Tuesday, May 24, 2016

The struggles of the Christian Servant



Then he said to them all:
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves 
and take up their cross daily and follow me." 
(Luke 9:23)

This I write simply to express my thoughts and observations in the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ not to generalize but may give a picture to some of our personal and daily struggles. By this, it is my prayer that other Christians be informed of such struggles and perhaps reflect on what may be our responsibility towards others, specially our fellow laborers in the Lord. For sometimes, we think we already know and we’ve heard of it but in effect we do not care. We do not care for the reason that it is in our nature, it is in our flesh / carnality.

Nevertheless, God works in mysterious ways and that He works in the hearts of people, whether the person is His’ or not His child. All throughout in God’s written Word, God showed how He works in all for our good. Remember Pharaoh, how God hardened his heart? Or, Joseph’s brother who meant evil toward Joseph but God meant it for good? Or even the kings in power, unknown if they are God’s people or not, like King Nebuchadnezzar, King Darius or King Cyrus yet God has worked in their lives. These are just proofs that God is at work in good or even in bad circumstances.

But the question perhaps arises on this time, after 2000 years after Christ has ascended to heaven and awaiting for His return, “Is God at work in the struggles of His servants?” Most likely Christians know already the answer to this question. And the direct answer is “yes”! But reality / circumstances of Christians often involves doubts for the reason that Christians are not “omnipotent” or “omniscient”. Furthermore, Christians daily suffer and face struggles in life even in the midst of our service to God. Human logic will often kick-in and ask the question “Why do I suffer and struggle when I am serving God?” These question often pops up I believe when we are at a need. I would have to go in a personal example for this because I or people close to me indeed face these circumstances.

My father is currently a local missionary and a church planter. Right now, I assist him in the ministry and get to learn how he handles the ministry at the same time see how God works through his life. For almost 5 or 6 years, I’m amazed that even in his old age, now 62 going 63 on June 2, 2016, God is still using him. But then, I also saw his “thorn in the flesh” or his “evil days” (Ecclesiastes 12:1) become a struggle. Seeing also that we are at a disadvantage in terms of finances, not that I neglect God’s provision, but knowing that what I earn and my father’s allowance is not enough to really provide for the needs in the ministry. It may provide our needs on a personal basis, but the ministry is also costly. We handle almost three (3) outreaches and sometimes there are people from different places who desire we also minister to them. Not sure why but perhaps because my father relates so much with our native / indigenous people. Understanding and knowing the culture and traditions, my father most likely can understand how our fellow natives think or behave. I on the other hand, do not have abundant knowledge of those since I grew up under his Christian home, whereas my father grew up in a pagan home. He was the first Christian and to experience the hardship of being the first Christian in a home. We and our other relatives have become the recipient of God’s blessings because of my father standing firm of his faith and much more extending to others, friends or strangers, through his evangelistic ministries.

Now? Even with my father’s experiences how God sustained him, even at times he failed and fall short, still we are hard-up in learning in trusting God. We continually are in the battle of faith. Battle of faith whether God really provides our financial needs or will God provide grace for us to go through it. For quite a long time, my father is suffering from a diminishing bone at his back (don’t know what it is called, I can only describe it) and just recently he is placed in a situation of hiking and take part of tiresome activities like working (not the main worker though, just supervising) to build chapel buildings and driving. With not enough financial allowance, we are hard up in providing for his medications. Because the doctor’s recommendation includes surgery and I think it’s even a very dangerous one since it involves the spinal column. Added to this, are our borrowed funds for the maintenance of our car which is used for the ministry. Transportation is mainly needed in our ministries as we go to different places and the vehicles we use suffer at some point. These are our current struggles and as I’ve previously said that what I earn and my father’s allowance isn’t enough, a reason why we had to solicit and ask from others for financial aid and assistance. It is indeed a blessing seeing how God provides through people who desire to help and partner with us, but sometimes makes me personally feel as though we are beggars or like Apostle Paul would term as a “burden”. That is why Apostle Paul himself had worked as a tentmaker to provide for his needs and need not for churches to help him financially. Here is why at times I ask, “How does God really provide our needs?” 

Another struggle I observe is not mine but for those believers who have unbelieving parents. This is the most common struggle for the first or only believer of Christ within a family, which I believe to be of greater struggle. A struggle I’m sure my father has an idea and has surely been familiar with. Sadly, there are those people whom I know who are still in this kind of struggle. Some still hanging, some I’m unsure. And, I understand, it’s never easy. I get to hear or listen to our brethren and their experiences of ridicule or mockery or oppositions from their love ones, specially their unbelieving parents. And it is sad that many can’t handle the pressure or can’t be victorious over these experiences of discouragements. And it is sadder that churches don’t even know how to deal or even help the brethren in such circumstances. As a result, they simply fade away and the church doesn’t even notice. Sometime I, myself, don’t notice. Though we have our personal struggles, it doesn’t give us excuse to forget our responsibilities as members of the church. This is where I ask myself, “What can I do?” Some would joke, “We indeed have many spiritual gifts and most have the gift of discouragement.” Well, it’s not really a good joke but it pictures the reality of churches these days. Those who have the gift of encouragement are rarely found or even known to be extinct. As a result, we lose fellow laborers of the Lord in the harvest field.

Well, these are just two of the common struggles I know of. It is somewhat faith-disturbing but as I’ve learned, these are also times of opportunity in strengthening our faith. Though poses also a possible faith-deterioration which depends solely in the character of who we really are, a real and genuine follower of Christ or as God’s Word describes it as bastard / not really God’s child.

In the end, as a Christian, we always have to remind ourselves of God’s love displayed on the cross - the love that resulted in laying one’s life, Jesus’ life, for me and you. Though in reality, we so easily forget and forget to magnify that great love that has caused and resulted in our redemption. We forget the suffering, anguish and pain Christ had to suffer. We forget that we were God’s enemies yet even when we were His enemies, Christ died for us. Oh how, I pray we will never ever forget, that Love of God that caused the blood of the Lamb of God to be spilt. But then as the song says:

Lest I forget Gethsemane; Lest I forget Thine agony;
Lest I forget Thy love for me, Lead me to Calvary.

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