What do we do when depression ravages our minds? How do we react when
anxiety springs up on us unawares? Where do we go to when all of our
energy seems to have evaporated into thin air? Where do we turn when
adversity becomes our constant companion?
In the 14th century,
construction began on the western tower of the St. Waburga Church in
Veurne, Belgium. It was going to be a glorious tower, and many were
looking forward to seeing its completion. But it never came to be. Due
to limited funds, the work was halted and the tower was never completed.
These people could commiserate with those of us whose strength has
left us.
Although unfinished however, the tower was far from
being useless! Its caves, deep in the ground, were ideal for storing
ammunition and protecting Veurne residents from the bombings of World
War II, and even today it has found its usefulness. A modern art museum
is now hosted there. Even though incomplete, the tower still has its
place in society!
I have discovered that age has nothing to do
with usefulness. I have met elderly people who are still so full of
vigor that they continue to be shining examples of how God had
transformed their lives. Not only do they do the unthinkable, like that
90 year-old woman who jumped from a plane (with a parachute naturally!)
For the first time in her life, but they also testify about Jesus
through their actions, by helping the dejected, by encouraging the
hopeless and by visiting the abandoned.
An older lady discovered
she had cancer. It didn't stop her from becoming a missionary in China.
"If I have to die, it doesn’t matter where it will occur. I want to die
in a place where I can be useful and where I can testify."
I have
also met young people, however, who acted like they were elderly. They
have no ambition, no motivation. Maybe it's because they hadn't
discovered what the apostle Paul had found out:
"Who shall
separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or
persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:
'For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to
be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor
life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor
any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus
our Lord." (Rom 8:35-39 NIV)
Doesn't this truth fill us with
adrenaline? Doesn't this encourage us to carry this banner of love
throughout our neighbourhoods? How many around us are hungering for
hope? Why can't we be the ones to satisfy that hunger?
Yes, we
may face ridicule, even rejection, but still such consequences are
meager compared to the witness of Christians in oppressed countries.
Their testimony can cost them their very lives, yet they still go one,
undeterred. With God's love spurring them to action, they bring hope to
the hopeless, encouragement to the depressed, and friendship to those
who are friendless.
All of those who don't hesitate to testify
have discovered a simple truth: "For when I am weak, then I am strong."
(2 Cor 12:10 NIV)
No matter how incomplete you own "tower"
stands, you can make a difference! You don't have to feel dejected and
useless! It’s time to stand up, for you truly are "more than conquerors
through him who loved" you.
Are you willing to make a difference
in this world?
Rob Chaffart
Unfinished But Still Useful. Jesus' Deepest Desires, Part 12
Today's Bible Verse:
"And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the
beginning." (John 15:27)
Unfinished But Still Useful. Jesus' Deepest Desires, Part 12
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