Dear Fellow Children of God,
At the St. John Saturday prayer
breakfast on October 5, we discussed at length the effects of the coronavirus
on our lives and on our community. One
of those attending the study works at the hospital. He said that one of his physician friends was
seeing lots of people because of increased stress in the work place caused by COVID-19. Then, on Tuesday, October 6, my devotional
readings included the reading of 1 Thessalonians 5. The writer of the devotions, Jane Fryar,
especially picked up on 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11, “9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our
Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake
or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another
and build one another up, just as you are doing.” Fryar’s take away from these verses was that Christians are called to
support and to encourage one another. She wrote, “Find
a brother or sister in the faith today and encourage him or her with the truth
of 1 Thessalonians 5. Share especially
verse 11, and urge your friend to pass the encouragement on.”
So, how do Christians “encourage one another and build one another up?” Often, the trials of life are such as we
cannot make them go away. For example, we
can speak words of encouragement to those whose stress is increased because of
our pandemic. But, we cannot make the
pandemic disappear. All of us need to
patiently deal with the realities presented us by this illness, even if
patience is not our strong suit. There
are times that an illness is considered incurable. A friend may struggle with an unreasonable
boss. The struggles faced by a family
member, by a friend, or by a fellow Christian may just be one of the trials of
life we face in a sinful world. So, how
do we encourage each other when many of life’s trials can’t be taken away in
this world?
Paul indicates that such encouragement ultimately comes
to us from Jesus. For the people of
Thessalonica, who were being persecuted for their faith, Paul tells them, “9 For God
has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus
Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we
might live with him. That is why Paul can then direct, 11
Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are
doing.” Life may be difficult. But, God has heaven waiting for us. The sure hope of eternal life gives us
strength to face life in this world, even when it is tough. This sure hope is something with which we can
encourage others who are going through difficult times of stress. Life may be difficult, even painful, but
God’s love is eternal. And, our Lord’s
eternal love is with us even now.
With that present and
eternal love of God in mind, Christians can simply be with, can simply walk
beside, one other in times of difficulty.
St. John member Kirsten Nelson served as a social worker at Mat-Su
Regional for over 25 years. She helped
many patients through difficult and painful decisions. When I served as volunteer chaplain alongside
Kirsten she often remarked to me, “That person needs to join a church.” She would see individuals who had no family,
no friends, and no support. Sometimes
these people lived off the grid. But
what would they do when illness or injury struck? Kirsten had seen her congregation support
others in time of need. Her opinion was,
“That person needs to join a church.”
In other words, we all need someone to walk with us through the trials
of life. God’s church is a family where
we can “encourage one another and
build one another up.”
I recently had that
truth about encouragement in the family of God reinforced through communication
with former St. John member, David Grosz.
David worked for the Alaska Mission for Christ for a time. He and his family were very active at St.
John. But, near the end of their
family’s time in Alaska, David became extremely ill with lymphoma. As David went through the treatment for this
cancer, he often seemed near death.
Thankfully, David is now healed from his illness and working again as a
missionary for the World Mission Prayer League.
David and I were communicating about the struggles of others we care
about and pray for, and in a September e-mail, David shared this with me. “. . . my treatment phase was much more severe (as
you witnessed) but once I was finished my recovery was steady. I'm now
off any medication, and I'm able to run a couple of miles every other day or
so. I'm so convinced that my healing took place more within the community
at St. John than it did in the hospital. God has branded me with this
truth.
26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if
one member is honored, all rejoice together.
27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of
it. (1 Corinthians 12:26-28 ESV) The
encouragement of fellow Christians gave David strength through his illness!
What can we do when someone we care
about is going through a time of stress, or painful struggle? How can we help? Even if we cannot take away their tribulation,
we can simply be there. We can
listen. We can pray. We can assure one another of the hope we have
in Jesus. Is there someone right now who
needs you to ‘encourage them and build
them up in Jesus?
A Child of God, Seeking to Give the Encouragement of
Jesus in the Tribulations of Life,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. I have not fished in the last week. However, on Tuesday I did get out in the Fall
weather. On Monday I golfed and on
Tuesday I did take a hike in Hatcher Pass.
Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/NfXp8yyHtE1hg4Kr7
P.P.S. This Sunday
in worship St. John will celebrate 85 years of God’s blessings at St. John, and
through St. John. Next week in this
devotion I will share a video presentation prepared for this celebration.
*****
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I am now
retired from serving as senior pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Palmer,
AK. My weekly devotion was previously titled, "Thoughts from the
Pastor." However, with life's changes I now call the devotion
"Journeys Through Life as a Child of God." I am only sending
this message to those who have asked to receive it. If you know someone
else who desires to receive this message, have them e-mail me at jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
I will include them on my distribution list. You can also view this message on
my Facebook page.
HOWEVER, A NUMBER
OF PEOPLE HAVE ASKED ME WHY THEY ARE NO LONGER RECEIVING MY DEVOTIONS. Since I’m only sending these e-mails to people
who ask for them, many are no longer receiving these messages. BUT, if you read this on Facebook and like to
receive these devotions by e-mail, or if you know someone who would like to
receive these devotions, send me an e-mail at jonrock53@mtaonline.net, and I will add
you to my distribution list.
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
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