Beyond obvious health concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, many of you are also taking a heavy financial blow. Crown Financial Ministries, a Christian-based consulting firm founded by Larry Burkett, has put out some great resources. Below are links to some articles and budget worksheets that can help.
I want to personally thank all of those who have donated online or mailed your tithe check to the church in the past week. We are deeply humbled and grateful, and do rely on these gifts for our continued operations. Mailing a check or using your bank’s bill pay service are our preferred methods for receiving offering. But we gladly receive donations by PayPal also.
Five Steps for Starting a Crisis Budget (PDF) – In a time of crisis, it is important to adjust your finances. Whether you’ve lost your job, or preparing for the long haul, here’s a helpful guide to simplify the process. They have created a simple PDF worksheet, or if you’d rather work online, they have created a Google Spreadsheet.
Ways to Give During Social Distancing (PDF) – Christians are called to be generous, and there are many ways you can still do so. Listed here are a few examples of super practical ways to love your neighbor even when everything else seems uncertain.
Is There Hope for This Economic Crisis? – Chuck Bentley writes, “We have all experienced some loss in the past 30 days, whether it has been a direct loss of business, a loss of value in our retirement funds, or possibly even a loss of your job. Because of this, I want to comment on some likely scenarios for an economic recovery. I hope this will give you perspective and restore hope.” An excellent article to answer some of the what-ifs.
Trusting God Through Unemployment – Though not from Crown.org, I came across this article by Greg Gilbert several years ago and recommend it to any who are at risk or have already lost your job. This is a unique season of trial, an opportunity to trust in God, and a time for the church to carry this burden along with you.
Lastly, our friends at Pillar Church 29 Palms are currently offering a Financial Peace course. They send out videos in advance then meet by conference call on Sunday afternoons. To sign up, please contact them via their website.
Tuesday, September 11, 2001. If you’re much older than 21, you know exactly where you were that morning. My wife and I were young marrieds, paying off school loans and renting a one bedroom apartment in Southern California. We woke up that morning with a knock at the door. A neighbor, out of breath, said in a quivering voice, “We’ve been attacked. They’ve hit the World Trade Center. I think we’re in a war.”
It took us a moment to process the information, but we quickly turned on the radio. And just then the first World Trade Center tower collapsed. 500,000 tons of concrete and steel came crashing down in lower Manhattan. It was described by the newscaster as “a candle melting like wax.”
Everyone knew something was terribly wrong, but no one yet knew the extent of the attack. Every airplane, every ship, every high rise and stadium were suddenly another potential target. Realizing that jet liners full of passengers were being hijacked and used as guided missiles, the FAA quickly ordered all civilian aircraft to be grounded for the first time in history. Those next few days were surreal. There was not a single plane in the sky.
Harbors and ships were also put on high alert. I was working at Princess Cruises at the time, in their shoreside Fleet Personnel Department. On 9/11, our conference room transformed into a war situation room. Maps and reports were sprawled across the conference room table. Multiple TVs were playing CNN in the background. Weary corporate executives debated over options of what to do with our fleet, our passengers, and our crew.
Eighteen years later, the pain is still fresh. Every time I see images of United Flight 175 heading into the South Tower of the World Trade Center, it makes me shudder. A sudden swerve, a massive fireball, billows of smoke. 65 people killed instantly.
This day of infamy became my generation’s version of Pearl Harbor. America was attacked on its own soil, with four synchronized hijackings. The enemy’s intent: to carry out Islamic holy war and kill as many as possible, destroying in the process some of the most important icons of democracy and Western civilization. In total, 2,977 were killed, including 343 firefighters, 60 police officers, and civilians from over 70 different countries.
Many people afterward were wondering, “Where was God on 9/11?” And the answer of course is, he was seated on His throne. How can this be? Because God is sovereign over all things. Not just good things, but bad things too. He is either in complete control, or he is not in control at all. And the Bible teaches he is in complete control.
Our God is in heaven and does whatever he pleases (Psalm 115:3)
Nothing happens without His knowledge, His permission, and ultimately, His divine power. He is sovereign over nature. He is sovereign over sickness. He is sovereign over people. He is sovereign over nations. He is sovereign over wars. He is sovereign over elections. He is sovereign over Satan. He is sovereign over evil. Our God is in complete control!
Who is there who speaks and it happens, unless the Lord has ordained it? (Lamentations 3:37)
People are of course still responsible and accountable for their actions. They still act by their own free will, i.e. they act according to their nature and do what they genuinely want to do. But behind the scenes, God is the primary mover in human history.
The good news is that this means no one can thwart God’s plan. Our nation was caught completely off guard, but God was not surprised on Sept. 11. If he was, then he would cease to be God. Mohamed Atta and the rest of the 9/11 terrorists may have slipped into the United States and onto those planes, but they did not slip under God’s radar. It is a mystery to us why God would allow such violence and injustice, but we can rest assured God’s perfect knowledge and power were still very much at work at every moment.
Then why didn’t God prevent 9/11? This is a question we cannot fully answer.
The hidden things belong to the LORD our God (Deut 29:29)
For as heaven is higher than earth, so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts (Is. 55:9).
Ultimately, God works all thing out for good, and we must trust Him. But perhaps we can find at least a partial explanation.
The late Jerry Bridges wrote, “History is like a giant piece of fabric with very intricate and complex patterns. During the limited span of our lifetimes, we see only a tiny fraction of the pattern. Furthermore, as has been observed by others, we see the pattern from the underside. The underside of a weaving usually makes no sense. Even the upper side makes little sense if we view just a tiny piece. Only God sees the upper side, and only He sees the entire fabric with its complete pattern. Therefore, we must trust Him to work out all the details of history to His glory, knowing that His glory and our good are bound up together.”
9/11 brought unspeakable horror, but it serves as a modern-day reminder of another great atrocity – when Jesus died on the cross. You see, 9/11 was not the first time our sovereign God permitted great tragedy and injustice to occur. We must remember that God was also in control the day his Son was crucified. He did nothing to stop it. In fact, he orchestrated those events at great personal cost in order to achieve our salvation.
In Acts 4, when the early church gathered to pray and reflect on Christ’s death, they acknowledged the human cause, but also the underlying divine cause for all that had happened: “Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, to do whatever Your hand and Your plan had predestined to take place.”
Without a doubt, 9/11 changed our world forever. But let us take comfort that God is in complete control, and that he dealt with our sin by sending his own son to suffer an even greater injustice. The horror and darkness of those smoke-filled streets in lower Manhattan, pointed to an even greater darkness that engulfed the whole world on the day an innocent Savior died to take away our sins. Now, we see in part, but one day, we will see in full, and the wondrous tapestry of God’s redemption will finally be complete.
There are a many reasons God may allow Christians to suffer, but according to 2 Corinthians 1:4, one of the main reasons is so that we in turn “may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction.”
God is not necessarily disciplining you for some unrepentant sin. Satan is not always responsible for adversity and affliction. In many cases, your trial simply exists to draw you closer to God so you will then be able to comfort others. Trials are a kind of “care-giver boot camp”.
I can personally testify that on many occasions, God has used trials to grow my empathy toward others and my ability to pray for and counsel them. This is one of the benefits of the “gift” of suffering (Phil. 1:29).
Last week, I shared a list of 40 Ways God Comforts Us. This week, I began to jot down ways God can use us to comfort others, and before long, I had come up with over 80 ways. These can be broken down into three major categories – physical comfort, emotional comfort, and spiritual comfort.
What would you add to the list? Think of a friend who is currently suffering. How might you comfort them today?
IDEAS FOR PHYSICAL COMFORT
Mail or deliver a hand-written note
Use the power of touch
Bring flowers or a small gift
Open a window or take them on a walk
Bring a child along to visit
Sing or play music for them
Show a few pictures of family and share stories
Bring a gentle animal along, such as a comfort dog
Treat them with dignity and respect
Smile
Give them eye contact
Laugh together
Cry together
Involve all five senses – taste, touch, smell, sound, sight
Put yourself in their shoes and imagine what it might be like
Make yourself look nice for them
Send a care package with snacks, notes, and a small gift
Take care of some practical need
Look for both natural and medical ways to manage the pain
Help them obtain the best medical care possible, while fixing their hope on God
Get to know their likes and dislikes
Surprise them with some random act of kindness or pleasure
Look for simple ways to make them comfortable and preserve their dignity
IDEAS FOR EMOTIONAL COMFORT
Ask how they’re doing
Send a text message
Call them and let them know you’re thinking about them
Track and recognize a significant date on the calendar (e.g. birthday, anniversary)
Read old letters or journal entries together
Spend unhurried time together
Love them “blindly” and unconditionally
Ask kids to make a craft for them
Read to them
Talk about their hobbies and interests
Play a game or do a craft or puzzle together
Ask them for advice
Ask them for help
Discuss end-of-life decisions
Thank them for the impact they’ve had on your life
Get others to sign a card or note
Be extra patient with them when they’re irritable
Set up clear boundaries – for their sake and yours as a care-giver
Celebrate small victories
Let them know you miss them
Help them put off thoughts of guilt, regret, self-pity, and blame
Beware of trying to “fix” them or give them unsolicited advice
IDEAS FOR SPIRITUAL COMFORT
Pray with them
Ask how you can pray for them
Ask what God has been teaching them through this trial
Pray for them, then let them you’re praying for them
Remind them of the gospel, and how Christ came to put an end to sin and all its consequences
Talk about your heavenly home
Talk about the rapture
Talk about the resurrection and glorified body
Share something God has been teaching you from his word
Recount God’s faithfulness in the past
Remind them Jesus is our high priest who can perfectly sympathize (Heb. 4:15)
Remind them God still has a purpose for them here
Talk about God’s wisdom, love, and power
Encourage them where you see God at work and evidence of grace in their life
Treat them as you would treat Christ (Matt. 25:37-40)
Ask the elders to serve communion to them and pray for them
Provide videos that give mental and spiritual interest
Encourage them to stay involved at church
Read God’s promises to them
Talk about and pray for those who need the gospel
Remind them no trial is wasted, but is only given when necessary (1 Peter 1:6)
Ask forgiveness when you have done wrong, been insensitive, or let them down
Pray the Spirit will bear the fruit of love, joy peace, patience, and self-control
When appropriate, help them examine themselves and confess any sin
Meditate on your identity and union in Christ (Galatians 2:20)
Share missionary stories and Christian biographies
Share counseling materials that can help bring comfort, guidance, and victory
Help them recount God’s many gifts and blessings
Thank God that he has not treated us as we deserve. “Anything better than hell is a blessing.”
Pinch Of Clay 