Comfort in rough times

Printed in our May church newsletter

I was sitting at a local Body Shop this week waiting for the folks there to reinstall a strip on one of the doors of my car. Several weeks ago my car was damaged while parked as I was grocery shopping. I found the other driver. We talked. Turns out she remembered me from a funeral I had officiated at for a relative. Small world. Finally we got things resolved through her insurance company and mine.
While sitting there waiting for my car to be serviced, I pulled my Bible and a little pocket prayer book from Upper Room that I have had for several years. The cover reads, “Prayers for Courage-Words of Faith for Difficult Times.” (May-June 2003 Extra Issue.) I began to read these prayers. Several “jumped” at me.

The Lord is my Light and my Salvation; Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)

When I am afraid, I will trust in you. (Psalm 56:3)

Thus says the LORD, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers; they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God. (Isaiah 43:1-3)

Why am I sharing this with you? We have been facing some rough times, especially these past few months. This economic recession we are going through has hit most of us pretty hard, at some level. Folks talk with me; call me or email me; ask for prayer. Times are uncertain; I hear questions of “end times” in Sunday School; jobs are jeopardized or have ended… Money is tight. It’s not only jobs and moneyI hear about: Marriages or other relationships are rocky; health is failing for many of us…
Life has a way of bringing us face to face with the fact that things never remain the same; earthly things are temporary. We don’t have any control over most things. All these are sources of anxiety. But we have one thing that we can control and that is how we react and respond when we feel anxious and scared.

We just celebrated Easter. We talked about the Easter power that is made available to us through the Holy Spirit. We talked about the fact that we are empty-tomb people and the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead and this means Hope and Life for his followers. So we can claim this Power, this Hope, this Life or we can let fear paralyze us into despair and inaction.

Old timers, who remember the Great Depression of the 1930’s and remember World War II, remind us that “this too shall pass.” It is a call for us to remember what is important and to whom we look for strength and courage.
Perspective: Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) Where is our heart?

The thing about fear, if we let it control us, is that it can make us inward-looking people: We can start worrying so much about ourselves and our well-being that we become blind and uncaring about the people and needs around us. We can forget the track record that God has with His people – us – we can forget the promises offered in the Bible and we can forget to be the Church.
These are testing times for sure. How will we respond to fear and seemingly endless needs?
Will we be the Church?

We have many opportunities to be the Church. One such opportunity will happen on May 9 as United Way and the Post-office - partnering with areas churches and Church Community Services and other local food pantries – have their annual mail-carrier food drive to gather a lot of food for people who are hungry. Before that day, you will receive an empty grocery bag to take home and fill up to capacity. Further instructions are forthcoming about this.

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There was no needy persons among them.” (Acts 4:32-34)

As the hymn says, “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is a people. We are the Church” (UMH 558)

Let it be so!