Resilience

We've been talking a lot about resilience at our home church this weekend, and looking back at the last week, and really, the last month, I can clearly see a demand for resilient Christians. There so much about our walk with Christ that may seem abstract and distant if we only allow ourselves to be tested within our capacity - that is, if we're afraid of being knocked down and counted out. But what if there is so much more we can be capable of if we just allow ourselves to take more punches? What if we can fully acknowledge how many beatings and how much stretching it actually takes to develop spiritual toughness, and we embraced it rather than turn away?

I'm not talking about masochism, or being a doormat. I'm talking about a raw and genuine willingness to see just how strong God can truly be in your weakness. Is God's unconquerable strength something you only read about, or is it something God is waiting for you to step up to? It's strange to think that 'stepping up to get beat up' is how we measure Christian strength, but that's what Jesus did. And that's how you gain resilience.

Leaving my job to step into full-time ministry has opened me up to a new kind of pressure, a pressure I can only meet with constant prayer and progress. The Lord has been incredibly gracious by blessing us with another sold painting, bought by our sister Angela who starkly reprimanded me when I lamented over the price tag I had settled on; I knew it wasn't a price everyone could afford, but It was the price I felt was right. "You almost sound depressed when you say it!" was her response when I told her the buying price. She then wasted no time in purchasing the painting, which she'll be shipping to a sister who just lost her son; please pray for Angela's family, as she also recently lost a brother.

The proceeds from this painting will help us buy the first round of supplies for classes at the EpiCenter, the new event center our church will be launching at the Fayetteville town square. We're hoping to have our first classes start soon, but we pray it lines up with the Lord's timing.

And of course, we pray for the resilience to keep going until it does.