition as key to his cancer survival. 

Burkett survived renal cell carcinoma for ten years prior to his death seven years ago.  He received diagnosis while on summer vacation.  The nurse told him to return immediately to home for additional tests.  Amazingly, Burkett recalls he did not panic nor begin to question God.  He actually was overcome with the peace of God.  Burkett writes about God’s enduring faithfulness and wisdom.  Whatever happens, God is ultimately in control and His perfect will shall be done. Acceptance empowered Burkett to “fight” his disease and enjoy a meaningful life.  Additionally, Burkett states he led more people to Christ in years of his cancer survival than in the totality of his previous twenty-six years as a believer.  Burkett credits his evangelism, book and continuation in ministry as reasons for his survival. 

Fighting against the facts impedes emergence of God’s peace.  We accept the facts!  We have cancer.  We are in debt.  We need help.  We lack wisdom.  We do not have a clue.  We have a problem (food, gossip, alcohol, gambling or drugs).  Unless we willingly accept those facts, we cannot resolve them.  Acceptance is synonymous with honesty.  God requires we straightforwardly acknowledge our need of His help.  When we do so, He graciously reassures us of His abiding love and sustaining presence. 

The “Prayer of Serenity” demonstrates a correlation between acceptance and peace. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.”  Splitting hairs about facts in fallacious hope of changing them never yields peace.  Frustration and agony result.  Bargaining and denial belie peace.  He will give you wisdom to differentiate what you can change.  The peace you experience will be directly proportional to your willingness to accept facts.

Age, Knowledge and Wisdom

Age, Knowledge and Wisdom

Recently, I listened to a minister began teaching by admitting he has not achieved perfection.  He said, “I am on the road to progress along with you and all others who desire success in this area of life.”  His humility allows anyone listening to learn from him.  If perfection were a prerequisite for preaching and teaching, no one would do so.  It is reasonable to receive wise instruction from anyone who teaches and preaches with integrity and humility.  As it relates to spiritual learning, a prevalent falsity, correlating age with spirituality maturity, prevails.  It does not stand to reason that life experience necessarily makes anyone wise or knowledgeable.  Because knowledge and wisdom are two of life’s greatest treasures, one must work diligently for them.  There is no direct connection between age and spiritual development.

Wisdom is “knowledge applied to appropriate circumstances.” Two familiar proverbs support this definition.  “Don’t kill a gnat with a sledgehammer.”  Also, “Discretion is the better part of valor.”  There are different dimensions to knowledge: theoretical, academic research (pejoratively characterized as “book learning”), relational and life experience.  Our knowledge of God requires all of these elements.  Wisdom necessitates one possesses knowledge including all four major dimensions.  Accordingly, wisdom would not be the sole possession of those who are advanced in age.

All generations can possess a certain level of wisdom.  Children, youth, young adults, older adults and seniors can learn from each other.  The information age, in which knowledge completely changes every five years, gives younger generations an advantage over their seniors.  Additionally, social complexity of drugs, alcoholism, teen pregnancy, rap music, hip-hop culture and teen suicide gives “Generations X and Y” and “Millennials” life experiences older adults and seniors cannot appreciate.  As human nature does not change over the course of history, older adults and seniors can share experiential knowledge and wisdom with younger generations.  They can assist them in resolving their contemporary challenges; thereby the learning curve bends in both directions.

Genuine humility enables us to learn from anyone.  The story of Balaam’s donkey in Numbers 22:21-40 illustrates the point.  A pagan prophet receives instruction and wisdom from the jackass he is riding.  Imagine being so dense and pridefully ignorant the Lord utilizes a jackass to tell you the truth.  If we continually confuse the years of our earthly pilgrimage with divine wisdom, that level of humiliation will be our fate. 

Summarily, I encourage gracious consideration and compassionate understanding for all persons, regardless of their age or life experiences, who demonstrate faithfulness, willingness and integrity in the spiritual growth process. 

Pause and Pay Attention - Part One

“Pause and Pay Attention - Part One”

Recently, I observed a construction site adjacent as I was leaving a meeting.  I noticed a worker using machinery to pack down the dirt on a plot of land.  He rolled over and over the same space innumerable times.  I thought to myself, “How boring!  What an incredible waste of time and fuel!”  As I thought further, I realized my dismissive attitude robs me of an important spiritual and practical lesson.  It occurs to me firm, level ground is necessary to a building’s foundation which in turn is essential to strength and durability.  I now grasp the importance of that worker’s monotonous task to a person’s internal and spiritual life.  If I persist in my flippant thinking, I miss wonderful and mysterious invitations of God’s grace.  That experience teaches me to pause and pay attention for daily summons into God’s presence.  The willingness to stop, listen, and observe graces us with many solutions embedded within daily routines.

How do we become more attentive to constant invitations of grace?  If we practice being alert, we find spiritual lessons in everything.  Training our eyes, ears and minds to focus upon mundane activities and ask the five “Ws” and “H” (who, what, when, where, why and how) is the essence of pausing and paying attention.  In mundane tasks such as mowing the lawn, washing the dishes, vacuuming the carpeting, changing the oil, and eating meals, God graciously offers answers to longstanding perplexing questions.  Ironically, pain and personal problems create venues for spiritual lessons.  One author posits, “Pain is the touchstone of all spiritual progress.”  Stop and pay attention to purposes buried beneath the surface.  Actually, every problem becomes a possibility for personal progress and spiritual development.

A healing narrative in Matthew 17:14-23 illustrates immeasurable benefits to paying attention and learning about God’s healing power.  As the scene opens, a rather distraught father whose son had lingered in affliction of epilepsy and seizures for many years approaches the disciples for his son’s healing.  The father assumes the disciples who travel with Jesus and intimately relate to Him are able to emulate His healing power.  Interestingly, the father’s assumption challenges contemporary disciples.  Do people come to us for living water because they know we are Christians?  Do family members, friends, and colleagues come to us for inner healing and wholeness because of our Christian witness?  Nonetheless, this desperate father seeks the disciples’ help and they are unable to heal his son.  After three years of private tutorials with the Lord Jesus Christ, certainly the disciples should have been able to heal the boy.  Yet, they take time to pause, listen and learn from their failure as they ask the Lord to explain their inability to heal the suffering boy.

We can relate to the disciples’ predicament. We face daily challenges without resources to rectify them.  Adversities baffle us.  The depth and length of our obstacles paralyze us.  We settle for life’s merry-go-round of life; we do the same thing in the same way at the same time.  Life loses its zeal and luster.  As a consequence, we miss God’s gracious invitations that He cloaks in daily monotony.

In the heart of this passage, verses seventeen to twenty-one, the disciples straightforwardly ask the Lord about their dilemma.  “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”  The Lord tells them, “Because you have so little faith.”  In other words, you could not drive out the demon and heal the boy because you fail to appreciate opportunities God puts within obstacles.  You do not have a mustard seed’s worth of faith!  

Learning to Wait

God promises immeasurable blessings to those who willingly wait upon Him.  Isaiah 64:4 captures this divine guarantee.  “For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!”  If we rest in God’s unquestionable goodness and faithfulness, His mysterious and majestic methods of resolving situations amaze us.

Waiting is a very difficult.  Actually, we hate to wait.  Delays tempt us to explore alternative plans (A, B, C, D, etc.).  As we doubt original plans, we even doubt God.  We take our wills back determining we are better able to handle situation than God is.  Anxiety and anger usually and significantly undermine us when we wait.

Yet, God often requires waiting on Him.  He does so for any number of reasons.  First, He teaches us to rely genuinely upon Him.  He desires we experience His enduring faithfulness even in bleak predicaments.  Interestingly, desperation and darkness often create scenarios for God’s best work.  Fear forces the only reliable choose, which is holding unequivocally to God’s promises.  When things work out, we know God alone graciously intervenes.  Nevertheless, in accordance with Hebrews 11:1-6, God necessitates periods of waiting to demonstrate His love and grace.

Second, God makes us wait to refine our character.  Elsewhere, Isaiah uses images of a refiner and gold.  To burn away dross and impurities within gold, a refiner must put it in a fiercely burning furnace.  Removing dross is neither quick nor simple.  The refiner leaves the gold in the furnace for a while.  Similarly, God makes us wait on Him in the furnace of our afflictions to remove the character defects and sin. 

Third, God orchestrates period of waiting to strengthen our faith in Him.  During the exilic period, Israel has a fundamental choice.  They could become the world’s greatest cynics.  Justifiably, they could determine God lies and reneges on His covenant with Abraham.  Israel could yield to faithlessness and hopelessness.  Instead, they remain steadfast in their trust in the Lord.  Jeremiah in the “Letter to the Exiles” reassures them God’s future plans for them will exceed their former glory.  Yet, they must wait and cultivate greater belief and trust in Almighty God.

Parenthetically, belief and trust are two sides of the same coin.  On one side, there is unwavering faith in God’s abilities and promises. One unconditionally accepts truths about God’s past deeds; and develops assurance He will act equally in the future.  On the other side, there is willingness to act upon one’s faith.  Practically speaking, exercising faith in rising each morning and taking the next right step.  We trust God when we demonstrate our willingness to act upon His direction.

Bear in mind God can hit a moving target.  As we wait, we do not sit idle.  In Hebrew, waiting includes activity.  To reiterate, we should not incessantly and needlessly explore substitute plans for God’s will.  That is not waiting; it is disobedience and rebellion.  Rather, we continually take the next right step: returning phone calls, sending out resumes, going on interviews, strengthening latent talents, and remaining faithful in daily tasks.  God promotes persons who are faithful above people who are more talented.

When we feel vengeful, that is a particular time in which to wait on the Lord.  “Vengeance is mine says the Lord.”  God certainly repays persons who have harmed us.  Consequently, we leave their punishment to Him.  Admittedly, it is most tempting to try and orchestrate their pain and suffering.  We want them to feel the exact amount of pain that we feel.  Nonetheless, Isaiah assures us Almighty God works on behalf of people who wait on Him.

Good Health Equals Wealth

Good Health Equals Wealth

Good health equals wealth.  As I approach mid-life, I realize the importance of good health.  Practicing good stewardship of mental, physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual health results in joy and happiness.  Financial gain maybe a significant by-product to this holistic approach to life.  Yet, good health is a prerequisite to material fortune. 

You may recall an African-American businessman who died nearly twenty years ago.  His net worth was $400 million.  He possessed means to summon the best doctors in the world.  However, all of his money could not reverse progression of an inoperable brain tumor that eventually ended his life.  Interestingly, he ruined his health by doggedly pursuing his wealth.  His seemingly unlimited financial resources proved powerless in providing good health.

As it relates physical health, disease prevention is key to success.  Early detection empowers patients to become cancer survivors rather than victims.  Annual physicals and follow-up on sound medical advice equals proactive stewardship.  Maintaining an exercise regimen and eating a balanced diet are other significant components.  As I write, I challenge myself to practice what I preach.  Good physical health yields incredible supplementary benefits: mental agility and stamina, greater retention of complex material, and reduced susceptibility to self-pity and depression.

Good health also extends to mind and will.  Mental illness unfortunately has become fodder for comedy.  As a result, many people will not seek counseling.  Sustaining good mental health requires balanced perspective towards life.  Lack of balance equates with a type of mental illness.  Speaking, reading and studying assist in the process of acquiring mental soundness.  Of themselves, they will not always yield good mental health.  Guidance from a spiritual advisor or pastoral psychotherapist greatly aids achieving balance.

How’s your love life?  The love of a good wife definitely results in good health.  She insists upon examinations and preventative disease measures.  Giving and receiving love with spouses, family and friends contributes to holistic well being.  We zealously guard emotions; we do not waste them on undeserving people and unproductive purposes.  Good health necessitates investments of time, energy and emotion in worthy causes. 

Has your past recently blind-sided you with lingering hurtful memories?  Psychological health requires peace with the past.  Whereas we do not bolt the door on the past, we learn from it as we move forward in life.  We do not define ourselves today by who we were yesterday.  Also, we do not allow others to label us by past actions.  Healing from past pain is central to holistic health.

Character and Hope

Character and Hope

God uses circumstances in our lives to build His character within us.  Actually, various trials and tribulations that we constantly bemoan are tests.  God allows these challenges so He may ascertain the desires of our hearts.  Thereby, He determines how He will use us in building His kingdom.  As we pass these daily tests, we mature into the “image and likeness” of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

“Pain is the touchstone of all spiritual progress.”  It is the stark irony of the Christian life that pain proves most instructive and beneficial for personal development and spiritual growth.  Just as God uses the pain of the crucifixion to redeem humankind, He utilizes our suffering to convert our characters into His own.  Although I disparage an emphasis upon “redemptive suffering” in many corners of Christendom, I realize its necessity for spiritual maturity.  We cannot theoretically gain Christian character.  Progressing spiritually is a relational, experiential and practical.  Interestingly, pain most reliably grabs our attention and gains our cooperation as it relates to spiritual development. 

In his letter to the Church at Rome, the apostle Paul discourses upon the necessity of pain in obtaining character.  “We rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance character; and character, hope.” (Romans 3-4)  Essentially, suffering is the gate to the road of hope.  Through suffering, one obtains perseverance, which is synonymous with endurance. The ability to “hang in there” despite affliction of circumstances formulates character.  Elsewhere, Paul refers to this quality as being “steadfast.”  Once a person acquires a strong character, he matures into a person of hope.  Spiritual maturation begins with willingness to embrace pain and learn from it.

One of the by-products of our “problems” is empathy with others.  Daily strength of character empowers us to minister to others.  As we live through health challenges, bereavement, termination, divorce, and failures, we help others who encounter similar situations.  In 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, Paul praises the Lord as “The God of All Comfort” who comforts us so that we may in turn be of comfort to others who suffer.  We honestly tell people we know how they feel.

Heretofore, I disparaged traditional church notions of “redemptive suffering.”  As an African-American male Christian, I disliked this timed-honored emphasis in the Black Church.  I hated hearing the saying, “If we suffer, we will reign with Him.”  It appeared mandatory to suffer myriad burdens and oppressions that have unjustly defined the Black experience.  Historically, suffering became a “normal” part of daily life.  In contradistinction, I dismissed this type of preaching as the proverbial and useless “pie in the sky” survivalist approach.  I now realize the fundamental potential of Christ’s suffering in cultivation and acquisition of character.  Suffering is redemptive because God transforms pain into His perfect purposes. 

Paul additionally assures the Roman Church, “All things work together for good for those who love the Lord and are called according to His purposes.”  (Romans 8:28)  That immortal verse is a divine promise that every painful situation is a catalyst for a divine purpose.  The Greek word for this alteration is metamorphosis, which means a complete changeover.  A natural example is a caterpillar entering a cocoon and ultimately leaving as a beautiful butterfly.  Similarly, the painful circumstances form a cocoon in which we obtain endurance, character and hope.  Everything we experience accomplishes something “good,” as we partner with God and learn from the situation.

Our willingness to learn from our pain redeems it.  Problems should not overwhelm the believer.  It does not matter whether we detect origins of our dilemmas.  Actually, knowing the beginnings and reasons for our situations does not necessarily aid us in resolving them.  Nevertheless, if we transform our challenges into learning experiences, we certainly triumph over them each time.  Additionally, we do not feel like victims.  In its simplest spiritual sense, pain instructively builds character, which leads to hope.