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This past weekend I had the opportunity to be the speaker at Word of Life’s Recharge. Little did I know the object lesson that awaited me on Sunday before I spoke. I was going to be speaking from Romans 8:18-25 about waiting with hope during present suffering while groaning inwardly. It sounds like a great theological tower to sit in and pontificate from, right? Well, God had something planned that would help me live out this truth.

I went for a much-anticipated ride on a snowmobile through the beautiful property. The only tracks around me in this winter wonderland were those left behind by the woodland creatures. No footprints, no walking paths, just wide-open fields and pathways through the ravined woods of untouched snow. This is one of my happy places! Upon my return, I decided to go one more lap in a field on the opposite side of the gorge. This was when it happened. I ran out of gas! Yep, the gas gauge was not lying. I had to walk back down the hill, through the gorge, and up the other side to the main property to get gas and then return to the sled. I would be lying if I told you that I did not have an inward groan along the way. It took about 15-20 minutes one way, half of which was in packed snow, almost knee-deep. The only thing that kept me moving at a good pace was that I had to be at a leader’s meeting on time.

Romans 8 is a great section for encouraging those in Christ. Those that are in Christ face no condemnation; they are set free from the law of sin and death and will one day be with God in Heaven. Yet, God’s creation and humanity groan under the weight of living in a sin-cursed world (vs. 22-23). Verse 18 says, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (ESV). This is the faith challenge that Paul is calling the Romans and us to believe. Being a Christian does not mean that we will escape present suffering and inward groaning. It does mean that even in this state, God’s glory outweighs our present groan. God’s glory gives us hope while we wait patiently for the redemption of our bodies.

As I was trudging through the snow, the hope of reaching the snowmobile with what I needed to make it back was what kept me going. I had to switch hands carrying the gas can, remove my jacket and hat, and continue to put one foot in front of the other. But the weight of getting to the destination was greater than the weight that I carried in my hands.

            – Have you run out of gas this week?

            – Have you found it difficult to live with the daily burdens?

            – Have you been overwhelmed by unmet expectations?

It is okay to groan. But don’t just groan; take the faith challenge of God’s outweighing glory in the midst of your groan. What are two things you can be thankful for today? If you cannot come up with any, please read Romans 8:31-39 and record two things from this long description of God’s outweighing glory!

Imagine a man was lost in the wilderness. He decided that his greatest desire was to return to his home, so he bent his whole will toward that goal. For months, he foraged, hunted, hiked, climbed, swam, and fought his way back to civilization. When he finally arrives at his door, the house key he had carefully guarded through all his journeys doesn’t fit the lock. A bit confused, he rings his own doorbell only to have it answered by a stranger. As the situation unfolds, the man discovers that his long absence led to his family eventually having to sell their home and move. Suddenly, he realizes that he never really wanted to return to a home but to his family.

We can be a bit like this man. We make something into the thing when it isn’t. Like the man in this story, we aim everything in our life toward one thing, only to find out we ought to have been aiming for something else. Many Scriptures tell us what God designates as the thing. Here are a few:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5 and quoted in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27)

“Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. … We love because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:11,19 and see Ecclesiastes 12:13 and Micah 6:8)

“And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)

“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)

All these passages (and many others!) tell us about the thing. The main thing is to love God with all we are and have. In everything we do and every goal we work toward, we must aim at loving God. This means that in every conversation, venture, and even in conflict, we want to love God. And, as you can see from the passages above, loving God will always overflow into loving other people.

Someone recently paid me the highest compliment I’ve ever received. He said, “Lars, everything is about God with you.” I’m sure my life does not always reflect this reality, but I agree that everything really is about God. From the cohesion of our molecules to the most distant starlight made visible by the new James Webb Space Telescope, everything is about “the only true God, and Jesus Christ,” his Son. So we must ask, do our lives aim at loving the only true God and his Son, Jesus?

Consider these follow-up questions to help you think it through:

Does God become a topic of conversation at the dinner table or in the car?

Is Jesus part of the discussion when deciding where to live or work?

Are your favourite people to spend time with Christians—perhaps from your church family?

What is a good enough reason for you to miss spending time with God and his people?

“I don’t like church politics.”

Over the years, I’ve heard some people in our church family make this statement. I think I understand the sentiment behind the statement. It’s something like, “I don’t like the disagreements that occur in church life and leadership.” It’s very understandable not to like disagreements, but consider the implications of referring to church life and leadership as ‘church politics.’

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines ‘politics’ as the art or science of government; concerned with guiding or influencing governmental policy or winning and holding control over a government. The sense behind this term, politics, is to convince others to do things my way by making rules and exercising authority. Is this an accurate reflection of church life and leadership? No, it isn’t.

The Apostle Paul pressed the Ephesian church leaders by saying, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which He obtained with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). He also described church leaders as servants, stewards, the scum of the world, the refuse of all things, and fathers (see 1 Cor. 4 … “scum of the world, the refuse of all things” is a direct quote from verse 13).

The church is not a community to be governed through human politics. We are those who have been “obtained with his own blood” and each of us should grow to see the value in God’s blood-bought children. There is great value and joy in working together with God’s people. Psalm 133:1 gladly shouts, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”

C. S. Lewis wrote this about getting together with his friends:

“In a perfect Friendship this Appreciative Love is, I think, often so great and so firmly based that each member of the circle feels, in his secret heart, humbled before all the rest. Sometimes he wonders what he is doing there among his betters. He is lucky beyond desert to be in such company.” (C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves)

This kind of unity among Christians is precious beyond words—certainly beyond being described as ‘church politics.’ I’ve been in several church meetings lately and there has been joy in spending this time with my brothers and sisters. I sat beside Joel, Brenda, Jer, Alan and Wade. I sat across from Barb, Wayne, Christine, Ed, Gary, Andrew, and Casey. These are just some of the names of my friends in Christ—my brothers and sisters in Christ.

These meetings should never be moments of political maneuvering between government agents. These are opportunities for brothers and sisters to enjoy each other and work with our Brother, Jesus, to bring the Father glory.

This week, I challenge you to join Jesus in living out his prayer:

“I pray also for those who will believe in me through their [the Apostle’s] message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:20-21).

The church is no place for politics. We’re just family talking.

A couple of weeks ago, in my sermon, I shared the phrase that came out of a conversation with my wife Jessi, “Be honest with me in 2023”. When I got home that Sunday, Jessi encouraged me to clarify what I meant by that. It was not that we had been hiding the facts about the circumstances of our lives, it had more to do with being honest with how our hearts were responding to the facts of our circumstances. We had been having a discussion the day before about all that was going on in our lives and

how this has been one of the most difficult seasons. From the isolation of Covid, the ups and downs of foster care, and the toll of sleepless nights and sickness, we are both exhausted! But underneath the external exhaustion there are disappointments, deep sorrows, and unmet expectations that last beyond the moment of circumstance.

I am not very good at sharing what is going on under the circumstances. I often just put me head down and ‘go to work.’ So, what are we to do with our disappointments, deep sorrows, and unmet expectations? Soldier on!? Suck it up buttercup!? Fake it until you make it!? Many of you know me enough to know the question that is coming next… “what does God’s Word say about this?” Well, Eph. 4:15 tells us that it is impossible for us to grow as an individual and a church without “speaking the truth in love” to each other. Paul goes on to discuss the life changing hope of being taught and learning about the truth that is in Jesus in verses 17-24. In verse 25 it says, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbour, for we are members one of another.” Speaking the truth not only includes the facts about what is happening but also my heart’s response to what is happening, the emotions that are attached to the facts. Jessi and I have been through the same circumstances, but our responses are different. So what does it sound like to “Be Honest with Me in 2023?” Well, here are some great examples to follow:

David:

– Psalm 13 (“How long, O LORD…”?)

– Psalm 31:9-24 (“Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress…my eye…my soul…my body…my life…my years…my strength…my bones…”)

Paul:

– 2 Corinthians 1:8-11 (despairing of life itself)

– 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (accepting weakness when dealing with a chronic ailment)

Jesus:

– Matthew 23 (Lamenting the state of Jerusalem and its unwillingness to turn to Him)

– Matthew 26:30-46 (Foretells of Peter’s denial and praying alone in the garden)

Which one do you resonate the most with? Here is your challenge, what area of your heart do you need to be honest with someone this week? Now, remember, Ephesians tells us to speak the truth in love. This is not a license to be brutal, cynical, or sinful. It is an invitation to be honest with your heart’s response to your circumstances and, thus, an invitation to grow to become more like Jesus! Take the passage that resonates with you the most and share why it resonates with a friend or family member. Don’t text about it, don’t put it on Facebook, don’t send it in an email. Talk to someone face-to-face about it. Let me know how it goes.