Resources for Dealing with Suffering
As I prefaced in my message last weekend, the topic of suffering and pain is too massive to cover in a single teaching. I recognize, as well, that even the subject of suffering can be a painful one. Though all people generally suffer, no one suffers in general. That is to say, most of us are acutely aware of exactly what causes pain in our lives. Discussion of the subject of pain in general can bring up very specific hurts.
As we deal with pain in our lives, remember that God is gracious in walking with us through the pain, despite our desire to circumvent it. And although in seasons of suffering we often feel alone and that no one hurts as badly as we do, this simply (and gloriously) is not true. Jesus willingly suffered the greatest pain history will ever know – it is no wonder He cried from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46) before committing His spirit into the hands of a faithful Father. Many of us have cried the same cry from our crosses, but we too must follow His lead and commit our spirits into those same hands.
Thank God that “we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses… Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb. 4:15,16) Jesus has felt our pain and more, and He is with us always.
I believe much of suffering is a battle for belief. Below are some resources I hope will help you and help you to help others in seasons of suffering. Again, there are no formulas for dealing with suffering – but my hope is that as you develop your theology on this topic, your faith, hope and trust in Jesus would be strengthened. Each of these books is available in the RBC bookstore – stop by and pick up a copy or two sometime.
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Does Grace Grow Best in Winter? by Ligon Duncan
“The problem with the way many Christians treat suffering is that they simply attempt to put a happy face on trials. A little personal suffering, however, goes a long way in revealing how vacuous careless platitudes can be. The issue of suffering is not to be treated in a cold and pedantic manner. Suffering is real and not something to be handled several steps removed. Yet if we address suffering merely subjectively, without focusing on the objective truths of the Bible, then there is all the reason in the world to despair.”
It’s Not Fair by Wayne A. Mack
“If we are being honest, we will have to admit that every one of us, in a hundred different ways and for a thousand different reasons, has been guilty of murmuring “It’s not fair!” when things don’t go as we would like them to. So how do we respond when we, or others who come to us for counsel, are in such a state of despair? In a simple, compassionate, and eminently biblical way, Wayne Mack drives home the point that our only pathway to hope, when times are tough, is in apprehending the character of the just and sovereign God as he has revealed himself in the scriptures.”
The Grand Weaver by Ravi Zacharias
“How differently would we live if we believed that every dimension of our lives – from the happy to the tragic to the mundane – were part of a beautiful and purposeful design in which no thread were wrongly woven? As Christians, we believe that great events such as a death or a birth are guided by the hand of God. Yet we drift into feeling that our daily lives are the product of our own efforts. This book brims with penetrating stories and insights that show us otherwise. Our backgrounds, our disappointments, our triumphs, and our beliefs are all part of the intentional and perfect work of the Grand Weaver.”
Suffering: Eternity Makes a Difference by Paul David Tripp
“How hard it is to see God’s goodness in the face of tragedy and suffering! Feeling abandoned, we cry out to him, question him, turn away from him, perhaps even curse him. It may seem like he’s cheated us – we’ve done our part following him, but he’s let us down. Hurting people must see their circumstances from an eternal perspective.”
How Long, O Lord? by D.A. Carson
“This clear and accessible treatment of key biblical themes related to human suffering and evil is written by one of the most respected evangelical biblical scholars alive today. Carson brings together a close, careful exposition of key biblical passages with helpful pastoral applications.”
Suffering & the Sovereignty of God
“In the last few years, 9/11, a tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, and many other tragedies have shown us that the vision of God in today’s churches in relation to evil and suffering is often frivolous. Against the overwhelming weight and seriousness of the Bible, many Christians are choosing to become more shallow, more entertainment-oriented, and therefore irrelevant in the face of massive suffering. In Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, contributors John Piper, Joni Eareckson Tada, Steve Saint, Carl Ellis, David Powlison, Dustin Shramek, and Mark Talbot explore the many categories of God’s sovereignty as evidenced in his Word. They urge you to look to Christ, even in suffering, to find the greatest confidence, deepest comfort, and sweetest fellowship you have ever known.”
VIDEO: Relo Update & New Service Times
Starting September 12, we will be adding a third service here at Reston Bible Church. New service times will be 8:15am, 10:00am, and 11:45am. If you have attended RBC since our move to Dulles, you know we are experiencing church growth. We believe healthy things grow, and we praise God for His blessings. The challenges we are facing in these “growing pains” are the kind of challenges many churches dream of having. In the video above, Pastor Ed Nalle revisits several of the major goals we had in relocating to this new campus and gives thanks to God for the blessings He has given us. He also outlines the plan for adding a third service, offers ways we can help alleviate parking congestion, and encourages us to engage in worshipful service here at RBC.
Our Youth Ministries – Jr. High (BreakThru) & Sr. High (Gap) – will meet 9:45 – 11:10am.
The Bereans Adult Bible Fellowship will meet at 10:00am in Room 250 (upstairs in the main building).
The Young Adults gathering LINK will meet at 11:30am in Room 240 (upstairs, main building).
QUEST children’s church and nursery programs will continue to be available during all three services. Different content will be offered for those children who are there for two blocks.
For general information on our weekend services, click here.
The Practice and Pursuit of Hospitality
9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
~ Romans 12:9-13
In Romans 9:13, God instructs us through the words of the apostle Paul to practice hospitality. It is worth noting that Scripture is not tossing out a suggestion here. “Consider practicing hospitality when it is convenient or if you feel you might be particularly gifted in that area.” No. Practice hospitality. Paul’s word choice here is specific. He is not saying “practice” in the sense of “try this out to see if you’re any good at it” but rather “do this over and over and over so often that you get good at it.” Therefore, we are commanded to eagerly pursue, seek, and run after hospitality. Furthermore, Paul indicates from verse nine that the pursuit of hospitality is a fruit of sincere love.
In 1 Peter 4:8-9, Peter, like Paul frames hospitality in the context of a loving command:
8Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
It would stand to reason that the call to pursue hospitality is not merely a call to practice a certain set of actions (thought it is not less than this), but a call to be a certain type of person. You know this type of person immediately when you encounter them. They love sincerely and deeply; they are hospitable with no strings attached. They are the type of person who is willing to undergo personal sacrifice for the glory of God and for the good of His people. In God’s call to practice and pursue hospitality, this is the type of person He is asking us to be.
Hospitality by its nature is inconvenient, and the practice of hospitality requires some level of personal sacrifice. There have been many times when my family and I have been the recipients of others’ hospitality. I remember a specific time earlier this year when some friends invited us to their house for brunch. It was evident that an amount of foresight and preparation had gone into our being there. Their house was clean, a meal had been prepared, and their demeanor and interactions with us were warm and engaging. They broke from their normal routines, bought extra food and invested extra time and effort to invite us into their home, though we had no inherent right to be there. The command to pursue hospitality is a command to be that type of person, willing to sacrifice, not grumbling at the inconvenience or resentful at whatever personal cost has to be made to pursue someone through hospitality.
It is not difficult to see how hospitality is intrinsic to the gospel of Jesus Christ. A great price has been paid by a gracious Host to invite many in to a place we have no inherent right to be. We are here by loving and gracious invitation. If we understand the gospel, hospitality is simply a natural overflow of Jesus’ grace in our life to others’. Only through Him can we be the type of person God calls to be.
During our relocation process, I have been using and thinking about the phrase “our new church home” to refer to our new facility here in Dulles, VA. “Home” has certain implications for most; for me, home is an intersection of duty and delight. There is duty in that my home requires constant maintenance and upkeep, and there is delight in extending the benefits of my home with others – family, friends or otherwise. Particularly in this age of visual learners, the practice of hospitality is a poignant and tangible reminder of God’s gracious hospitality though Christ. Hospitality should be a hallmark of our homes and our church. God grants us the grace to pursue this virtue through Christ, and to steward this well, we must find that sweet spot where duty and delight intersect – obeying the command to practice hospitality, but delighting in it because it glorifies Him as our greatest treasure.
Pray that God would mature and bless our families and our church as we seek to reflect the glory of the gospel of Christ through the practice and pursuit of hospitality.
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Let me also offer a practical & specific next step for you: consider joining our Host Team here at RBC. The Host Team is comprised of volunteers who serve during weekend services in various capacities. This team is an incredibly important part of church life at RBC and is the first point of contact for many guests and our own congregation. We currently desire to raise up over 100 men and women to serve as ushers and parking lot attendants during our Sunday services. You can find more information here: www.restonbible.org/resources/volunteer
VIDEO: RBC Men’s Retreat 2010
Where and in whom do you find your identity? Jobs, family, friends? Join us September 17-19, 2010 at the Reston Bible Church Men’s Retreat. John Lynch, the teaching pastor at Open Door Fellowship in Phoenix, AZ, joins us this year as our keynote speaker. More information and online registration can be found at www.restonbible.org/identity
VIDEO: Retrospective
This slideshow contains photos of construction on the original Reston Bible Church facility in 1983-84. This clip was shown as part of our final service in this building on August 1, 2010.
VIDEO: Fearfully & Wonderfully Made: Joe & Heidi
Joe and Heidi share the story of their struggle with infertility as part of our teaching series called Fearfully & Wonderfully Made.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. -Psalm 139:15-16
A Story from Conversations
I love hearing stories of how God is at work in His church. Such stories remind me that it is normative for Jesus to be active in the lives and hearts of His people, and they remind me of the greater context in which we “do” church.
If you’ve been around RBC much at all, you already know that each year for the past six years we have hosted a stage production called Conversations the week before Easter. Through hospitality, music, real life stories, and dramatic vignettes, we seek to communicate the power of the Gospel of Jesus in a loving, practical and relevant way. There are many stories that can be shared about how Christ has used Conversations as a means to reach hearts for His glory, and I wanted to take time to share one with you in the form of an email that one of our staff received after this year’s production:
Thanks so much for your emails and for the personal card and gift in the mail. I really appreciate you reaching out, and have been meaning to write back to you for a while because I wanted to share an encouraging story with you. I hope that you will share this with others who may also be encouraged.
I have been looking for a new church recently, and Ali has recently joined me in my search over the last month or so. Ali has a mixed-faith background and described herself to me as a “seeker” when I broached the subject when we first became friends (just a few months ago). We came to visit RBC on Palm Sunday, and heard about Conversations. God has most certainly been pursuing Ali through various circumstances that have come together in just the right timing.
Although I consider myself a strong Christian, the last two years have been the toughest of my life. My faith and my motivation for evangelism has waned lower than ever. However, despite my recent brokenness and struggles, God used RBC and me to draw Ali to himself. When we attended Conversations that Tuesday night, we were both incredibly impressed and moved to tears. Afterward, I invited Ali in to chat, and I had the privilege of leading her in a prayer to give her life to Christ, just before Easter. I wanted to share this with you because I know that those involved in Conversations will be greatly encouraged to know that they were a key role in Ali’s decision. Conversations also greatly encouraged and softened my somewhat hardened heart – praise God!
Ali and I are signed up for the Starting Point class that begins this coming Sunday, and she is eagerly reading her bible daily, always excited to pray and worship and attend church. I not only praise God for bringing Ali into an eternal relationship with Him, but also the incredible encouragement she is to me!
Thanks again for the warm welcome to RBC.
For His Glory,
Kristin
While church productions and programs come and go, the work of Jesus remains steadfast and strong and will endure for eternity. What a humbling thought that He would use so small a thing as a stage production to do a great and lasting work in the hearts of those who saw and heard what Jesus has done in the lives of others. Be encouraged – God is at work in His church.
Have a story to tell from your experience at Conversations this year? I’d love to hear about it.
VIDEO: The Road Less Traveled
To register for the 2010 RBC Marriage Conference featuring Paul Goodnight (May 7-8, 2010), go to www.restonbible.org/marriage.
Fearfully & Wonderfully Made
People of the Spirit
Is it just me, or is there a certain elusiveness to that third member of the Trinity? You know the one. Father, Son and… who? Ah, yes. Holy Spirit. While I can perceive (faintly, dimly) of the awesomeness of God the Father through the majestic revelation of Jesus the Son, I often feel like I draw a mental blank in relating to the Spirit. My brain knows the theology of this third co-equal, co-eternal Person, but do I really know? You know?
About six years ago, I was handed the keys to our Young Adults ministry here at RBC. As a young, nervous wannabe pastor, I thought an appropriate first teaching series would be a boot-camp style basics of Christianity. The week before Halloween it just so happened that the topic was the Holy Spirit, and I cleverly titled my message “Ghost Story” – which turned out to be a rather embarrassing foreshadowing of my own shallow grasp of the Holy Spirit. About halfway through my message, I noticed that I kept referring to the Holy Spirit as “it” rather than “He.” Convicting? Believe it. After publicly repenting several times in the middle of my sermon, it’s not a mistake I’ve (knowingly) made since – but it did reveal something that has stuck with me: The Holy Spirit makes me nervous. I might go as far to say that I’m a even a little afraid of Him. Continue reading