In Our Weakness

In a recent podcast from The Gospel Coalition, Ray Ortlund pointed out that in Romans 8:26, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness” it is not plural, weaknesses, but “in our weakness.” He says, “Weakness is not one more experience alongside all these other experiences. Weakness is the foundation or platform on which we have all experiences. We have never known, for one nanosecond in this life, a moment of non-weakness”

We could put it this way: our experiences of particular weaknesses are the things that remind us of our inherent weakness and neediness as fallen creatures, and they should also remind us that God is the one who carries us through. As the Apostle Paul wrote in a verse I return to often, “He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Cor. 12:9).

This kind of thinking is antithetical to our Western autonomous culture. Children and youth are taught from an early age that they should be self-confident and self-directed, everyone is a winner, follow your heart, feeling bad means something needs to be fixed or changed. Affirmation is the mantra of the day, even if it means affirming them in life-changing decisions and relationships that we know are anti-biblical.

In another podcast that I’ve come across, The Care Ministry, guest Monica Coleman refers to being called by God to break the silences and stigma about those areas of mental health that are so often kept silent even in the church. In many ways, I feel that describes my own calling. I got tired of trying to hide depression and pretending that everything is “fine and dandy.” Life is hard, and mental illness is one particular weakness that many people wrestle with in silence. It is a constant reminder that we’re not the strong, self-assured people that society, and often the church, says we’re supposed to be.

And since I need all the encouraging words I can find, in another of my favorite podcasts from Immanuel Nashville, Barnabas Piper preached on Mark 9 and the man whose son was suffering from an unclean spirit. This was the father who proclaimed, “I believe, help my unbelief!” Piper notes that faith and doubt can coexist. “Doubts are uncomfortable, especially if you have grown up in a church context… ‘I believe’ is a profession of faith, and ‘help my unbelief’ is the prayer of faith… Faith is not measured in certainty, but by trusting Jesus with our needs.”

We are all weak and needy people. Pretending we have no doubts or struggles not only keeps us from seeking strength and help from God, but also isolates us from one another in our many times of need. Someone recently made a comment to me, and perhaps I misunderstood their intent, but it sounded like they were saying that people put on a happy face at church because that’s how they want to feel and what they think will encourage other people. But for those who are aware of their own weakness and trials, that is just one more barrier to connecting with others in a meaningful way.

I feel like a hypocrite when I plaster on a smile and join in singing songs that imply that God heals every weakness and wound in this lifetime. I know that in the resurrection He will do so, but as long as we live in this broken world we’ll have to wrestle with sin, doubt, weakness, and sorrow. To pretend that we are above such things is to join the Pharisees and to lay heavy burdens on the shoulders of those who don’t measure up (Matt. 23:4). Instead, let us acknowledge our weakness and “bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Gal. 6:2-3).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

A Long Journey

In his book Angry with God: An Honest Journey Through Suffering and Betrayal, Brad Hambrick writes,

“We usually only think of sanctification in terms of purification from sin… But if we only think of sanctification in terms of purification, we begin to believe that every unpleasant emotion that emerges from suffering reveals an idol, some aspect of life taking on a God-sized role in our heart. This belief is inaccurate, creates false guilt, and causes God to come across we an uncaring cosmic Cop… What is the complementary aspect of sanctification that needs to be emphasized? If sanctification is the process of becoming more Christlike, the following question will point us to the answer. What verb does the Bible use to describe Jesus’ response to suffering? Consider what Hebrews 12:2 says of Jesus: ‘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’ (emphasis added). We become like Jesus when we endure suffering in a way that resists the shame that often accompanies it. We need a view of sanctification that allows us to both be purified from sin without a condemning sense of guilt and endure suffering without a stigmatizing sense of shame. That is what it is to be Christlike in a broken world where sin and suffering are both common experiences” (143-144).

This is a perspective I had not heard before, and one that is much needed in the church. We can get so fixated on sanctification as removal of sin that we look for, and often find, evidence of personal sin behind every difficulty in life. And then when people are suffering for unknown reasons or for reasons outside their control, they feel a need to hide it lest others think the worst of them.

In one sense sin is the cause of all suffering, because all of creation was impacted by the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. But not all suffering is directly linked to personal sin. Many of us live with broken bodies, broken hearts, and broken minds. For those who are suffering, it can be hard to know how to relate to others in the church when they all seem to be content with projecting the “Life is good” image. Chronic illness, whether physical or mental, carries an unspoken stigma simply because it has no end, and other people don’t know how to relate to that unchanging need.

I came across this quote from Hudson Taylor, and though he seems to be primarily addressing obedience, it also speaks to the mystery of suffering and the sovereignty of God:

“If God has called you to be really like Jesus in all your spirit, He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put on you such demands of obedience that He will not allow you to follow other Christians; and in many ways He will seem to let other good people do things that He will not let you do… So make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign, and has a right to do as He pleases with His own, and He may not explain to you a thousand things which may puzzle your reason in His dealings with you.”

There is much that we do not know, cannot understand, and do not enjoy about the way God works in this world and in His people. Faith often means trusting that God will one day make all the darkness disappear in the light of that new day of eternity.

“Behold, I go forward, but He is not there, and backward, but I do not perceive Him; on the left hand when He is working, I do not behold Him; He turns to the right hand, but I do not see Him. But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come out as gold” (Job 23:8-10).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

Worth It All

Last weekend I went hiking with some friends along the Tanawha Trail up to Beacon Heights in between two major thunderstorms. We hiked about three miles and my phone registered 49 flights of stairs. When I was telling someone about it later she commented that hard hikes are worth it if there’s a great view. I showed her one of the pictures below and she said, “Totally worth it!”

It didn’t occur to me till a couple days later that her comments had spiritual significance. There are a lot of times in this life that we’re on a narrow path, going through dark woods, clambering up and down rocks, wondering if the rain will hold off, not knowing how much further we have to go, and wondering if it’s going to be worth it in the end. But for Christians, we have the assurance from the Bible that it will indeed be worth it all. Here are a few of the Scriptures that I turn to frequently:

“For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:17-18).

“In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:6-7).

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (1 Pet. 5:10).

In the toils of a lifetime of seventy or eighty years, it can be hard to remember that this life is just a brief moment in light of eternity. Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Matt. 13:44). That eternal kingdom will make every sacrifice, loss, and trial that we face in this life ultimately worthwhile. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, writing on Matthew 5:3, says,

“The kingdom of heaven will come to those who live thoroughly in renunciation and want for Jesus’ sake... They have their treasure well hidden, they have it at the cross. The kingdom of heaven is promised them in visible majesty, and it is already given them in the complete poverty of the cross” (Discipleship, ch. 6).

As we were enjoying the view at Beacon Heights, we talked about the fact that if we can enjoy beautiful views in this broken and marred world, just imagine what eternity will be like. When I think about places I would like to visit but probably won’t see in this life, I figure the new earth will still have similar continents but even better sights to enjoy. What better way to praise God than by enjoying the perfection of His new creation for eternity!

And if today’s enjoyments are small compared to what is to come, how much smaller are today’s sorrows? I admit that’s really hard for me to hold onto at times, especially when it feels like life is heavily weighted with loss, disappointment, anxiety, and discouragement. But even when there are no views to enjoy and the rocks on the trail seem too hard to climb over and the valleys too deep, there is a Shepherd and Guide who walks alongside us all the way. For now I’ll take any glimpses of heaven that I can find.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan text and photos. All Scripture are ESV. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

In Gratitude

Recently I was listening to a podcast conversation from a secular source that was talking about practicing gratitude. They mentioned the physiological and psychological benefits of intentionally remembering things to be grateful for. One person said she strives for 100 “gratitudes” per day. That’s all well and good, but during the discussion I kept wondering who they were expressing their gratitude to if they held no belief in God. It’s fine to be thankful for indoor plumbing, a bed to sleep in, food on the table, and all the people who make those things possible. But when an atheist sees a beautiful flower in the woods, where should gratitude be directed? One might say, “I’m thankful for that flower,” but thanksgiving implies a source, not simply a happy thought.

As Christians we know that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17a), and we should be grateful for all good things. Yet at the same time we know that God’s blessings to us don’t all carry the same weight. The privileges of living in the Western world are nice, but they can’t really be compared to the eternal benefits of faith, salvation, sanctification, and adoption into God’s family. Just a few verses earlier James had written, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (1:2-4). Termites or plumbing failures, though they may test our patience, aren’t really a trial of faith when compared to the trials endured by our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world.

The Apostle Paul wrote, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess. 5:18). Even if we agree that “in all circumstances” doesn’t mean the same thing as “for all circumstances,” this may be one of the hardest commands in Scripture. (Or is it just me?) When it seems like everything in life is going wrong, it is incredibly hard to find reasons for gratitude-- except for the eternal perspective that one day all these trials will cease. That is the perspective that Peter adopts in 1 Peter 1:3-9: Because of Jesus Christ we have an eternal inheritance, and we know that the testing of our faith now will result in “praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” We can give thanks for that hope regardless of what’s going on in this life.

I’ve been reading the book of Job lately, and after his statement, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (1:21b), there’s a pretty steady stream of lamentation. However, Job’s thoughts keep returning to his Redeemer and that day when he will finally see God (13:15, 19:25-26, etc.). He doesn’t try to remember little things to be grateful for, but he clings to the one thing that really matters: his eternal hope. It is God’s love that matters most and for that we give thanks. “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!” (1 Chron. 16:34).

This has become a recurring theme in my blog posts because I have to keep reminding myself that today’s challenges will one day end. It may not be this month or this year or even in this lifetime that a change comes to the painful circumstances of life, but there is a guaranteed ending of trials and tears on that final Day that our Father has established. I am grateful for the certainty of that hope.

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:28-29).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

Undivided

Please note that the following are my own opinions and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the staff or Executive Council, or any official position of Advent Christian General Conference.

I’ve been reading the recent posts on A.C. Voices with interest. I too listened to the panel discussion on denominational restructuring at the triennial convention. Although I was not surprised by the diversity of opinions presented, there was more consensus between the participants than I had anticipated. Comments were made about the need for unity of purpose at all levels of our denomination. Others noted that the question “What is an Advent Christian?” is often answered in terms of relationships. That ties in with things I’ve observed just in the past few weeks, and which I shared with my church following the convention...

For the past decade or so I have been attending the Appalachian Region Family Camp. This year in particular I realized that most of my closest friendships are people that I have gotten to know through the camp. That is somewhat ironic given that my own church has not really promoted or participated in Family Camp. There have been several years when I was the only one from my church who attended. As a result, my friends tend to be from other A.C. churches, while many members of my church may not know any Advent Christians outside our congregation. (I’m not passing judgment on any of the church members or those who have served in leadership. I’m just stating the facts.)

Those relational connections were reinforced for me during the Appalachian Regional Meeting following camp. It was reported that five churches in the Piedmont Conference are currently searching for pastors, including my own church. When we are isolated from other churches, it can feel like we are on our own or, at best, competing with other churches for the few pastors available. But when I know and love people at those other churches, I want each them to find the right pastor, and I hurt for them in the times of loss and disappointment. I pray for God’s direction and provision for them as well as for my own church.

Those kinds of relationships at the conference and regional levels don’t happen by accident. As with relationships within the local church, we need unhurried and unstructured time together to find our connections and unity in Christ. That is usually the biggest area of feedback on the triennial conventions—the available time and space for fellowship. For some people it is a reunion with college classmates, but for many of us it’s connecting with people we’ve gotten to know through camps, summer ministries, other churches, and extended family. (Our multigenerational A.C.s are all related somehow!)

However, the convention also revealed some relational disconnects as well. Only 23% of our churches sent delegates, and only 65% of our conferences sent delegates. Two small conferences had neither church nor conference representation. In addition, as I shared in my report to the delegate body, about two-thirds of churches participate in Penny Crusade, a little over half give to United Ministries, but one quarter do neither one. I have not yet correlated delegate representation with individual church giving trends; however, if churches are not contributing financially to denominational activities and they don’t feel the need to send people to the business meetings, that raises a lot of questions. Perhaps it goes back to asking them what it means for them to be Advent Christian.

Tom Loghry has already commented on the multitude of committees and boards that need filled at each church, conference, regional, and denominational level. That challenge is exacerbated by the number of churches that choose not to participate or even mention activities outside their local community. It has often been said that the pastor is the gatekeeper of the church, and if he or she doesn’t share events or fundraisers with the church board and congregation, there’s little that anyone else can do about it. As I imagine most denominations would say, we could have the best structure in the world but still be declining in numbers if each church is not involved and invested.

So as we look to the future, I don’t think restructuring is the best or only answer. I’m all for eliminating redundancy and unnecessary committees, but that only addresses one piece of the problem. From my own experience, establishing and nurturing relationships are an absolute necessity. As I write often in my blog posts, God didn’t call us into relationship with Himself alone, but He made us members of His Body, united throughout all time and space for the purpose of loving Him, loving one another, and loving the world by sharing the Gospel. I am increasingly convinced that the local church is insufficient for these things. We need frequent reminders that we really do need one another.

“In [Christ] the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord… There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph. 2: 21, 4:4-6).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

On Alert

Several times recently I’ve had conversations with friends about the subject of biblical discernment. Scripture uses the Greek word diakrino in a variety of ways, and English translations include distinguish, discern, judge, or separate. Two verses in particular are:

“…to another the ability to distinguish between spirits…” (1 Cor. 12:10).

“But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil” (Heb. 5:14).

The first of those is one of the lists of spiritual gifts. The Network Spiritual Gifts inventory describes discernment this way:

“The gift of Discernment is the divine enablement to distinguish between truth and error. It is able to discern the spirits, differentiating between good and evil, right and wrong... truth and error... accurately judging character; seeing through phoniness or deceit; helping others to see rightness or wrongness in life situations.”

One of the more obvious examples in the Bible comes from Acts 5:1-4 in the story of Ananias and Sapphira. The Apostle Peter knew that they were being deceptive in reporting how much they earned on the sale of some property, because the Holy Spirit somehow revealed it to him. Peter reminded them, and everyone else, that though they might deceive men, they could not deceive God.

In the church today, I’m not sure most people understand or know what to do with the gift of discernment. When we’re young we are often told we are to obey our leaders without question. We come to trust our teachers and pastors and others in authority, so when they trust someone else, we generally do too. But as we’ve seen in a multitude of church scandals in recent years, not every Christian leader is worthy of trust. Many people have been deceived and wounded by those who claimed to represent God. Many times the truth doesn’t come out until years later, because people rightly fear that no one will believe their claims.

I can think of multiple examples of people I have personally met who immediately raised suspicions in my spirit, but for no clear reason I could describe at the time. I ignored or shelved my feelings because other people trusted those men. In each case, truths later came out that revealed years of inappropriate and sinful words and behavior. Now I am much quicker to listen to that “sixth sense” and seek to understand what the Holy Spirit may be revealing.

One time I was standing in line at a fast food restaurant and suddenly knew something about two people who were several feet ahead of me in line, even though I couldn’t hear anything they said and couldn’t even see their faces. When they turned around there was clear evidence that what I suspected actually was true. It was odd at the time to know something about people I had never met and would never speak to, but I understood it as God’s reminder to me that He knows our hearts even if no one else does.

Those who do have the gift of discernment need to take it seriously and act as the Spirit leads—carefully and graciously uncovering hidden sins that may endanger other people or cause dissension and division in the church. Our goal should always be the glory of God and the welfare of His people, including those who may be deceiving themselves about the state of their own hearts.

“And [Jesus] said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God’” (Luke 16:15).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

It All Adds Up

I keep a list of possible topics for my blog though I don’t often go back and use them. However, one caught my eye today— “Relationships are our greatest asset.” I think we can all agree that there are few blessings in life that are quite as valuable as our close relationships with friends and family. But from an accounting perspective, our greatest assets are also our greatest liabilities. Nothing hurts nearly as much as broken or wounded relationships. It’s also true that every relationship is unique. So when one relationship is hurt, although others can help to compensate for the loss, they never really replace the damaged one.

To toss in another accounting idea, we often forget about the return on investment for relationships. Close relationships require a significant investment of time and energy, especially at the beginning. Once that investment has been made then there is greater benefit experienced, and even small amounts of time with those we love are more valuable than longer periods with those we don’t yet know well. Oftentimes in the church it seems like we are unwilling to make the initial investment in relationships, so we never get the full benefit from our brothers and sisters in Christ that we could.

We also need to remember that all relationships require an ongoing investment of time. You can’t stop paying your insurance premiums and expect to keep the same level of benefit forever, and you can’t stop talking to your friends and expect the relationships to remain intact.

In a recent XPastor webinar, Warren Bird commented that “Trust is built in drops, but lost in buckets.” Although he was talking about organizational leadership, the same applies to individuals. We build trust in relationships slowly, but it can be lost very quickly by careless words, disagreements, and other challenges. When those buckets fall, it takes a new investment to rebuild what has been lost.

When it comes to relationships, I tend think of Job. It’s often been said that his friends did a good job before they started talking.

“Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this… they raised their voices and wept... and they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great” (2:11,13).

But once they started speculating on the reasons for his suffering, Job said,

“My relatives have failed me, my close friends have forgotten me… Have mercy on me, have mercy on me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has touched me!” (19:14, 21).

Having been through a variety of pains in relationships lately, it’s tempting to just quit on people. It’s hard to keep expending effort on those who never seem to respond. (I suppose many of those who are parents feel the same way.) Current culture tends to favor looking out for yourself and giving up on difficult relationships. But for Christians, since we’re commanded to love even our enemies (Matt. 5:44), pulling away from our Christian brothers and sisters is usually not an option. The only exception given in Scripture is for those who claim to be Christians but are living in ongoing, unrepentant sin (1 Cor. 5:11). It is far too easy in our “pick-a-church” culture to walk away when things get hard rather than enduring with one another and working through the hard times together. We are called to a higher standard of loving others as God loved us (1 John 4:9-11). May we all make the effort to do so!

“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection... Live in harmony with one another... If possible so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all” (Rom. 12:9-10, 16, 18).

© 2023 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.