Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. | Hebrews 12:1–2
At our last Family Meeting (December 12), we talked about shifting our focus in the New Year away from the hindrances of mission TO the mission itself. We want to talk less about COVID, cultural challenges, and our own frustrations with the church at large TO what God has called us be and the God who is behind this call.
It isn’t the New Year yet, so I thought that I would reflect on the difficulties one last time. Over the last week, my family contracted COVID (along with a handful of others from the church), altering our Christmas plans. It changed the church’s plans as well, switching up our music lead for the Christmas Eve service a day before and affecting the availability of our Sunday service. As I write this, snow is covering the roads, making getting around a bit more difficult and forcing everyone to adjust schedules and rethink plans. The point of all of this is: the frustrations and difficulties are inevitable. There will always be barriers to our efforts.
Throughout ADVENT, we have also been reminded that barriers are not new. In our sermon series we met two people who had spent their entire lives awaiting the Savior (and had most likely become a bit of a joke to the others at the temple). We looked at a barren couple who were told that their child would prepare the way for the Messiah. We saw a faithful man put in an impossible situation as his betrothed became pregnant (without his participation). The shepherds, the forgotten of society, were used by God as witnesses of the Savior’s birth. We talked about the pagan astrologers who rightly worshiped even though their means to get to Jesus was less than orthodox.
All of these characters, and their stories, are filled with struggles and difficulty. The Bible shows us how God overcomes all of them. No room in the Inn and the distance travelled from Nazareth to Bethlehem become footnotes, because they do not stop anything. Even Herod’s decree to murder the children fades into the background as Jesus is rescued and the family flees to Egypt. The barriers are forgotten because they are not the most powerful or most important. They are merely the setting for God’s sovereignty to be seen.
The same is true in our lives. It may seem like things are not going as they should, but each struggle merely creates a new opportunity. The assurance that Jesus will be with us to the very end of the age, means that every moment is a chance for us to accomplish exactly what God has for us. It may not be what we thought it would be and it may not be what we want, but in the end we will be able to look back and see God’s goodness through our lives in a way that makes all frustrations take a back seat.
We have to live toward a reality we can’t see yet. We have to trust that God is working in and through all of our life situations to bring about a joy we will only truly understand in hindsight. He gives us a Bible filled with stories that we get to look back upon to see this over and over. Our God overcomes. That was true in the past, it is true today, and it will be true for eternity!
As the new year approaches, let us look for the opportunities rather than being overcome by what isn’t or what we feel we are missing out on. Let’s choose to look at what God is putting in front of us, rather than what seems to be taken away. This will not only make us more content and joyful, but it will also make us more effective in our mission: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.