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Ordinary Life of Obedience is Never Ordinary

KATY BRINK | GUEST Three official languages in a country the size of Maryland. Two official languages in the capital city which boasts well over half its residents being of foreign origin. Where in the world are we? Brussels, Belgium. Being one of the most international cities in the world, the “culture” of Brussels could be described as a wacky, delightful hodge-podge of countries with definite Belgian flavors mixed in. Multiple languages swirl through the air as I walk the streets, running my errands, feeling in good company as a foreigner here. You don’t have to spend much time here to realize that the nations have come to Brussels. The Bible often speaks of the gospel going forth to the nations and emphasizes the reality that God’s Church includes people from every tribe, tongue, and people group. Living in an international city and participating in the life of the local church here has given me a small window into what that mixture could look like, offering a vivid foretaste of the glorious heavenly hodge-podge to come. God Builds His Church We moved here several years ago with the long-term goal of church-planting, though without knowing exactly when and how that desire would come to fruition. We spent years engaged in valuable learning, waiting, and networking, knowing that if the Lord wanted us involved in planting a church, he would orchestrate the details. Fast forward to 2022. We had made a connection with a likeminded Belgian pastor who was interested in the idea of church-planting, and the details started to fall into place for him to join our planting team. We began to make plans and had a particular timeline in mind, but God in his mysterious yet always perfect timing, seemed to take our timeline and speed it up. I’ve laughed and told people that the launch of this church plant felt like God said, “wait, wait, keep waiting” for several years and then suddenly said, “go NOW.”...

Ordinary Life of Obedience is Never Ordinary2023-10-03T15:03:56+00:00

Learning Dependence on the Lord

BARBARANNE KELLY | CONTRIBUTOR I consider myself to be a relatively capable person. I know that I have limits, but I thought my capabilities outweighed them. I used to believe that God wouldn’t give me more than I could handle, until he started giving me more than I could handle. I’m now decades into learning how very weak and dependent—how incapable—I am, and how very strong, faithful, and capable my Lord is. This summer has been a crash course for me in a whole new area of dependence and incapacity. Early in July my husband fell from a tree, and until his broken bones heal, his injuries render him unable to bear weight on either leg. He also needs a brace to support his upper body due to two broken vertebrae. When Jim came home in a wheelchair, we ran smack up against our limits. Life as we knew it turned upside down. Then, just as we thought we had the new routine figured out; a new unbearable pain sent us scrambling for answers. We called 911 and my husband was taken back to the hospital by ambulance—three times in one week—ultimately to discover that his lungs were lined with a constellation of pulmonary emboli. New medications and heightened cautions were added to our new routine. New depths of weakness and dependence were discovered. Peter considered himself to be a relatively capable person too, bless his heart. On the night of the last supper, when Jesus told his disciples that they’d all abandon him, Peter rashly denied that he was capable of such a betrayal. But Jesus, knowing full well not only that he would deny him, but also the devastation it would wreak in his dear friend’s heart and mind, assured Peter that even though “Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, . . . I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:31–32)....

Learning Dependence on the Lord2023-09-21T19:37:24+00:00

Take Heart

JAMYE DOERFLER|GUEST In general, I don’t recommend paying close attention to the words written inside a bathroom stall. Twenty years ago, I made an exception to that rule. In one of the women’s bathrooms at the seminary where I worked, someone had posted a Bible verse on the inside of each stall door. On that day, I happened to pick the stall with John 16:33: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (NIV) I’m sure I’d read that verse plenty of times before, but in that moment, seeing it isolated, I was struck more profoundly, and it’s stayed with me since. Let’s look at it closely. “I have told you these things...” The “these things” Jesus refers to is a long monologue He just gave to his disciples, known as “The Farewell Discourse,” recorded in John 13-17. Shortly before his death, Jesus taught them what they would need to know in his absence. Some of the themes of that teaching included the sending of the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ promise to return in the future, and what it means to abide in him. “...so that in me you may have peace.” The word “peace” conjures up a spirit that isn’t afraid, a mind that doesn’t ruminate on negative thoughts, a heart that isn’t distraught. The Lord has allowed humans to discover ways to calm anxious minds through various means, and I don’t discount them—I myself have benefited from therapy. However, Jesus offers his followers access to a different kind of peace. By providing for the forgiveness of our sins, He offers us peace with the Father. The peace that comes from the assurance of salvation and the promise of Heaven supersedes the peace offered by human means...

Take Heart2023-08-15T13:18:08+00:00
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