Bitterness and Service Don't Jive

This evening Jim asked me to lead a daily devotional for the small gathering in the RV after dinner. Since we have been discussing the basics of Christianity with a focus on not extending forgiveness, I thought it would be fitting to branch off of that topic and stem into how that would impact our ability to serve the Lord. It seemed especially fitting given the coming of Winter Storm Nemo and the potential for huge amounts of snowfall that will need to be shoveled.
Lack of forgiveness can hinder one's walk with Christ because it can infuse someone with anger and bitterness. These traits are not something Jesus wants us to walk in, which is why He stressed the importance of forgiveness. Matthew 6:14-15 states, "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." The reason I'm mentioning this is because when someone comes to salvation, it can be very hard at first to overlook past sins of others. If we're to be hands and feet of Christ, though, we need to obtain a servant's heart and not pick and choose who we serve due to bitterness. We are to serve the body of Christ and complete strangers in the world. Jesus tells us in Luke 6:35 that we must, "Love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return." It's a hard thing to swallow, but that's the truth of the matter. Right now you might view this as an impossible task, but as you dig deeper into the Word, my guess is that you will begin to strive to be obedient to Christ and serve anyone and everyone. It's empty to serve only those we like or will gain from because Jesus says that even sinners do that. It takes a character that is steadfast in the Holy Spirit to truly overlook offenses of friends and enemies in order to serve them. A motivator can be found at the end of Luke 6:35, which says if we do these good things in reverence to Christ that, "our reward will be great and we'll be sons of the Most High."
I'm not saying that it'll be easy to think of others and serve them. Our flesh calls for us to be selfish and to take care of our own needs before others. Even if we do get in the habit of serving others, Satan enjoys bombarding us with discouragement and discontent, causing us to feel like we deserve something in return. In times when I feel under attack by such thoughts, I choose to focus and meditate on Galatians 6:9-10, which says, "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone and especially to those who are of the household of faith." We are to serve others regardless of whether those acts are recognized or well received. The Holy Spirit binds us together in community and creates a new family that we should desire to serve. Our reward, too, will be in heaven where it won't perish.
I mention this in the wake of the blizzard because you may not have a strong desire to help certain neighbors who have either wronged you or just rubbed you the wrong way. I say that regardless of past actions or reactions, it's Christ's desire for you to serve everyone in your community in order to imitate and live out the Gospel. Think about it. Christ still went to the Cross to die for our sins even though we are not worthy of this gift of salvation through grace. Jesus had every reason to be selfish and save His own skin. Judas betrayed Him, Peter denied Him three times, and His disciples abandoned Him in His time of need, yet Jesus loved us enough to die for us. If this isn't true humble, loving, and obedient service, I don't know what is.

Lessons From the Mission Field

In the short time that I have been living here in Vanguard, I've learned a lot about missional work, spiritual warfare, and the body of Christ. What anybody in the mission field needs to be aware of is the fact that Satan despises it when people draw close to God, or when people go around encouraging others to give their lives to Christ. Jesus warned the disciples about the persecution they would face for the sake of the Gospel. In Matthew 10:16, Jesus states directly, "'Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.'" This persecution can be subtle or blatantly obvious, and we have encountered both forms here in Vanguard. The subtle persecution involves the voiced frustrations and skepticism about why certain people are getting helped before them, which stems from the pride Satan is trying to promote. The more obvious persecution came yesterday when Jeni and I were wiping snow off of car windshields. It was going smoothly until one man came out of his house yelling for us to stop touching his vehicle. At the time, I wasn't sure how to take his reaction and I spent part of the morning processing it. Thankfully Jeni and I had a discussion and following that discussion it became apparent to me that Satan was trying to strike fear in my heart to cause me to hesitate to serve the Lord and I refuse to let him win.
Another concept that has been talked over and lived out in the course of the past week comes from John 21:15-17. In this passage, Jesus is talking to Simon Peter and asking him if he loves the Lord. Upon his response of "yes," Jesus tells him that he must feed his sheep. This is repeated three times, highlighting the importance of feeding Jesus' sheep if we love the Lord. I believe that this feeding of sheep is both physical and spiritual. We all feel we were provided an opportunity to return to and live in Vanguard in order to help spiritually nourish the sheep who came to Christ back in November. At the same time, we must not forget that we are also sheep in need of nourishment, which is why it has been a blessing to encounter a handful of strong believers already living within this community who have blessed us with kind words and strengthened our faith through their teaching.
Also, as we have provided spiritually for this community, we have literally fed some of Jesus' sheep by inviting people over for dinner on particular evenings. But, again, as we have provided for others through our service to the Lord, others have literally fed us. Just last night we were presented with a delicious Puerto Rican meal from Jasmine. We have been working on her trailer and she is definitely strong in her faith, so now she has nourished us both physically and spiritually. I believe it's important for all of us to realize the importance of accepting this nourishment from others because we are not beyond help. We are all part of God's family and equal in His eyes.
Speaking of us all being a part of God's family, I've come to realize that each person holds a unique role and position in that family. In the Bible, Paul outlines the dispersion of spiritual gifts to individuals within 1 Corinthians 12:1-25 and describes how each person holds a specific role within the body of Christ, even if it doesn't seem significant. As Paul wrote, we can't all be ears or eyes, but instead must have a variety and combination of parts to create the whole. That's the beauty of the body of Christ; we are all different, but share the same Spirit.
This concept of specific roles was very apparent the past couple of days while we were reinsulating trailers. I felt like I was stuck with the menial tasks of cutting strapping, measuring insulation sections, and passing them to everybody else under the trailer while they did the grunt work of installing the insulation. What I came to realize, though, after talking to a friend of mine on the phone is that the crew as a whole would not function without someone willing to perform the menial tasks. It was a good reminder going into today because my essential function was to just hold up corners of plastic while Jim stapled the plastic to the joists. I wasn't discouraged with this role, though, in light of last night's discussion since I was aware that this simple task was my best way of contributing to the process.
Missional work is definitely a learning experience. Each day is different and presents its own blessings and issues. The best thing to do is absorb information from particular situations and remember them for the future. My hope is that I will keep these lessons open in my memory bank as I work in Vanguard and on future deployments so that I remain aware of what I'm up against and can prevent discouragement or discontent.

Steadfast Hope

"'I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.'" ~John 16:33

One thing we all need in order to survive and endure trials is hope. Desperate times can make people do crazy things or just drive them into a deep, endless depression. Only through hope in Christ can people spot the light at the end of the tunnel and keep persevering day after day.

Today in the trailer park we opted to utilize our time by going to various individuals who had given their lives to Christ back in November to see how they were coping. Many of the people were in need of encouragement and a reminder of the power of the Holy Spirit within them. There was one couple that my heart just broke for because of the situation they are stuck in. Mold has overtaken much of their trailer, the furnace doesn't work, their pipes burst in the cold snap so they have no hot water, and there are cracks in the roof which allows rain into their home during every storm. The living conditions have really impacted their health, with the one guy battling laryngitis every morning, along with constant wheezing due to the mold irritating his asthma. What amazed me, though, was the fact that neither one of them were angry. Their response was pretty much, "It is what it is." They admitted to being frustrated and Jim tried to remind them that their hope was in Christ and that He would provide a way to a better situation. The only saving grace is that they have a car, so they aren't completely trapped in their trailer.

Another couple that we visited were struggling with limited mobility and no form of transportation. I honestly think that the woman has only been outside a handful of times in the past four months because she is in a wheelchair. She is hoping that a ramp will soon be installed so she can at least go around the trailer park and enjoy the fresh air, rather than just sitting inside and staring out the window. We asked how her heart was and she admitted that she was dealing with some depression because she couldn't get the thought of a fight she had with her mother before she died out of her head. I liked the spin that Jim put on it, though. He asked how many years they had spent together and she said 64. Jim then said that she should focus on the happiness within those 64 years as opposed to the 5 minute fight she was choosing to dwell on. Honestly, it's all a matter of perspective, and the only reason you fight with someone is because you love them.

It was amazing to see God working today and utilizing us to provide hope in a broken community. God can overcome any hardship and any disaster that befalls our lives if we just open up to Him and communicate through prayers, allowing the Holy Spirit into our hearts. 1 John 5:4 states that, "For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith." We must never forget that by our faith in Jesus Christ we have the power to tackle any obstacle along our path through life. Satan can try his best to wear us down and whisper lies to us in our despair, but through the power of our faith in Jesus, anything and everything can be conquered.