Grace for Today

If you think the idea of running a marathon is hard, you should try training for one!

In my lifetime, I have now trained for, and competed in, seven marathons. Over the course of the training, I have often found myself battling the same defeating thought process. As the weekly miles add up, the legs and body inevitably begin to fatigue. After a tiring 7 or 8 mile run on a gruesome day in the Pacific Northwest, I will find myself looking ahead at my training schedule. (Typically, I have mapped out a training plan of about 20-24 weeks from start to race day.)

My brain begins to jump ahead to the weeks to come, and my emotions do as well. I will begin to think, “If today’s run was so challenging, how will I complete the longer run this weekend?” Or, “This week is really wearing me out- and next week is only harder!” Or, “If I’m this fatigued after 7 hard miles, how can I possibly push myself for 26 miles on race day?” As these negative thoughts begin to pile up, and the fear within begins to rise. Doubt and worry have a way of reaching up and grabbing the soul until I am tempted to bag the whole thing.

As this happens, I have developed a helpful mantra: Run the next mile. Simply put, I try and focus on the only mile I can control: the one I am on. When I start to worry about next week’s speed workout, I’ll tell myself, “run the mile in front of you.” When I’m getting tired during a run and wondering if I can make it home, I’ll say out-loud, “run the mile you’re on.” When I find myself fearful at night about how I’ll perform on the day of the race, I think to myself- you guessed it- “Just run the next mile.” Something about this approach has a way of calming my spirit and focusing my emotions.

Recently at East Hills, I have been preaching through a series on grace. “How does grace relate to training for marathons?” you may ask. Well, in life, like in training, we have a tendency to begin looking ahead. We might wonder if we have what it takes to forgive someone if they hurt us again. We worry that our kids will grow up to make poor decisions, or choose lifestyles that we disagree with. How will we maintain a positive relationship if that happens? An old habit continues to rear its ugly head in our lives and we fear we are powerless to ever change and be free. We see challenges looming down the road in our workplace, and question whether or not we can handle it. Fear assaults us in situation after situation- what if the diagnosis is cancer? What if the car breaks down? What if a red cup at my favorite coffee shop really does signal the end of Christmas celebrations in our culture? This kind of fear can cripple us and steal the confidence of faith.

So, may I suggest that you develop a mantra similar to mine? Grace for today. One day at a time, God gives us grace for ourselves and for others. In Scripture, the prophet Jeremiah declares,

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,

For His compassions never fail.

They are new every morning,

Great is your faithfulness.

-Lamentations 3:22, 23

Did you catch that? New every morning. Not every week, or month or year. But each morning, a new supply of his compassion- His amazing grace- is poured out for us. He gives us for today just what we need for today. And He’ll do the same tomorrow, and the next day and the day after that. Some days, we may only need a little of His grace. We’ll have it. Other days, we may feel we need a truckload of grace, and we will have what we need on that day, too.

So when your emotions begin to creep up and grab your soul, when fear of the future has paralyzed your progress, repeat after me: Grace for today. Run the mile you’re on. Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air- they do not sow or reap or stow away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you be worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matthew 6:26, 27) Birds don’t worry about tomorrow. At least, I’m guessing they don’t- I’ve never really asked. But the principle is good- God cares about us so much that He will give us today exactly what we need.

So we trust Him. We look to His grace. And when our heart grows feeble at the thought of tomorrow, we can say, “Grace for today.” For tomorrows marathon can worry about itself. His grace is yours today.

Run on!

Powerless or Powerful?

 Is AA off-base with step number one?

As a people, we seem to have two basic schools of thought out there as to how we should face problematic behaviors in our lives. The one school, made most famous by Alcoholics Anonymous, says that I am powerless against my addiction (step one of twelve). The other school, promoted by well-intended Christians and secular psychologists alike, says that I can do anything I set my mind to do. This approach feels quite Biblical, especially when you attach to it the verse, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. Sounds nice. Empowering even. “Me and Jesus” can take on the world!

So which is it? These two lines of reasoning can’t possibly co-exist, can they? They appear to be two radically different approaches to health from completely opposite ends of the spectrum.

Both have their merits. Consider the “powerless” mentality of AA. To admit powerlessness is to acknowledge my need for others. Knowing my own susceptibility to an ongoing struggle or addiction keeps me humble and open to a process for change. On the other hand, the “powerful” mindset seems much more positive and responsible. I am encouraged to grab life by the horns and be master of my destiny; captain of my own ship. I embrace the truth that I can become all God made me to be!

As someone who wrestled with an addiction to pornography for over 15 years, this battle between the two schools of thought makes a ton of sense to me. I have benefited from the positive merits of both schools. I have, however, also found the pain, the shadow side, of each approach when taken alone. The powerless approach can become defeating. A mantra of “I am powerless” can become the excuse to give in when the soul no longer feels like fighting. The powerful approach may feel more hopeful, but I have discovered, like so many others, that it offers a false boast. No matter how empowered I felt, I continually found my way back into the same old patterns. When this happened, I was left with no choice but to conclude I wasn’t powerful enough, and the guilt and shame game would get played all over again.

So I ask again, which is it? Like many of our problems, perhaps the issue lies not in the answer, but with the questions itself. “Which is it” implies immediately that one or the other must be true, thus making the other false. But what if this isn’t a question of either/or, but both/and? What if the key to recovery and healthy living is to embrace both simultaneously?

“Wait, wait,” you may respond, “These two ideas are fundamentally opposed to one another. How could they possibly both be true?” Let me explain from what I have seen and experienced.

The starting place of healing and recovery is always humility: I must be willing to admit I have a problem that I simply cannot solve on my own. In that sense, I am powerless. I have learned countless times that when I place myself in certain situations without safeguards or community around me, I will do what I have done a thousand times before. And then, a thousand times I tried to change without success. What choice do I have but to embrace that, in that scenario, I am powerless?

But here’s the key: in that scenario. The scenario of my powerlessness, and yours, is one of isolation, self-effort, and repeated patterns. In other words, I cannot do the same things in the same ways and expect to get different results. Someone once called this the definition of insanity. And in that sense, our struggles and addictions are absolutely a form of insanity.

What happens, though, if I change the scenario? If I recognize that isolation, self-reliance, and repeated patterns are the graveyard of my hopes, I can make a choice to change. I can move into safe places of community where my story is heard and accepted. I can learn to trust God and His plan for right living in this fallen world. I can develop new patterns of behavior that develop healthy neurological patterns in my brain. When you and I do this, we are no longer powerless. Because we recognize the scenario of our powerlessness, we can choose to walk in places that lead to lasting health. This is a position of power.

Notice, however, where the power comes from. Is the power really in me? I would say no- the power is in community, faith in God, and a renewed mind. I am powerful because I recognize where I am powerless. I believe this is what the Apostle Paul had in mind when he said, “So now, I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (II Corinthians 12:9,10) Do you see that? Paul says I am weak AND I am strong- the two working together hand in hand.

So here’s my conclusion: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me because I have embraced that I am powerless. I can gladly embrace my place of powerlessness because I know that through Christ I can do all things. Do you see the interplay? Do you see how these two ideas, when put together, actually enforce the message of the other? Powerlessness without power is hopeless. Power without powerlessness is arrogant and alone.

This paradox should come as no surprise if you take a look at the God of Ages and His eternal Word. Throughout Scripture, we are told that the way to live is through dying; the way to joy is through pain; the way to contentment is through self-denial and sacrifice. So also, the way to power is through powerlessness- two seemingly contradictory ideas put into perfect harmony through the work of Christ in us.

So today, embrace that you are weak and powerless. Celebrate that you are strong and powerful. And remember that you never want one without the other.

Journey in Freedom-

Nick

An Open Letter to Sports Illustrated

You may have heard the news this week that in a recent survey, 72% of Americans view your popular annual swimsuit edition as a version of porn. Most likely in the upper chambers of leadership at your company, executives are laughing this off as a skewed survey and an antiquated perception. “Real” men and “real” Americans know how to have fun and enjoy this like any other good-ole American pastime, so they say.

But they are wrong. You are wrong. And you don’t even know what you are doing to our culture.

I know the world thinks you are harmless fun. You are not. You are creating a picture of sex, and of women, that is unrealistic for nearly every woman and every couple in America. You are creating ideals for our sons that will become the filter through which every woman is judged. You validate sexism, encourage us to judge a book by its cover, and implicitly agree that women are material to be used to satisfy a man’s interest or cravings. In a single issue, you are able to make a declarative statement that quickly out-weighs all our advances in the fight for equality. Your pictures are more powerful than many thousands of words.

You say you value women for their athletic ability, but your magazine cover sends an entirely different message.

For several years of my life, I consumed you. I bought into your lies and deception that it was just something guys enjoyed and it was no big deal. I told myself it was really about the sports and I was just curious. These lies led to a way of viewing the world that almost cost me everything. I learned the truth in time and I stopped. And it’s time for you to stop.  

I know you believe that you are just one small player on a big field where this is standard fare. But you need to realize you are leading the way. You are setting a standard that opens the door for so many others to follow in your path.

So I dare you. Discontinue the issue. Put it to bed and never awaken it again. Then see what happens to your bottom line and your subscription rate. You think that sex sells, but it also repels. Make a statement that sports and sex don’t have to go together for the American man to consume it. Lead the way in teaching our children that men, and women, are valuable for who they are and not for how they look in a bathing suit. Put our attention on their skills and their athletic domination, and you will succeed.

I dare you.

Until then, count me among the 72% percent who believe in my heart that what you are selling is not harmless fun, but a sinister seduction not worth the price on the cover. I, and millions like me, will not subscribe to you or to your brand because we believe there is a better way. I encourage you to find it.

Sincerely,

Nick Stumbo

7 Principles of Freedom

Five years ago, I was in jeopardy of losing my marriage. Despite the countless promises I had made to my wife about change, I found that was unable to avoid relapsing into pornography. Though I could not acknowledge it at the time, this addiction had a control over me that I couldn’t comprehend. Today, I am porn-free and enjoying a healthier marriage than ever before. While I must continually guard my purity and my heart, I no longer struggle with relapses into this behavior. So what changed? Here are seven principles that I have found at work in my life and in the lives of many other guys who have walked this same journey.

Get Honest. One of the things we all do with behaviors we’re hiding is to minimize them. This means that we have spent a great deal of time convincing ourselves, and others, that porn really isn’t a problem. We use lines like, “all guys do this”, “no one is getting hurt”, or “I can stop anytime I want” to try and reduce the guilt or negative emotions we feel. Freedom begins by confronting these lies. Change will only occur when we say willingly and frequently to ourselves and other trusted friends, “I have a problem and I need help.”

Create Boundaries. When we are busy minimizing destructive behaviors, this keeps us from seeing how vulnerable we are to acting out. If we want to establish freedom for the long-haul, then we will have to make some major adjustments to how we do life. Creating boundaries means that we look at the places where we are most susceptible to accessing pornography and we deal with them. For example, I don’t have a smart phone, but that’s okay. I’d rather have a dumb phone and be a smart user! You will never regret setting your personal boundaries too high. You will always regret the ones that were so low they were easy to step over or ignore.

Join a Group. Especially for guys, we are guilty of thinking we can do just about anything on our own, if we but set our minds to it. But the problem with this thinking, when it comes to pornography, is that porn is a problem we got into on our own. It is through isolation and separation from relationships that this problem grew to the level of addiction. So, we cannot hope to find freedom on the same path. Freedom comes as we process our journey honestly and openly with others who are doing the same.

Commit to the Long Haul. When it comes to not looking at pornography, will power and sheer determination will never be enough. We aren’t looking to simply stop a behavior; we are looking to process life differently. This means changing our brains and the ways we react to certain stress or stimuli. Scientific research reveals that true and lasting brain change takes a minimum of 2 years and as long as 5! If we want to be free of porn for life, then we must embrace that this journey, and this change, takes time.

Proactive Check-Ins. One of the greatest faults with traditional approaches to accountability is the relationship where one person says, “Call me and ask how I am doing.” In this set-up, we are giving responsibility for our change to another person. If we really want to change, then checking in with others is something we take responsibility for, and we do it proactively. We commit to calling others a minimum of three times in a week to report on how we are doing and what steps we are taking to stay free. This move keeps us in charge of our own change.

Know Your Pattern. The problem for most of us with porn is that we know when we’ve looked at it (it’s pretty obvious) but we don’t have any clue why. Far too many guys think of a bout with pornography as an isolated, hormonally-fueled episode. But it’s not. Our brain works on a complex system of punishments and rewards, and if we keep returning to a behavior which we know we don’t want, it’s because our brain has associated it with a reward. We must learn to recognize our pattern, and then change how the pattern starts. If we only try to fight against viewing porn as we’re sitting alone in front of a computer feeling tempted, this will be a losing battle. Winning starts when we fight further up in the process.

Tell Your Story. Telling your story means you know where you have come from and what drives you. If we know the pain, turmoil, and the joy of our own past, we begin to unlock the secrets for what drives an addiction to pornography. Our struggle is rooted in the deeper issues of what we believe about life and ourselves. As we learn to see and tell our story accurately, we gain the power to change it. This is one of the primary roles of a group in our lives- a safe, supportive place to start telling our story.

I believe that if you were to remove any one of these principles from my story, I would quickly be back where I started. Much like the 6 or 8 cylinders of an engine must fire together in perfect sequence, so these principles function concurrently to create real and lasting freedom in our lives. Where do you need to begin? What principle have you been avoiding or ignoring? Take that step today, and trust that God will bring freedom you way as you do!

Blessings-

Nick

Violence In Our Schools

Like many of you, I watched with sadness, anger, and regret as school shootings continue to make headlines across our country. With two such incidences in the Pacific Northwest recently, these tragedies feel closer to home than ever before. East Hills has several Seattle Pacific alums here, and so we grieve and pray with them for what occurred at their school.

In the days and weeks to come, we will no doubt hear varied opinions aired, with great vehemence, about what should be done to curb the violence taking place in our schools. Tighter gun control! Heightened school security! Closed-access campuses! These ideas, and many others like them, all have merit and in some way might create greater safety for places of public education.

But this week, I find myself reflecting on the deeper issues of our society. What is happening in our humanity that this kind of violent action seems to be more and more the norm rather than the exception? Why do so many, especially young people, turn to aggression when life overwhelms them? While I certainly don’t claim to have all the answers, I would like to share a brief thought along these lines. Could it be that we have created a flawed culture in which the ideals we teach inevitably lead to emptiness and a lack of fulfillment?

Our young people are taught today that life is a smorgasbord of opportunity just waiting for them to enjoy. The message the media teaches them is to fill their lives with good things, pursue pleasure, and prioritize immediate gratification; after all, it’s all about you . Everyone can have what they want, when they want, how they want. The downfall is that the proposed promises of these messages always come up empty. Stuff doesn’t lead to satisfaction. Pleasure doesn’t equate to real joy. Facebook friends and twitter followers doesn’t create true relationships and deep connection. And so, as a society, we are left wanting.

In Isaiah 55:1-2, the prophet declares, “Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink- even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk- it’s all free! Why spend money on food that does not give you strength? Why pay for food that does you no good? Listen to me, and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the finest food.” Our society seems to be gorging itself on food that doesn’t satisfy. And when we come up empty and alone, violence is increasingly the answer.

So I believe with all my heart that Jesus is still the hope of the world. Because for all our western culture can give- possessions, techy toys, cool cars, and frappuccinos- culture hasn’t figured out how to give us what we most need. Only God can meet us in the deep hunger of our souls.

How will our society be changed? How will gun violence be curtailed? When people come to God to satisfy their true hunger, the world will be changed. It starts with me and you; making sure that we find our joy and satisfaction in Him. And having tasted the goodness of the Lord, we share this message. We look to be light in dark places. We point others to the only source of lasting joy and peace. And the more that people are pointed to Christ, the fewer guns that will be pointed at others. May it be so.

Strange Behaviors

I was starting to list for myself this morning some of the strange behaviors that I willingly engage in for the love of running. I thought I'd share some of that list with you as a way to enter into a larger discussion.

-Right now as I type this, I have an ice pack strapped around my left ankle. At my desk. At work. My left Achilles has been bothering me, and this is one of the few times I sit still long enough to ice!
-Last night I slept with two socks on that same foot. Just the left foot. I've heard that keeping the foot warm is a key to recovery. It looks weird. It seems to help my ankle.
-This year I have purchased three brand new pairs of shoes. I've never worn any of them in public. They are just for running. The shoes I wear around are all over a year old.
-Last night I felt achy, sore and tired. So I got up early this morning, ran 8 miles, and I feel better than ever.
-I don't eat French fries. I have found that any kind of deep-friend food has an adverse affect on my morning runs, so I avoid them during peak training.
-I check the weather every night just to see what the temp will be in the morning.
-I blow my nose into my shirt when I run. I've tried the farmer blow and it just doesn't work for me. You probably didn't want to know that. I could go even more graphic, but let's not go there.

So why am I thinking about all these strange behaviors today? It occurs to me that in the name of our passion, we will do some pretty outrageous things. We willingly engage in behaviors that may seem odd or even ludicrous to others who don't share our passion. Imagine the frenzied fans at a Seahawks game with bright green spiked hair. Picture the crowds gathering at national scrapbooking and Star Wars conventions. Think of the lines of people camping out to be the first to own the next iPhone. More likely than not, one or more of these groups seem strange to you. You don't understand their passion, so their behavior is hard to comprehend. But you know at the same time that you have a similar passion in your life that may be misunderstood by others, be it Duck Dynasty, Starbucks, or vintage cars.

This weekend at church, we talked about the life of the prophet Jeremiah. This guy lived boldly for God- what God told him to say, he said. What God told him to do, he did. And this made him look strange; very strange. It also offended and bothered a lot of people who didn't understand his passion. But here's the connection for me: Why is it that I am so willing to look strange when it comes to my hobby of running, but often so unwilling to look strange when it comes to my faith in Jesus? To be honest, when it comes to faith and Jesus in my life, I usually try to fit in. I want to look normal, average and regular. I don't want to offend or turn anyone away because of "strange behaviors."

Somehow this feels out of sync to me. How could I bring the same attitude I have towards how others view my running that I do to how others view my faith? Could I be more bold to live out loud and let the crowd- be they skeptics or supporters- react however they want? Here are some paths I'd like to walk in, and thus be accused of strange behaviors:

-I'd like to love more outrageously. When someone is hurting or in need, I want to be more proactive to go to extreme measures to show love. I don't do that very often.
-I want to treat everyone like they have unsurpassable worth. I want to treat people who are nothing like me with the same kind of honor and respect I would give to the president if he walked into the room. That's hard to do.
-I want to respond with grace and love when others grow harsh or mean. I want to bless bad drivers, not yell at them.
-I want to talk more often about Jesus, how much he means to me, and how I really believe he's the hope of the world. I want to stop worrying about who's listening or how they might respond.

You know, if I engaged in these behaviors, I would look strange to most people, especially to those who didn't understand my passion. But I do this all the time with running- why not with Jesus?

What's on your list? How do you want to live so that others might see you as strange?

On your journey, may you joyfully be strange for Jesus!

Nick

On Hearing God

How does God speak to us? It seems like we often hear that a key to faith is hearing God’s voice and then doing what He says. This is all well and good when “the voice” of God we hear is through Scripture. In fact, we could spend a lifetime simply trying to do what He says in His Word. But this same Word also holds out another promise to us- that God is a God who continues to speak. He has something to say about our personal situations and the individual experiences we all have from day to day.

So, in the rush of life, how exactly does God speak to us? Someone asked me this very question a few weeks ago. I thought for a bit about how I personally attempt to listen to God. Like many others, I try to take some time each day to be quiet before God, and then in a prayerful place to listen to what God might have to say. As I pondered this approach, however, it occurred to me that very rarely if ever have I heard God in that moment!

Now that seems kind of strange, doesn’t it? I believe in a God who is speaking and who wants to speak to me, yet when I actually go to listen, I must honestly admit that I rarely hear anything. Perhaps you are encouraged by this! Maybe you have grown weary of this kind of listening because it feels like wasted time where very odd and random things pop into your mind. Be at ease- you are not alone!

But back to the question at hand- how do we hear God speak? I am not trying to create precedence here or say this is the right way, but I want to share my experience because you may find similarities. What I have found is that when I am setting aside time to hear from God, though I rarely hear from Him in that moment, I very often hear from Him in that season. In other words, when I am being consistent in this posture of listening, I will find that at other times in my day, a voice or a thought will suddenly pop up and somehow in my soul I just know it is God’s voice. An answer to a question. A new perspective. A lyric from a song I haven’t thought of in ages. A verse in Scripture I haven’t read in months. But there it is. To me, I feel like God has to catch me off guard in these moments.

The more I think about it, the more this makes sense to me. When I sit and pray, “God, I want to hear your voice,” whether I realize it or not, I have many presuppositions in that moment. I have ideas of what God should or shouldn’t say. I have ideas of what He will say and how He will say it. I put up all these filters that make actually hearing His voice in that moment difficult if not impossible. But in doing this, I believe that I am somehow aligning my heart with His. I am opening up a portion of my soul and making it more ready to receive. And at just the right moment, God speaks. When I am not even aware of Him, He is aware of me and my need to hear His voice. And so He speaks.

So though I rarely hear God “in the moment”, I will continue to be one who listens. And when He catches me off guard and speaks just what I needed to hear, I will be grateful that He spoke in His way, and His time. We have a speaking God. May we be a listening people!

 

How about you? Can you relate to this? How do you hear God?

Less than Magical

One of the difficult decisions of our recent trip to Florida and the Magic Kingdom was what to do with our 18-month old son. He's at that challenging age where he's completely mobile and inquisitive, but not smart enough or old enough to really know better. After much consideration, we decided to leave him with my folks. In Montana. This meant a 5 and 1/2 hour drive before and after the trip for a drop off and pick up.

On Sunday, I was driving back from Montana with our son, and along the way I found myself growing increasingly angry. For starters, some kind of construction activity on Snoqualmie Pass had added an hour to my trip. At one point, traffic had sat completely motionless for 15 minutes. The worst part for me was that all along this stretch, I never did see a single sign of active construction. It was a traffic jam created completely by, well, traffic.

Next off, Luke decided that he didn't want to sleep. Even though it was 10 PM and he was very tired, he kept shaking himself awake. Was he afraid that if he drifted off to sleep I would leave him somewhere again? I don't know. So he's fussy, and then it starts to rain. Not Washington-gentle-mist kind of rain. More like South Pacific-drops-as-large-as-acorns sheet rain. And all of this begins happening as I round the I-5 bend near the Tacoma Dome, which all you north-westerners know is a notoriously busy and backed up section of road.

So there I was- tired of driving, suffering from a 3-hour jet-lag that told me it was 1Am, trying to comfort a crying baby by myself in a pouring rainstorm with traffic all around me moving at 30 miles an hour. And how did I handle this? I got angry, and I found myself wanting to blame others; even irrationally. I wanted to blame my parents for not driving the whole way. I wanted to blame my wife for not going instead of me. I wanted to blame the rain, the other drivers, and even my 18-month old for not being smart enough to see that Daddy was about to blow so he should just pipe down.

Amidst all of this frustration came a quiet moment of clarity. I would like to say that God spoke to me, but I'm just not sure- it could have been my own spirit. But a still voice whispered, "Remember, you chose this. This was the plan that you chose." This thought powerfully calmed the raging storm of my soul. When I regained the perspective that the current circumstances, though out of my control, were circumstances that I had willingly put myself into, I had renewed peace and strength to face them.

I'm writing this today because of how often I think this happens for all of us. Life gets tough, we get angry, and the blaming begins. In some ways, it's human nature to look for ways to blame others for the problems we face. But I wonder if we step back enough and say to ourselves, "I chose this." Certainly, we didn't choose the unexpected problems or trouble, but in most of our challenges I think we can take ownership of choices we made to put ourselves in this position.

So, your spouse may be angry and hurtful at times, but remember you chose to love for better or for worse. Now may just be a time of worse. A boss may have unrealistic expectations or be at times difficult to work with, but when you accepted the job you accepted those risks as well. Your child might be mean and disrespectful, but when you chose to become a parent, you willingly invited another free-willed being into your home.

I think you see what I'm saying here. If we can willingly say to ourselves, "I chose this", we hold onto a perspective that gives us the ability to face the challenge with new strength. And rather than blaming, we are enabled to go to God and see His help. When we blame, we tend not to pray because the fault lies with someone else. Or we pray for them- that God will change them, change the weather, change our circumstances: we ask him to change everything except ourselves.When we look at our own choices, we can ask a gracious Father to give us the courage to face what needs to be faced with the kind of character He loves to give His children.

So when the magic of a marriage, a job, a task, or a trip to Disney World fades, look for an opportunity to embrace your role in choosing. Rather than blaming, and giving in to anger, find ways to surrender to God and invite His help into your situation. Say to yourself, "I chose this" and to God, "Now help me to see it through." And He will help you.

The rain will always fall, but you choose the kind of trip you will take through the storm.

Peace-

Nick

Tragedy in Boston

The events of this week from Boston have struck a chord in my heart. It is eery to see these images from a place I have been- to watch runners fall to the ground at the finish line- to watch medical personnel aiding the injured- hearing the screaming crowd- all of these things happened in 2004 when I ran the marathon. But it makes me sick to see all these same events connected to a bombing. I feel a kind of sickness that doesn't hit the stomach, but a little higher in the heart.

Maybe that's why today I keep thinking of the saying from Proverbs that "A hope deferred makes the heart sick." (Proverbs 13:12) There were so many painful hopes deferred yesterday. A local gal from our area turned the final corner onto Boylston Street- a scene I remember well- only to be forced to stop. For any marathoner, this turn towards the glory of the finish line is etched forever in your memory, especially at Boston. For her, the life-long dream would end there with the banners and ticking clock within site. Hope deferred. For others, they had gone to cheer on a friends or family member as they put on their final kick at the end of the race, only to end up running for their lives away from that place, never to see the loved one finish. Hope deferred. For still others, a loved one or friend who had come to cheer them on in the race of their life will never come home again. Hope deferred. Heart sick.

This complete Proverb says, "A hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." Many of us are watching these events unfold and are left with a deep longing in our chests. We long for a world where these events do not happen. We long for safety, peace and security. We long for a human experience marked by kindness and compassion, not anger and hate. But how will this longing be fulfilled?

In my understanding, I only know of one place where we find a tree of life- God's eternal heaven. And something about events like yesterday makes us long for that place. A place where hope is not deferred, but is fully experienced in the presence of God. Events like yesterday always remind me that we live in a hope-deferred kind of time, but that Jesus came to produce a longing-fulfilled kind of world. In Christ, we find the fulfillment of our longings as we experience the "right now among you" kingdom that Jesus inaugurated through is death and resurrection. Yet we still experience hope-deferred moments day after day.

So if, like me, you find yourself a bit heart sick these days, may it remind you we live in a broken world. A world that is not our home. But a new kingdom is breaking in, a kingdom of peace where longings are fulfilled. We live in place that is not yet all that God intended, and so He sent His Son. He sent Jesus to be our longing fulfilled and to lead us into life. May we cling tightly to him in the days to come.

Peace as you run this journey-

Nick

Is It Jesus Vs. Soccer?

I don't normally re-post other people's material on my blog, but every once in awhile I find it worthwhile. This author says in a very upfront manner some of the things I have felt about parents trying to raise their kids in faith amidst a sports culture. I am challenged and encouraged by these words as I look at what choices we will make with our four young kids. I hope you find them meaningful as well-

http://www.christianity.com/blogs/dr-james-emery-white/parents-sports-and-church.html

Parents, Sports and Church

Thursday, April 11, 2013
I am about to enter into the most volatile subject imaginable.  No, not abortion or same-sex marriage, not even immigration reform or gun control.
Those are tame.
I want to talk about parents, sports and the church.
How many of you already felt your defenses go up, blood pressure rise, and claws and fangs extend?
I’m kind of dumb, so I’m going to keep writing.
But I am smart enough to say a few things before I go any further:
*I believe that on the eighth day, God created ESPN.
*I played organized sports from grade school all the way through to college.
*All four of my children were involved in sports during their formative years, from basketball to football, swim team to gymnastics.  I even coached many years of basketball when my boys were on teams with the YMCA and AAU.
*I believe sports are a good and healthy investment for parents to make, even when it involves sacrifice to have your children involved.
*Finally, I don’t reduce following Christ to attending church.
Whew!  There now – have I covered all my bases?
So here’s the inevitable “but” you sense is coming…
According to a new study published in the Review of Religious Research, an examination of declining attendance at 16 congregations revealed that many pastors place the most blame on children’s sports activities, since both practices and competitions are increasingly “scheduled on Sunday mornings at the very time when many churches traditionally have provided religious education.”
I’ve seen the same thing.
I see parents letting almost every other extracurricular activity in their child’s life take precedent over investments designed to make a spiritual impression.  Meaning soccer, or baseball, or swim team gets first dibs on the calendar.
For example, our church has a periodic event called “Family Night.”  It’s designed for the entire family to attend together, and highlights a specific character trait through a program involving music, dance, skits, video and more.  Parents are then equipped to go further with that trait with their children in the home, as well as through our MecKidz program during the weekend services.
It’s one of the more popular events in the life of our church, and combined with our weekend MecKidz program for children birth-fifth grade, it reaches thousands of parents and their children and strategically serves parent’s efforts to build Christ-like character – not to mention a relationship with Christ Himself – into their child’s life.
Yet I’ve actually overheard parents say things like, “Yes, we’re going to do Family Night – we wouldn’t miss it for the world - but only until soccer starts.”  Or, “We’re doing MecKidz on weekends, but not once swim team starts.”
That’s a concern.  And it isn’t about our church, much less it’s attendance.  I’m talking parent to parent, dad to dad, pastor to people.
Think about what you’re saying.  In fact, say it out loud, in front of a mirror.  Listen to it.
“I will do spiritual things for my child’s sake until sports conflict, then sports win.” 
Do you mean it?  Really?  Is that how you want to prioritize things?
When our kids were younger, my wife Susan and I saw this one coming.  We wanted our kids in those events every bit as much as anyone else.  But with some of the sports, there kept being conflict after conflict.
So we decided to take a stand.
For every team, every league, we’d put the same thing down when we registered.  We would ensure that there was at least one weekend service our children could attend.  Back then, it was Sunday mornings (we’ve since added more days and service times).  Further, we let the coaches know, in advance, those select Friday evenings when “Family Night” would be offered and we wouldn’t be able to participate.
There was even a season in our church’s life when our boundaries included not only every Sunday morning, but every Wednesday night.  For us that was important, too.
But in all those years of parenting, involving four children, we never once had a kid penalized.  We never once had anyone kick us off a team.  We never once felt that we deprived our kids of anything substantive.
And even if we had, who cares.
That’s not important.
Their hearts were.
Their character was.
What they were gaining spiritually was paramount .
That’swhat mattered.
And they turned out fine – valedictorians and athletes, prestige college acceptances and good marriages – all the things that parents are so insecure about.  But more important, all four know Christ intimately (and are even in vocational Christian ministry).
I’ve seen too many parents make sports their priority as if that’s what it means to raise their children in a healthy and holistic way, only to see that child travel far from God during their high school or college years, or leave the faith altogether as a young adult.
They had field hockey, basketball, or swim team, but they didn’t seem to end up with much of Jesus.
Hear my heart:  it’s not about choosing between Jesus and sports.  At least, it doesn’t have to be.  But if it comes down to that choice, how exactly does soccer rank over your child’s eternity?  How is it we’ll spend half a day travelling to a volleyball tournament, but fail to protect an hour a week where they will learn about God?
Let’s just say I watch my sports scores carefully.
But I don’t see that one adding up to a win.
James Emery White

Sources
“The Main Reason for Declining Church Attendance: Children's Sports?,” Melissa Steffan, Christianity Today, April 8, 2013, read online.
“The Final Four, travel teams and empty pews: Research on sports and religion,” David Briggs, The Association of Religion Data Archives, April 3, 2013, read online.

Do You Smile When You Run?

Awhile back, I mentioned to someone that I was a runner. Sometimes, confessing this can feel like admitting to some kind of secret obsession or fetish, as non-runners tend to have a hard time understanding why anyone would like to run and choose to do so voluntarily. But I told this near-stranger that I loved to run. This fellow asked an interesting question back, "Do you smile when you run?" In his words, he said that every runner he had ever seen looked sad, angry, tired or a combination of all three.

A few days later, I was out on a normal run and for whatever reason, I was not feeling it that day. My legs were sluggish and my brain wanted to call it quits early. But I thought of this guy's question about smiling when I run, and I realized that, in that moment, I was living out his stereotype of the angry-tired-sad runner look.

So I made a decision. I decided that the next car that drove by I would greet as if it was my brother. My real brother lives in Wisconsin and it is highly unlikely that he would drive 2,000 miles to greet me on a run, so picturing my reaction to seeing him struck me as funny and a bit exorbitant. Due to this, the next car that drove by received a spontaneously wild wave of excitement from me that had to have left the driver wondering what on earth was wrong with that crazy runner.

I did the same thing to the next car. And the next. And the next. After 3 or 4 cars, I actually found that I was enjoying it. I was laughing at myself and laughing at the reactions and thoughts that must be going through the heads of the unsuspecting drivers. Do you know what else happened? I started to feel good about the run. What only moments before had been drudgery suddenly felt like a party on the move. All of this happened because I chose a different persepctive- I intentionally put my mind and my thoughts on something that brought life and energy.

There's a story kind of like this that occurs in the Bible. David, the man who would one day be king over all Israel, is in a bad place. His life is being threatened by King Saul. Assissins have come to his house and only narrowly missed him. Spears thrown from the hand of the king have pinned him to the wall. Plots are underway to end David's life. Because of this, he finds himself on the lam, running from the king and who knows how many others. He has no one with him, nothing for protection but an over-sized sword of Goliath, and he's forced to run into enemy territory. While there, he must pretend that he is crazy so as not to be killed but yet another hostile king.

During this whole story, David pens the words to Psalm 34;
     I will praise the Lord at all times.
       I will constantly speak his praises.
     I will boast only in the Lord;
       Let all who are helpless take heart.
     Come, let us exalt the Lord's greatness;
        Let us exalt His name together! (Vs. 1-3)
The irony of this Psalm is that none of the things David sings about have actually come to pass in his current situation. At the time of writing,, he is in a foreign land, being chased by Saul, and with no hope of a future kingdom on his mind. But these are the words he puts to a scroll. Why? Because he chose a perspective. Rather than the sad-weary-tired soldier look, he put his eyes on the Lord. He chose to focus not on his circumstances, but on the glory of God and the promise of His faithfulness.  And so I believe that these words were not empty wishes which created a false hope, but that these words were powerful reminders of greater truths about God.

So today, may I ask- where is your perspective? Are you looking at current circumstances in such a way that life and energy seem to be draining away step by step? Or are you consciously choosing to focus on the greater things of God and His purposes for you? Making that choice to look up could make all the difference in the world.

At the very least, it could make the run a little lighter. And puzzle a few drivers as well!

     Taste and see that the Lord is good.
        Oh the joys of those who take refuge in Him!  (Psalm 34:8)

May you journey in His joy-
Nick

Objects of Our Sanctification

Objects of our sanctification. What on earth does that mean?

Awhile back, my mentor suggested that God had allowed something into my life as an object of my sanctification- something that God was using to make me more like Jesus. In that case, it had been a relationship that was teaching me humility, patience and trust. Good things to learn, but usually only learned through trials and tough circumstances.

Lately, my wife and I have really been wrestling with some attitudes and behaviors of our 8-year old. She can be a great joy, and great pain, within any given 10-second window. One thing we have noticed is how well she does when we can focus just on her. She thrives under attention and one-on-one time of any kind. But placed in a situation- any situation- where she has to share or accommodate the needs and interests of others (such as a 5-year old sister or a 4-year old brother) and she has the tendency to flip out.

So the other day, I was thinking about this objects of sanctification idea and how it related to my 8-year old. We happened to be hanging out in my office together and I said to her, "Alyssa, I think you are an only child to whom God chose to give siblings in order to teach you how to share." She looked at me with excitement and replied, "Yeah, I told you I should be an only child!" Well, at least she had part of the message figured out.

But we went on to have a nice little daddy-daughter conversation about what I meant. That sometimes God uses things to help us learn how to be more like Him, even things we don't necessarily like. (No, I did not use the term "objects of sanctification" with my daughter) While I am not sure if she totally grasped this concept, it still has me thinking today. What are the things God continues to use in my life to shape me? Where could it be said of my life, "I was made to do this, but God also gave me that to help me learn"?

Some of my thoughts:
I was made to perform and be up front, but God gave me weaknesses to learn to trust Him. 
I was made to lead, but God allows doubt and fear so that I learn to listen for His voice.
I was made to accomplish, but God gives me relationships so I learn to slow down and put people ahead of tasks.

What are your thoughts? What objects of sanctification has God placed in your life?

May you see His shaping hand at work on your jouney-

Nick

Spring Training

Spring tends to be a season of preparation. If you practice Lent, you make intentional decisions to lay certain things down to make more room for God. You determine to pick up certain things in order to have a greater focus on Christ and His sacrifice. In doing this, you and I are communicating to our heart and our brain that the Presence of Christ in us matters and is worthy of our attention.

If I am honest, I am a long ways away from living in this constant awareness of His Presence. There is an ideal I have of what this unbroken communion with Jesus would be like, and most days I am nowhere close! I can either beat myself up about this lack of faith and focus, or I can determine to prepare myself to live in this way. I begin to practice. I train.

You may find yourself in a season of preparation as well. Preparing to get married, preparing to have kids, preparing for college, preparing for a new job- all of these require a certain way of life. As a church, we are also in a season of preparation in many ways- preparing for Easter, preparing to hire staff, preparing to plant a church. In seasons like this, what parameters should guide our behaviors? I would offer these four principles:

1. Do the hard work now so you can enjoy less work later.

I think of this every spring with my garden when I am busy tearing out unwanted growth, trimming back bushes, and tiling up cold, hard soil. The more work I am willing to engage in now, the better the summer will be. If I make the effort to ready the soil of my garden, I can spend far less time pulling weeds in the summer. I have to remind myself of this, or else the work just feels like drudgery.

Life works this way. There are seasons in which we must invest heavily in something so that it has the freedom to grow and flourish. You may be putting an extra focus on your walk with Christ in these weeks- this will lead to a stronger friendship with Him. You may be pouring countless hours into young children- this will lead (hopefully!) to better adjusted adults who can contribute in the world. You may be struggling mightily to change a behavior or addiction- this will lead to a better, freer way of life. Be willing to engage in the hard work now because life will flourish when you do.

2. Endure unpleasant things because better days are coming.

When I head out to run on a cold, miserable February or March day, I rarely appreciate the weather. I don’t like running in the rain, and I really don’t like running in the wind. If, however, I let these elements stop me, I have just eliminated 6 months from the running calendar! Enduring some unpleasant runs in the early spring gives me the ability to enjoy running on beautiful summer evenings and in crisp autumn races.

Your season of preparation may be causing you to face or experience many unpleasant things. These adverse conditions may leave you wanting to quit. Don’t do it! Making these sacrifices now will pay off. The author of Hebrews said, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11) You are training yourself to be able to receive a good harvest!

3. Remember that unseen, little things usually become visible big things.

Every spring, the Major League Baseball season begins almost unnoticed by most of us in the Pacific Northwest. The Seattle Mariners open practice usually around the third week of February down in Arizona. Day upon day, they will take to the field in the early morning hours and scoop ground balls, shag pop-flies, and take swings in the batting cage. Few fans attend these workouts. Why? Because they are BORING. But come April, 50,000 people will fill SafeCo field for opening day. On that day, a thousand little things done by the players will be on display in a big way.

So is the case for all of us. We may be engaging in practices that seem small in the scope of life, and go unnoticed by almost everyone else. We get up early to pray. We read the Bible with our children. We skip that extra snack or desert. We practice kindness when we could have been rude. Choice after choice, we are creating a life that will one day be on display for all to see. Don’t let the hidden nature of these acts convince you they are unimportant. They mean everything in the end!

4. This is a season; and season’s change.

A final principle to keep before you is that season’s change. You can’t plant seeds all year-round. (Ok, I’m sure there are some that you can, but you know what I mean.) You have a window of time to plant your garden or your flowers and then the growing season ends.

Whatever changes you are making right now will not be your focus forever. They shouldn’t be. The kids will grow, the relationship will change, the habit will become a routine- life has a way of changing. So focus on this as a season. Bring intensity and discipline to this season because you know it won’t last forever. Stagnation- or not changing- is what creates despair and causes us to quit. Viewing your current commitment as a season may give you the grace and strength you need to see it through. And God will be with you.

So, may all our seasons of preparation become the fertile ground leading to new, and greater, life in Christ.Journey on!

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: God has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” Ecclesiastes 3:1, 10

Go Kill Something

At East Hills, we have been challenging one another to read through the entire Bible chronologically in one year. This all sounds great until you realize that it takes more than a month to get through the law portion of Scripture. As an encouragement to folks, and for perspective, I offered this post for some perspective on all the gory, sacrificial details of Genesis-Deuteronomy.

"As we continue to wind our way through the first five books of the Bible, one of the things we can't help but stop and ask is, "why are there so many laws in these books?" And, "why are they in the Bible?" For most of us, I think we feel like there is little that we can gain today from studying them, and we never hear them preached on, if not for more than a passing reference here and there. This blog is an attempt at helping all of us to understand the place these laws have in our faith today.

If you think about it, these first five books were the only Bible the Israelites had for quite some time. In fact, for several thousand years, when Jews would ask the question, "How do we live in a way that is pleasing to God?" these books- Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy- were their answer. Their ONLY answer.

So imagine if you had been alive many, many years ago before the Bible came to be the Bible. You had no written record of what pleased God and what didn't. One day, God came along to you and said, "Person, if you sin, you should bring me a sacrifice!" With no other reference point, you are going to have many, many questions. Such as, "what is sinful and what isn't? What kind of sacrifice? Do all sins require the same sacrifice? When do I bring the sacrifice? Where do I bring it? Do I sacrifice it myself, or does someone else do that? What does it mean to sacrifice something to begin with? Burn it? Kill it? Eat it?" All of these questions and many like them would be logical, and expected responses to God's command.

In light of this, the length and specificity of all these books starts to make a lot more sense! I have been told that even in the 1st century at the time of Jesus, Jewish school boys were still required to memorize the entirety of these books in school. Crazy as that may sound, it actually makes a lot of sense when we remember that these rules were their primary link to pleasing God.

If reading all of these laws and commands does one thing for us, it ought to make us eternally grateful for the work of Jesus Christ. His sacrifice has ended the system of sacrifice (Hebrews 10) and made righteous forever all who trust in His name. So as you read about bulls and goats one more time, pause and thank Jesus for coming on your behalf.

So while Jesus made our approach to God much simpler, he actually made the requirements infinitely more challenging! When you think about it, Jesus summarized thousands of laws with two: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Very simple, but very, very hard to do. It would actually be much easier for us to follow the sacrificial system than to live out the laws of love in every single thing we do.

This is the amazing conundrum of Jesus. He raised the bar of God's righteous standard even higher than the Old Testament law, but he lowered the bar of acceptance. In the past, the people had to obey all the commands in order to be acceptable. Jesus, however, made everyone acceptable through His blood. Why? Because God knew that when people understood they were loved and accepted by God already, they would be empowered to go and live out his law of love.

We can never hope to love God and others perfectly. But thanks to the amazing love and grace of Jesus Christ, we have the freedom to try, knowing that our acceptance before God isn't contingent on how well we obey His law. How cool is that?

So go for it. Go and love God and love others with all that you have. And when you realize you've come up short, which you always will, fall back into the amazing grace of Jesus Christ. And then go out and love some more."

May your journey through Scripture give you a deeper love for Jesus than ever before!

 Nick

The Top Ten Things That Really Bug Me About East Hills

You know, sometimes being involved in a church community can be really annoying. Here are the top 10 things that really bug me about our church:
10. At our weekend services, there is never enough time to say hi to all the people I want to talk to, and those I do talk to are so happy and energetic that they keep me talking too long.
9. People remember things about me, like my birthday and my love of strong coffee (and then make jokes about it.)
8. People keep inviting their friends to come and check out our church, causing problems with parking, kid's spaces, and seating.
7. Even when I preach a message that I feel was poor, they insist on telling me that God used it and spoke really amazing stuff through me.
6. Every time I confess a fault, sin or a weakness, they thank me. They actually tell me I'm a better leader for being real.
5. When I challenge people directly and feel like maybe I've been a little too personal or confronting, they thank me for that, too. They say weird things like, "I really needed to hear that."
4. When we make appeals to give generously to other ministries outside the church, they give way too much to those groups.
3. They are so open to change and new ideas. It's hard to feel like I have enough of them! Or they say annoying things like, "I've just been waiting and praying for us to do something like this!"
2. They are so agreeable. I have to work really hard just to get a single nay vote for anything we ever do.
1. They want to know how I'm doing...really. They aren't satisfied to just hear "I'm good" and move on. They actually want to talk about my family, my time, and my soul.

If you are part of the EHA community, I hope you appreciate this tongue-in-cheek recognition as much as I appreciate you. If you are reading this and not part of our community, my hope and prayer is that you find people on the faith journey that will treat you like this- that will be Christ to you.

May your journey be filled with such annoying people-

Nick

The Conundrum of Lent

Once again this year, we have decided as a church community to observe the season of Lent. Without fail, this announcement will elicit a few raised eye-brows from the crowd, and a few more questions about why we do this. Why observe Lent when we aren't a formal, traditional church? Why do Lent if we're not Catholic? Why do Lent and put ourselves under a kind of "bondage" when we are free in Christ?

For many of us, however, we have found the experience of Lent to have an odd appeal to us, and in this post I want to try and explain why.
In Hebrews 11:25, 26 we read,
Moses chose to share the oppression of God's people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward.

While living in Egypt as a young man, Moses had the opportunity to choose a life of comfort, riches and ease. He could have lived out his days in the Pharaoh's palace and enjoyed the benefits of that life. Moses, however, chose differently. He realized that he was not at home in Egypt- that his real people and his real purpose lay somewhere else. So he intentionally did some very difficult things. He identified with the slaves. He followed the leading of God's Spirit. He stared down the Pharaoh and he took a million people through the Red Sea. Why? Because in his heart he believed in a better land, a better place, where God was leading him and the people. Sacrifices and hardship would be worth the journey. Giving up the treasures of Egypt would be a small sacrifice in comparison to living fully alive as the people of God.

In many ways, I see us facing the same choice. In a metaphorical way, we live in the palace of Egypt- our modern life offers us a continual feast of self-satisfying pursuits and possessions. We have the choice to live out our days here, or we can choose as Moses did to sacrifice for a better land.

I don't know about you, but the "treasures of Egypt" have a way of gripping my mind, and eventually my heart. Things that I once knew nothing about have become essentials in my day-to-day living- coffee, email, Kindle, Words with Friends, ESPN- the list could go on and on. As I hold these treasures in my hand, I realize that none of them are bad or sinful in and of themselves. They are tools and objects. But at the same time, I also realize that my hands, and my life, can be pretty full. Lent is an opportunity to willingly lay some of these things down for a time so that I might come before God with empty hands. Lent is a time to say, "God, show me how to follow you into a better land. This Egypt is not my home- I want to belong to your people."

So, may I encourage you to enter willingly into a time of self-denial on some level? We might be tempted to see this as a yoke of slavery- doing without something we love- but we need to see that it is a bold attempt to throw off true slavery. You see, the treasures of Egypt will always keep us bound to Egypt, and this kind of slavery keeps us from belonging fully to God. Sure, on a spiritual level we are fully His already, but on a practical level we know this is not our full experience. We are captive to our possessions and our pursuits. What would it look like to throw off these captors and to journey with God into the wilderness of transformation? That is the purpose of Lent.

What will you choose?
If you know what you are laying down for Lent, post it below!

May you know that God longs to lead you on a journey into His great reward-
Nick

Why So Much Evil?

Last week, of all weeks, I made a presentation to an apologetics class on the Problem of Evil. If God is so good and so powerful, then why is there so much evil? It would be just two days later that the horrific school shooting in Connecticut would occur.

So, while these thoughts were not collected as an answer to the school shooting, they might give us some perspective on evil in general and where God stands in all of this. I'm offering this, not as a response to the tragedy in Newtown, but as some helpful ideas to wrestle with what see going on around us.

William Hasker has said, "For at least a century and a half, the existence and prevalence of evil in the world has been generally recognized as the single most formidable obstacle to theistic belief." In other words, more people might believe in a good and just God if not for all the evil they see going on around them. I give these 5 potential answers for the problem of evil as a way in which we might reconcile the presence of evil with the reality of a loving God.

1. The Experiential Factor
One important question to ask it, "How do I define evil?" We live in a day and age where whatever I experience or believe is the most true thing that exists. This is true also of what we would call evil. We consider evil anything that is bad, harmful, or damaging to others. Yet, what one culture considers evil may be considered normal in another culture a hundred years later. The point is, sometimes, in complaining about evil, we are merely saying that God isn't running the world the way we think He should from our perspective.

Scripture defines evil not as something that is bad or wrong, but as anything that is contrary to the will and nature of God. Take for example Adam and Eve in the garden- eating an apple wasn't bad, hurtful, or damaging, BUT it was contrary to the voice of God.

So, the first possible answer to the problem of evil is to make sure that we define evil appropriately, based on something higher than our own personal experience.  

2.  The Evidence of Creation

 The problem of evil is based on the idea that a good and loving God would make a perfect world. But consider the marks of God’s creation before Adam and Eve sinned. (From Douglas Hall)

-Loneliness- “it is not good for man to be alone.”
-Limits- we are limited in existence, power and intelligence.
-Temptation- an unholy desire to exceed limits and become gods
-Anxiety- in Eve, a fear that she didn’t have everything she needed for life

Couched in every one of these is the prospect for suffering. Suffering which God allowed for.

But we would all agree that these “evils” exist for our own benefit- loneliness that we might draw near to others, limits that we might stay safe and value life, temptation in that we are free to exercise free will, and anxiety which teaches dependence on God.

An all loving and all good God created this way! Struggle is part of creating life- how we learn to become fully human! And in this struggle, there will pain, and perhaps even things we would describe as evil.

The second possible answer to the problem of evil is seeing the evidence of creation.

3. The Existence of Good

 Ho w do you know something is good? No one argues that we should do away with good. No one suggests we should stop being kind, or loving or gracious. But how would we recognize any of these things without the potential for evil?

You have heard how scientifically, “Dark” and “Cold” do not exist.

-        Darkness is only the measure of the absence of light

-        Coldness is only the measure of the absence of heat

-        We know dark and cold experientially but only through these do we also experience the goodness of light and heat.

A third possible answer to the problem of evil is recognizing at as the absence of good. We experience evil, but only because we also know what is good.

4. The Elevation of Free Will

Most of the arguments of evil I hear relate to gratuitous acts of violence or unjust suffering.

“Why did God allow Hitler to live?”

“Why didn’t God stop the drunk driver before he drank?”

“Why didn’t God stop _________________.”

So, in other words, we want God to step in and disrupt human free will when we think its obvious that He should do so. We see certain times and decisions that God should make, and the fact that He doesn’t causes us to doubt his existence.

Have you ever hurt someone? Maybe you shouldn’t have been born! Maybe God should have stopped you.

"But I’ve done lots of good!" we say. "I deserve to live."

So now again, WE are the standard of what God should do.

But God has prized and valued our free will- our ability to choose Him or reject Him, to choose love or to choose hate, to choose peace or to choose evil- so much that He treats us all the same. He soveriegnly chooses to keep his hands off.

  

I heard a speaker telling his story, and he was crying out to God, “God, why didn’t you keep me from this abusive person?” And he heard God say, “You can’t see how much I kept off you.” We only see what God does allow. Does that mean it’s good? No necessarily. 

If anything, gratuitous and unjust displays evil ought to cause us to redouble our efforts to preach the Kingdom and spread the Love of Christ, so that more and more people will freely choose to follow Him and surrender to his rule. Which by the way, how significant is it when we choose to love Him? In light of the freedom God allows for each one of us to choose evil, how awesome is it that we can actually find Him?

The fourth possible answer to the problem of evil is seeing how highly God values our freedom- our freedom to choose Him. God refused to create obedient little robots.

5. The Example of the Cross

 In John 1:18 we read, "No one has ever seen God, but the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.”

Never has God been more clearly revealed than on the cross. If we want to know how God feels about evil, the cross of Jesus is the clearest answer.  He permitted this evil to happen, but He gave his very life to overcome the evil that was at work. Honestly, for me faith falls apart without the cross. But in the cross, I see God's answer to the problem of evil. 

The fifth possible answer to the problem of evil is to point to the cross of Jesus Christ and say, “That’s how God feels about evil.”

May these potential answers help you to process the evil that you encounter on your journey.

And may you know His peace-

Nick