The Good News is of course that Jesus’ death and resurrection has launched a new era in history where we have an alternative to living only in the earthly world. We can choose to live and work for the Kingdom of God, which is this world ONLY BETTER! When we repent and join the flock, we are citizens of heaven, eternal employees of God’s “Earth Restoration Project”. As part of our welcome package, our sin debt is completely paid for by Jesus. We can forget about our past mistakes and move forward with our new assignments. I will write more about our benefits package later.
Part of our new assignment is to love our enemies, forgive those who have hurt us, and put God’s and others needs before our own needs. That’s not the bad news. The bad news, the fine print, the part that puts a giant pit in our stomach like being jerked awake at boot camp to a large man screaming in our face, making us feel like we have made a terrible mistake, is that we have to do our Kingdom work without fear, negativity, bitterness, and any of our worldly coping mechanisms like sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll. Some of us have to give up our family and friends. We need to be willing to be mocked by society. Some of us are unfortunate enough to have to go into battle, willing to die for our Kingdom.
I am here to admit to the world that there have been times that I felt drafted. I have been discouraged as a Christian. I have felt hopeless and wanted to quit. I have been confused and frustrated, even in seminary. You are not alone. It is ok to admit it to me even if you are afraid to mention it to your Bible study partners for fear that they will judge you. You’re right, Christians can be so “judgy”. Find some authentic Christians who are earnestly seeking God. We can’t walk God’s walk by ourselves.
Do not be afraid. We all take this journey, one step at a time. Keep going. God loves you and he will not let you fail. We need to picture ourselves a toddlers learning to walk. We need to trust our loving heavenly Father. He will be with us, encouraging us to take each step. If we trip, he will pick us up. So how exactly do we learn to trust God? My first step was to believe there is a God. Read my post “Tend My Sheep”.
