On February 9 of this year, my colleague Becca Lower wrote a VIP piece titled “Pray for the President and Our Nation.” The response, at least in the comments area, was strongly negative. Apparently, for many the idea of praying for Joe Biden was a bridge too far.
Granted, it can be extremely difficult to pray for politicians entrenched on the other side of sanity, let alone the aisle. I live in California, and in no particular order, I have Gavin Newsom as my governor and Eric Swalwell as my congressman. There are many utterances of “Really, dude?” when it comes time to contemplate their words and deeds.
Still, I do pray for them. I do so, mindful of Jesus’ observation regarding a camel and the eye of a needle. But I pray nonetheless. The God I serve is indeed God, and nothing is beyond His capability. No one is beyond His reach, even those who do everything imaginable to run from the hounds of heaven.
The latest Cephas Hour talks about this and other matters, including learning to appreciate how far you’ve come instead of berating yourself for not yet being where you want to be. It also touches on appreciating how, despite the relative brevity of life on this dusty orb, our ministry will extend long after we’ve left in ways we can barely imagine.
The show is available on demand at its website at https://cephashour.com/2024/03/14/cephas-hour-episode-122-release-date-march-14-2024/. Hope you enjoy it, and thanks.
Lately, I’ve been learning to embrace the process. Life is a continuous process whether we are six, 16, 64, or anywhere higher or lower. Sometimes, we may seem stuck, but reality demonstrates we are always moving. Hopefully, in the right direction.
When you’re in the process, as we all are, it’s best to look at your progress rather than continuously beat yourself up for not yet reaching your goals. Doing so helps us to realize that we’re not failing. We’re learning. We shouldn’t lament that we are still in the process, for, as noted, we will forever be in the process until our time on this planet ends. Instead, we should rejoice and take delight in where we have come while resolving to continue moving forward in Jesus and through the Holy Spirit. We can keep going. We have to keep going.
Our earthly ministry will never end. You and I will be done. God remembers that we are dust. Yet, long after we have returned to dust, our ministry will remain alive, living through those who have come after us, be they our direct descendants or the descendants of those touched by our ministry while we were here on earth. Remember, we are all the result of thousands of loves.
I wonder if Paul, when he wrote to Timothy that he had finished the race and kept the faith — which, of course, was true — had any idea that, for the next 2,000 years plus, his written words to Timothy and letters to those early churches would unceasingly reverberate throughout the entire world. Perhaps God showed them this when he caught him up to the third heaven; we don’t know. I sure will enjoy finding out when we can ask him.
In the meantime, take heart. Our earthly race has not yet finished, and neither our work in the Lord nor our lives have been in vain. We, in time, will stop, and at that time, will receive a reward from our Lord. But the ministry and the love He accomplishes through us will remain, working and living on this earth, until He returns.
In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he wrote:
Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
No wonder it’s so tough for politicians to follow Jesus truly.
The next verse hits home.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
It’s easy to see this and think to ourselves, “Well, I don’t swear much if at all, so I’m good.” However, profanity is a tiny part of what Paul is talking about.
Talking the talk in and of itself is worthless without implementing the proposed policies, practices, and platforms. This is true in all aspects of life, not politics alone. It’s easy to rail against someone else’s sin. For that matter, it’s easy to rail against our own, playing to the crowd as we seek to portray ourselves as gentle, meek, and mild. Christianity is the faith of reality. We need to be authentic as well.
Do we talk and criticize for the sake of talking and criticizing, or are we seeking to, as the Scripture says, show the most excellent way? There are a lot of politicians and people involved with politics that, were I required to speak to them directly, would be reluctant to say anything other than, “The Lord rebuke you.” However, it is incumbent upon me to remember that every politician or political leader, regardless of whether I agree with them on any given issue or issues (or not), is like me a sinner in need of God’s grace and not outside the reach of God’s grace.
It is much easier to pray for someone you like than someone whose mere name appearing in your presence immediately puts any blood pressure medicine you might be taking to the test. But pray for them, we must. If presented with the opportunity, witness to them we must. There is no other way. And who knows? You might be surprised at the hardened hearts God can pierce.
