Category: hope

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Five Prayers Every Pastor Should Pray for His Church

I originally wrote this article for The Focused Pastor, a ministry of Focus on the Family.

The longer I serve in pastoral ministry, the more I see and experience the need for prayer. Just the other day, I was talking through an ongoing issue in our church culture with our Associate Pastor. We are already teaching about it on Sunday mornings and in small groups but have seen little change. But rather than continuing to strategize like I would have when I was younger, I finally shrugged and summarized, “I think we need to keep praying about this.”

It’s not that prayer is a last resort. Nor is it that we won’t continue to think deeply and consider if there’s a different angle we should come from as we lead the church toward growth in this area. It’s simply that I now realize there are some things that will never change without God changing hearts in response to prayer.

Pastoral prayer and the heart of God

Jesus taught this to the disciples, who were frustrated and baffled by a ministry situation. They had done all they could, but it just seemed they were at a dead end. They had a desperate father who needed ministry and a little boy who was extremely ill due to demonic oppression. But they also had religious leaders arguing with them (Mark 9:14). Jesus later explained to the disciples privately why their leadership was impotent: “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.” (Mark 9:29)

No matter what the challenges are in your church right now, remember what Jesus told that father: “All things are possible for one who believes.” (Mark 9:23) In prayer, we believe and ask God to help our unbelief (Mark 9:24). Here are five things that will only happen in your church by prayer.

1. Pray for the lost to be saved

“Salvation belongs to the LORD.” (Jonah 2:9) The miracle of salvation is one of the things about ministry that brings us the greatest joy. Yet for most pastors, there are seasons of prayerlessness for the lost. Jesus came “to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10) So, you can expect that He wants to save people in your community. Some years we plant seeds, water, reach out to the community, and just don’t see the fruit. But praying consistently that God will save the lost reminds us that we are reliant on Him for salvation. It also gives God glory when unbelievers turn to Christ.

Sometimes, when I have noticed that I am lacking in compassion or prayer for the lost in our community, I will go write my sermon for a few hours in an area where I know a lot of unbelievers tend to gather. Your local coffee shop or library could be where God breaks your heart to pray regularly for the lost in your community. Brothers, pray for God to do the miracle of saving the lost!

2. Pray for believers to be matured

Besides evangelism, one of our primary missions in pastoral ministry is to mature the believers (Colossians 1:28). This is one reason that God gave you to your church (Ephesians 4:12)! There are truths you will mine out of Scripture this year that could be exactly what someone in your congregation needs to take that next step of faith or obedience. Yet, without prayer, it is like planting seeds every Sunday and in every counseling session and never watering them. Prayer is the water and fertilizer that God uses to bring spiritual fruit out of the preaching of the Word.

Just imagine what God could do in the hearts and lives of your congregation, if He answers your prayers for their spiritual maturity. Marriages may become joyful again, parents may get back to discipling their kids, church members may serve, people may come to church hungry to be fed. Brothers, pray for God to do the miracle of maturing the believers in your church!

3. Pray for the leadership to lead humbly

One of the dangers of our calling is that we could lead our churches (and even have growth or what appears to be success) and yet not please the Lord or reflect Him if we lack humility. “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6) One of the best ways to cultivate humility in ourselves and the leaders in our churches is through prayer. In the very act of prayer, we acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers or all the power to do what only God can do.

In my ministry, it is often after prayer that God has shown me blind spots or brought an answer to a ministry need through someone I never would have expected. Jesus could have demanded service, yet He wielded a towel and basin. We lead like Jesus if we are growing in humility. Brothers, pray for God to do the miracle of making you and your church leadership humble leaders!

4. Pray for the church to grow in joy

One of the marks of a mature church is a deep sense of joy. We can pray for God to give our churches joy. Then, when unbelievers visit, they will want this joy that the world cannot offer (Luke 2:10). We can pray for God to give our churches joy that is not surface-deep but rather deep like a glacier, because it is joy in God! We can pray that God would give our church joy that is Spirit-produced as we worship the living God on Sunday mornings together (Psalm 4:7).

One of the callings of pastoral ministry that has an apostolic pattern in Paul is to work with your church members for their joy (2 Corinthians 1:24). This is an area that my church has seen a lot of growth in over the past decade. One of my greatest joys in ministry now is to see the joyful fellowship happening during snack time on Sunday morning after worship. Change can happen through prayer. Brothers, pray for God to do the miracle of your church fellowship growing in joy!

5. Pray for the glory of God to be the goal

God’s glory is the ultimate goal of ministry (Romans 16:27). So, it is in tune with God’s purposes to spend time praying for God to be glorified in our churches.

In Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian church in Ephesians 3, he prays for supernatural strength for them to understand the depths of the love of Christ. Then he prays a prayer for God’s glory to be seen in their church through God doing more than they can imagine: “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21). What a prayer to echo for your church! Brothers, pray for the glory of God to be the goal in all things in your church!

Just as I was recently talking with our Associate Pastor about a challenge in our church and we remembered to pray about it more, we also have recently seen several direct answers to prayer. Things that seemed impossible have been accomplished by God.

What answers to prayer could you be thanking God for a few months or a year from now? Start with praying for the salvation of the lost, believers to be matured, humble leadership, joyful fellowship, and the glory of God to always be the goal!

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No Need to Change the Past

This week I am sharing a daily devotional each morning that I originally wrote for Lifeway’s “Open Windows” devotional guide. I hope you are encouraged in your faith by these short meditations!

1 Corinthians 15:8, “Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”

The other day I came across some pictures of my daughter when she was about 6 years old, and I found myself wishing that I could hear her little girl voice and see her play dress-up again. We all have times when we wish we could relive something, stepping back in time.

Yet at other times, we wish we could roll back the clock to undo something we have done. If only we could not do that sinful action that hurt so many we care about.

The apostle Paul likely wished for both at times. On the one hand, he wished he could roll back the clock and be there when Jesus appeared to the other apostles. Yet he also wished that he could go back in time and not persecute the church. But neither was possible. And neither was needed. Paul knew he couldn’t time travel to be one of the Twelve who walked with Jesus. He also knew he couldn’t change his actions of persecuting the church before knowing Jesus. Yet the words of 1 Corinthians 15:8, in the context of the great resurrection chapter, give us hope.

The cross and resurrection don’t change the past, but they do change today and our forever. Because of the gospel, I can move forward in hope.

Father, I glorify You. Your gospel gives me forgiveness for my past and new mercies for today and tomorrow.

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He Is Still Risen!

Over the next week, I will be sharing a daily devotional that I originally wrote for Lifeway’s “Open Windows” devotional guide. I hope you are encouraged in your faith by these short meditations!

Acts 2:32, “This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.”

For some, the Monday morning after Easter can bring mixed emotions. Some may wake up with resurrection songs in their hearts. But others wake up with a bit of a low after the high of Easter morning. Back to work. Back to the doctor. Back to the same relationship problems.

However, Jesus is not only risen on Easter. He is still risen today. And that makes all of the difference in the world.

In Peter’s Pentecost sermon in Acts 2, he pointed to the confirming miracles and signs his hearers knew about. He also quoted King David’s prophecies about the Christ in Psalm 16 that Jesus fulfilled.

But the greatest proof of Jesus as Savior was that those Peter preached to had either seen Jesus raised to life or knew people who had seen Jesus alive after the resurrection. Peter didn’t hesitate to proclaim to thousands, “we all are witnesses” of Jesus’ resurrection.

The grave could not hold the Savior. Jesus had died, but as the prophecies and many eyes confirmed, He was alive again. Keep that in mind on this Monday morning.

Christ is still risen. He is still risen indeed!

Father, help me to rejoice in and believe in the resurrection of Your Son, today and every day.

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Four Blessings to Ask God For in 2025

This article first appeared at Small Town Summits Articles.

Father, as we sail out upon the unknown waters of 2025, we are reminded of past years that held joys and trials and we are a bit weary. It could be a year of smooth sailing and joy that easily points us to you, the giver of all good things (James 1:17). But life in this fallen world is so uncertain. What life-changing squalls could hit with hardly a moment’s notice?

Jesus, we know that you are our captain and that you are Lord over the storms. So, with you in our boat, we cry out to you, asking you to work in our lives, our church and our family in 2025.

We ask these things with boldness, knowing that the same Jesus who heard the cries of the disciples and asked where their faith is hears us today (Romans 8:34). Jesus, we believe—help our unbelief (Mark 9:24)! We serve you in faith, believing that you not only exist, but that you reward those who earnestly seek you (Hebrews 11:6). Lord, may you be our reward as we seek you today and look ahead to 2025.

We ask for four blessings from your hand in 2025—hope, peace, joy, and to see Jesus’s glory.

Give Us Hope

Give us hope that you are working all things for our good (Romans 8:28). Give us hope that you are forming us to look more like Jesus even though we get so impatient with our progress in sanctification sometimes (Romans 8:29).

Give us hope that the Word is doing its work in other church member’s lives and that you are at work in our community even when we can’t see it (Mark 4:26-29). Give us hope that you will never abandon your church (Matthew 16:18) and that you will use us, but that gospel ministry is not reliant upon us (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Give us hope that you are cheering my spouse and I on each time that we move towards each other (Song of Solomon 5:1b). Give us hope that you are working in my spouse’s heart and life and that you are forming his or her character into a beautiful work of art that belongs to you (Ephesians 2:10). Give us hope that you hold each of my children in your hands and that no one can snatch them out of your hands (John 10:28-29).

Give us hope that you can do more than we can ask for or imagine in our walk with you, in our church, and in our family in 2025 (Ephesians 3:20-21)!

Give Us Peace

Give us peace, knowing that we can sleep because you never sleep, always watching your own (Psalm 121:3-4). Give us peace as we navigate our own doubts and fears (Matthew 10:31). Give us peace that can only be found in knowing you personally, as we pursue you even more than we have in past years (Psalm 119:10).

Give our church peace in conflict that may arise in 2025, and give us a heart to seek the unity of the Spirit (Ephesians 4:3). Give us peace as we navigate the complexity of being believers in today’s world (2 Corinthians 11:28). Give our church a greater measure of the peace that comes from resting in Jesus (John 14:27).

Give my spouse and I peace if financial or health or extended family situations arise this year that add stress to our marriage (Isaiah 26:3). Give our home peace and may our children and grandchildren grow in enjoying their relationships with each other (Psalm 133:1). Give our children your spiritual protection from the evil one, so that they can experience the peace that comes from walking with you in a tumultuous world (John 17:15).

Give Us Joy

Give us joy, knowing that joy is always available in Jesus regardless of what circumstances may come in 2025 (John 15:11, 16:20). Give us your joy in the happy days, and the eyes to see the world as a place where your beauty and power are constantly on display (Psalm 24:1). Give us joy in trials, knowing that you have not abandoned us and are producing Christ-like character in us (James 1:2-3, Romans 5:3-5).

Give our church joy so that when unbelievers visit, they will want this joy that the world cannot offer (Luke 2:10). Give our church joy that is not surface-deep but rather that is deep like a glacier, because it is joy in God (2 Corinthians 1:24). Give our church joy that is Spirit-produced as we worship the living God on Sunday mornings together (Psalms 4:7).

Give us joy in our marriages, as we seek to enjoy life with the spouse you have given us (Ecclesiastes 9:9). Give our spouses joy in their day-to-day responsibilities and in their ministry opportunities (Romans 15:13). Give our children joy through spiritual tastebuds that savor Jesus rather than sin (Psalm 16:11).

Give Us Jesus’s Glory

In the same way that Moses did not want to move into the Promised Land without viewing your glory (Exodus 33:14-18), we don’t want to move into 2025 without a fresh view of Jesus’s glory!

Give us Jesus’s glory in our times of Bible reading and prayer in 2025, so that we can take a spiritual drink and be satisfied (John 7:37-39). Give us Jesus’s glory through seeing your salvation in our personal witnessing with friends and community members (Luke 5:25).

Give our church a view of Jesus’s glory that is so breathtaking that they will want to run from sin (1 Peter 1:13-16). Give our church the focus that church is about Jesus’s glory, not their preferences or ease (1 Thessalonians 5:14). Give our church such a sense of Jesus’s glory on Sunday mornings that they will long for the next time of worship together (2 John 1:12).

Give our families a view of Jesus’s glory that comes from having a privileged front-row seat to your work in so many lives (Acts 2:43). Give our children Jesus’s glory so that they have mountain-top spiritual experiences, but also we ask that when they come down from them that they will have eyes for Jesus only (Matthew 17:8).

Father, we recognize that we don’t deserve any blessing from you. But we also know that you love to give good gifts to your children (Matthew 7:11). So, we are asking you today to give us, our family, and our church four things in 2025: give us hope, give us peace, give us joy, and give us Jesus’s glory!

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How Jesus Answers the Question, “Where Are You, God?”

This article originally appeared in my local paper, The Manchester Journal.

Have you ever looked up into the sky or into the dark of your bedroom when you can’t sleep and asked God, “Where are you?” Maybe it was after a really hard day, or a life-changing diagnosis, or the latest fight with your spouse, or a job loss. Maybe it was after a series of days battling anxiety or depression. We don’t usually ask God this question when things are looking up and we’re having a great day. But we do have days or seasons when we ask it.

Over 3,000 years ago, one of the writers of the Bible asked God this same question: “Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?” (Psalm 44:24) He didn’t know it at the time, but 1,000 years later the assurance he was looking for would come through the birth of a baby in a cave or stable in the little town of Bethlehem. God’s presence didn’t just come near that night, God’s presence entered into earth in a mind-blowing way. God became flesh in Jesus (John 1:14).

When God created the world, the first humans experienced perfect friendship with him. They could talk with him directly and they even walked with him in the garden he had made for them. But after they sinned, they became scared of God and everything changed. Death and decay and brokenness entered the world. God removed them from the perfect garden where they had enjoyed unbroken friendship with him, but he also promised that one day Someone would come who would reverse the curse (Genesis 3:15). He promised that he was coming back for them.

Fast forward several thousand years, and the nation of Israel is in slavery in Egypt. They are beginning to wonder where God is, the God who had promised to make them a people who would have a special relationship with him. When God brings them out of Egypt into the wilderness, he gives them a constant physical manifestation of his presence. God appears to them in a pillar of cloud by day that changed to a pillar of fire by night. This pillar continues to constantly be with them until they enter the Promised Land (Exodus 40:38). God’s presence is next revealed in the Tabernacle, and later it would be revealed in the Temple (2 Chronicles 7:1-3). Even when the Psalmist asked, “Where are you, God?” he could go to the Temple and know that God’s special presence was there.

But God had promised that if his people did not continue to be faithful to his covenant with them, that he would leave the Temple. In Ezekiel 10:18, the glory of the Lord left the Temple. This began 400 “silent years,” which are represented by the blank pages between what Christians now call the Old and New Testaments. It is not that God was completely silent during these years, such as providing the miracle of oil for light in the Temple, celebrated today at Hanukkah. But there was no glory of the LORD that appeared, no promise of his special presence, no prophets listed in the Bible who spoke for God during those four centuries, no messages from angels recorded in Scripture.

Until suddenly one night a warrior angel appeared to shepherds on a hillside outside of Bethlehem, King David’s hometown. The Gospel of Luke reports: “And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:9-11)

The Apostle John later explained that the baby laid in the manger that night was different than any baby who had ever been or who ever will be born. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory…” (John 1:14) The word he uses, “dwelt,” is the same word used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament used to talk about God’s presence in the Tabernacle! He is pointing out that in Jesus, God tabernacled, lived, pitched his tent among us.

It is normal for us to question where God is in this world that has so many difficulties and disappointments. But when we look to Jesus, we remember that God has come near. In Jesus, God entered into our suffering world. And Jesus lived a perfect life, died, and rose again so that all who believe in Christ as their Savior will see God face to face in Heaven one day (Revelation 21:3).

When we ask the question, “Where are you, God?” we can remember that he answered by coming to earth as a human. God’s presence given in Jesus truly is the hope of Christmas.

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To the Person Who Tried to Steal Jesus

On Saturday, December 18th, as my wife and I tidied up a few things for the next day’s worship, my kids came running into the church sanctuary: “Baby Jesus was stolen!”

“Really? One week before Christmas?” Sure enough, it was even worse than we thought. We know it was not bad wind or a curious dog because not only is the baby Jesus missing out of the large Nativity scene on our church’s front lawn, but also the manger, a lamb, and one of the two signs advertising our Christmas Eve Service.

“We believe that the Bible’s message about Jesus is true, so he is alive in heaven today and will return again. He is our king and we bow our hearts before the real Jesus just as the wise men and shepherds bowed down to him when he first came. So you can steal a figure, but you can’t steal the real Jesus.“

As we shared about the loss on our church’s Facebook page, hoping somebody might find the figures thrown somewhere in town, it became obvious that this was a discouragement to more than our church family. The Nativity scene was a labor of love from a team of people from our church, attempting to share with our community the humble story of God coming down to live with us and redeem us.

So I want to say a few things to the person who tried to steal Jesus from us:

You can’t steal Jesus. We know that the figure was only a representation of what happened that first Christmas night. The Bible tells us that the real Jesus was not only born, God become flesh, but that he grew up and became a man who lived a perfect life, then died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins and later rose from the dead. We believe that the Bible’s message about Jesus is true, so he is alive in heaven today and will return again. He is our king and we bow our hearts before the real Jesus just as the wise men and shepherds bowed down to him when he first came. So you can steal a figure, but you can’t steal the real Jesus.

You can’t steal our joy. It made my children and others sad to think of the figure of Jesus being the one stolen. But sadness can mingle with true joy, and this doesn’t take away our joy. Our joy is not dependent on traditions or circumstances. The manger scene can sit empty or we can look around at the difficulty in our country right now or even grieve losses like death or divorce and still have joy because our joy is dependent on knowing God through his son, Jesus Christ. The night before Jesus went to the cross he taught his scared disciples a truth we continue to hold onto: “You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” (John 16:22) The sorrow of the crucifixion was eclipsed by the joy of the resurrection. The sorrow of disease and sin in our world will one day be eclipsed by the joy of heaven. Giving invincible joy is one reason Jesus came.

You can’t take away the meaning of the Christmas story. The sign taken had the word “HOPE” in large letters above a representation of a nativity scene. The reason we believe that the coming of Christ brings us hope today is because of what the angel told Joseph, the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us).” (Matthew 1:23) Many today wonder where God is as they look at the sin in the world around them and the effects of sin on a world God had originally made perfect. But God isn’t aloof. He actually entered our world and wasn’t born in a palace, but found his first cradle in a feeding trough, a manger. This brings us hope today–that God cares, that God has come, that he is active today, that he loves us today, and that his promises in the Bible are true. The meaning of the original Christmas story is that God came to earth as a human. He didn’t come as we would have expected. His first worshipers were a poor young couple, foreign kings, and stinky shepherds. But he came in a way that shows his care for those who are discouraged and marginalized and down-and-out. This gives us a hope that can’t be stolen.

You are loved. Whether or not you return the figures or even can at this point, I want to tell you that you are loved. We have been praying for you, and not with hatred. We have been praying that a heart that would hate Jesus this much or not be aware of what the Christmas story represents would be a heart that would be broken in order to be healed with the unconditional love of the Jesus you tried to steal. Jesus interacted with thieves. There was one on either side of him on the cross. One mocked him, but the other believed in him. And Jesus told him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43) He has that kind of power, to forgive sins and give eternal life. Jesus didn’t come for people who had it all put together, but for people who realize they are sinners and need God himself to enter our world to rescue us. That is how deep his love is, a love we can receive if we will come to him.

You can’t steal the real Jesus. But through this, we are praying that he might steal your heart.

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Easter Was Made For a Time Like This

This article appeared in our local paper, The Manchester Journal, and also at the Baptist Convention of New England blog.

We are living in a time in which we are desperate for good news. We are all reading this hunkered down in our homes under the looming specter of disaster. We feel the state of emergency, and we see it with our eyes. It is on the signs on every business door and on faces everywhere we look. The mood has changed in our community, as friends or neighbors who might happen to see each other outside now talk from a distance. Anyone who dares to venture out to buy groceries notices the absence of the laughter of children. We worry about our elderly relatives and neighbors, even as we try to help them, all the while hoping we are not putting them at greater risk. We wince when we check the latest statistics on confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths. We wonder how long this will go on. Oh, how desperately we need good news.

Just when we think the low-grade stress of trying to hide from an invisible enemy is getting unbearable, we hear of another cancellation of an event we had looked forward to for months. We know it is the right thing to do, and we might even feel guilty for wishing it wasn’t so, but we mourn our old lives nonetheless. As a parent, I am joining moms and dads all across the world who have to explain to their kids why their favorite spring activities are canceled.

But as a pastor, I am joining pastors all across the world explaining to their congregations that Easter is not canceled.

No, we are not physically meeting. But Easter is not canceled because Easter was made to bring good news to a world that groans under the strain of more bad news. Easter was made for a time like this.

Jesus’ disciples were crushed after Jesus’ death on the cross. They were confused. But when the report of the empty tomb reached them, and when Jesus himself stood in front of them again so much alive that they could touch him and watch him eat, his earlier words flooded back. Right before he had raised Lazarus from the dead they had heard him proclaim, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26) Now they understood that Jesus’ resurrection was the guarantee of their resurrection. It sealed his promise of eternal life for those who would believe in him.

Some say the resurrection is a time of celebration of new life, as if it is nothing more than a celebration of Spring. Certainly the fact that it took place during a time of new life on earth is bursting with meaning. But if that is all it means, Easter is hollow. We need something more substantial. We need a resurrection.

As our church joins churches around the world during this historic Easter, celebrating the resurrection for the first time virtually and not physically gathered, our joy will be no less. We will wish it was different. We may shed tears of loss and heartbreak. But we will celebrate Jesus’ resurrection with joy because we know that in his conquering of death, he has promised to make all things new. The Bible looks forward to a day when fear and abuse and hunger and loneliness and viruses will all die, never to raise their ugly heads again. And in their demise, a new heaven and a new earth will be created, a place that believers in King Jesus were made to live in with their resurrection bodies. 

This is good news. This is why Easter was made for a time like this. And because of Easter, because of Jesus, I invite you to make this best of news your news.

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“Always Winter But Never Christmas?”: Finding Joy This Season

This article appeared in the December 20, 2019 edition of our local paper, The Manchester Journal.

“It is winter in Narnia, and has been for ever so long…always winter and never Christmas; think of that!” With these words, Mr. Tumnus the faun from C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe captured the imagination of my children—and me. This winter, my wife and I have been reading them “The Chronicles of Narnia” for their bedtime stories. I had read the beloved classics, as perhaps you have, as a boy, but it had been decades since I last read them. This time, reading them as an adult and as a pastor, I have been amazed at the beautiful parallels with life and even the Christian life as Lewis’ allegory points to Jesus through Aslan, the lion.

But I have not been able to let that phrase go: “always winter and never Christmas.” We know that in one sense so many of us love winter or we would not live in Vermont. We love the skiing, we love the crunchy snow under our feet, we love sipping hot cocoa while watching the snowflakes gently fall. There’s nothing quite like celebrating Christmas in Vermont with snow on the ground. But if it was always winter and never Christmas, if there was no joy in the midst of the long winter, if six months of no leaves stretched into twelve months with no foliage, we would tire of the winter weather.

Lewis described our hearts without joy so well with his phrase, “always winter and never Christmas.” As we approach Christmas, I have been thinking about what we try to draw joy from around Christmastime. We see the word “joy” all over the place: in decorations for the season, in songs on the radio and in the stores. But joy can be elusive. The grandkids don’t visit. The cancer has returned. The toys were exciting for the kids for a couple of hours, but now they’ve moved on to playing with the boxes. Maybe for you the season brings back difficult childhood memories. In your soul, you feel like it is always winter, but never Christmas, even on Christmas Day.

Lift up your head. Aslan breaks the curse, and even heals our hearts. There is joy available that is outside of our circumstances, joy that can coexist with tears. It is a joy that is elastic enough that it can bring the joy of Christmas to both the young parent with the overwhelming list of things to do for the kids, and the elderly person in his or her empty home. It is a joy that stretches to magnify the best times of life and that quietly comes alongside of us to meet us during our darkest moments. This joy is a person who is so much more than a person. His name is Jesus. This is why Christians get so excited about Christmas.

The Gospel of John explains about Jesus, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory.” (John 1:5, 12, 14) You see, Christians get excited about Christmas because we truly believe that we can’t work our way to God. The darkness is not only outside of us, it is even in us. But the message of Christmas is that God didn’t expect us to work our way up to him, but he came down to us to offer us free joy now and for eternity.

Before the spring thaw comes, my kids and I will be reading the seventh book in the Narnia series. We will read these words in The Last Battle that I hope will ring true to your heart this Christmas season so that for your soul it will not be always winter and never Christmas: “‘Yes,’ said Queen Lucy. ‘In our world too, a stable once had something inside it that was bigger than our whole world.’”

Talk about joy to the world!

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Hold On to the God Who Holds You: How He Comforts Us with Election

This article first appeared on DesiringGod.org.

Desiring God water pic

As a pastor, I had visited church members in the psych ward before, but this time the church member was our dear friend Sarah (her name has been changed for privacy). She had no family nearby, but lived just a few miles from us. When Sarah was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer, my wife began to bring her meals. We would visit her whenever we could. One of the treatments had taken a horrible turn. Dark side effects landed Sarah in the psych ward.

She looked at me that afternoon from her hospital bed, almost without recognition, with deep pain in her eyes. I reminded her of the care of her church family and the love of Christ for her. A tear rolled down her cheek and she whispered, “Guilty.”

I knew that Sarah needed bedrock gospel truth under her feet, so I turned to Romans 8 and began to read to her, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Her eyes flashed with recognition. I continued to read until I got to verse 30, and then an amazing thing happened. Sarah was crying out the words of Romans 8:30 with me, like a drowning woman holding on to a life preserver.

We both exclaimed those precious promises out loud in the stark and sterile room, tears streaming down our faces: “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). At that moment, neither of us was arguing for the doctrine of God’s absolute sovereignty over salvation. We were exulting in our election. Sarah could not hold on to God in her darkest hour, but she knew that he was still holding on to her.

Comfort of God’s Choice

“God didn’t give us insight into the great mysteries of his sovereign grace to confuse us, but to comfort us.”

I used to experience election merely as theoretical. Too often I saw the doctrine through the lens of debate rather than through the lens of worship and trust. Sarah changed that for me. Seeing election anchor Sarah in the psych ward gave me a fresh perspective on why God has revealed to us that we were chosen by him before he formed the world. God didn’t give us insight into the great mysteries of his sovereign grace to confuse us, but to comfort us with his unstoppable, eternal love for us.

Being reminded of God’s choice to love her in eternity past was a comfort for Sarah on that bleak afternoon. She knew that nothing could separate her from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

Our salvation did not start with us, is not sustained by us, and will not be completed by our strength. The domino effects leading to our salvation did not begin at birth, or even at Christ’s birth, but in eternity past when God foreknew us. Unconditional election knocks the wind out of our pride, but it also buoys us up when we feel like we’re drowning.

When the clouds seem to be blocking our Father’s face, when all of our relationships are being dragged through a valley, when we hear of a relative diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, we need the security of electing grace. And when the sun is shining, our spouse loves us, our kids are well-behaved, and work is going better than we ever expected, God’s electing love reminds us that every gift is a gift of grace.

Holding On, Being Held

When I visited Sarah a few days later, she was doing better. The medications were being balanced and the side effects had diminished, although she was still being kept and monitored. As we sang “In Christ Alone” together, our voices rose loudest when we sang, “From life’s first cry to final breath, Jesus commands my destiny. No power of hell, no scheme of man, can ever pluck me from his hand.”

There is something profoundly stabilizing about knowing that the most powerful One in the universe holds you (John 10:28–29). He knew everything about our frailties and even our sins, but he chose us, came for us, and redeemed us anyway.

“Unconditional election knocks the wind out of our pride, but it also buoys us up when we feel like we’re drowning.”

That stay in the psych ward was not the end of the story for my sister in Christ. Just as God makes each of us more than conquerors, he empowered Sarah to conquer. She is not a conqueror because she overcame her depression immediately, or because the cancer stopped spreading. In fact, she died a couple of years later. Sarah is more than a conqueror because the God who predestined her also promised that she would be glorified.

That was the promise she was holding on to the last time I saw her, and it is the promise that she will be praising Christ for the next time I see her.

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4 Reasons Every Church Needs Senior Saints

This post originally appeared at 9Marks, then at For The Church, The Gospel Coalition Canada, and Church Leaders. The piece also was featured on Challies.com and The Gospel Coalition U.S. #rightnow links.

A couple of days ago, I received an email from a church member in his eighties, letting me know that he’s moving. We have known for some time that it’s best for him to move closer to his family due to his health and housing situation. But the news that the move was finally happening hit me unexpectedly, as if I’d lost a dear friend. I felt it in the pit of my stomach and the tears in my eyes.

Then I realized that is exactly why I felt that way: I was losing a dear friend, and a grandfather in the faith. And our church is losing him, too.

Sometimes senior saints question their usefulness in the church as they age. That’s unfortunate because they’re an essential part of the body of Christ. Although we trust in our sovereign and wise God to add and take away from his local body as he sees fit, church life is different without them. As pastors, therefore, we need to remind our elderly members that they’re not only loved by their Good Shepherd and Savior—they’re also loved and needed by his people.

Here are four reasons every local church needs senior saints.

1. We need your prayers.

My 80-something friend often leads our congregation in prayer on Sunday mornings. Visitors and members regularly comment on how his prayers are a blessing to them. We need older members to pray out loud during worship services, Bible studies, and prayer meetings. We also need their private prayers.

Sometimes, I’ll see God work in a way that can only be explained by a work of his Spirit in somebody’s life or in salvation. When this happens, I think, “God has answered the prayers of one of my sisters in Christ,” because I know there are several elderly ladies who pray for our church, our community, and my pastoral ministry regularly. Even if you’re reading this on your tablet from a nursing home—I visited an elderly lady doing just that the other day—we as the church need your prayers.

2. We need your practical, biblical wisdom.

My grandpa taught an adult Sunday School class until Parkinson’s robbed him of his voice. I’ll never forget a seminary professor who taught class using a special microphone because health complications made it difficult for him to speak. I’m so thankful that these men continued to pass on their biblical knowledge and life experience until they literally could not anymore. Whether through teaching a class or sharing a comment during a Bible study or encouraging a young mom during fellowship, every church members needs the wisdom that comes from decades of studying the Word mixed with decades of life experience.

Senior saints, please continue to speak into the lives of younger believers with love and truth and grace. The church needs your wisdom not simply because you’re older, but because you bring the practical, biblical wisdom that only comes from marinating in the Word and walking with Christ in both life’s joys and sorrows.

3. We need your encouragement.

My friend recently raised his hand at a business meeting as I was almost done explaining a new initiative, and simply said that he saw God’s hand in this and that the congregation should be supportive of where God was leading me with this initiative. We could have just stopped the explanation right then and gone straight to the vote. As a senior saint, your words of encouragement matter.

I’ve seen young, sleep-deprived parents light up when an older person in the church tells them, “Your kids are a joy.” I’ve seen discouraged empty-nesters, struggling with change, rediscover hope as they remember God’s faithfulness in your marriages of over 50 years

As the Psalmist exclaims, “One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts” (Psalm 145:4). Don’t hesitate to share your stories of provision and grace and forgiveness, and to remind us of God’s goodness and faithfulness. Senior saint, we need your encouragement.

4. We need your presence.

We know it takes a lot of work for older folks to get to church. We know that there will come a day that we need to come to you, rather than you coming to us. But until that day, we need your presence.

There’s something particularly special about the redeemed people of God coming together for worship and seeing a spectrum of ages. There’s something about coming together to worship with people who are different than us—even generationally—that points to the beauty of the gospel and the glory of God. There’s something about knowing fellow saints who can speak of God never abandoning them through decades that powerfully reminds us of the faithfulness of God.

We don’t call you “senior saint” because you’re perfect or because you don’t have struggles like the rest of us. We call you “senior saint” because your faith in Christ in your senior years points to the fact that the same God who saves is the same God who sustains. Lift your heads, dear senior saints.

You’re needed. Please don’t stop serving.

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