The Ultimate Example

Philippians 2:5-8

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death- even death on a cross!”

To say that this is how I pictured my last semester of undergrad would be a lie. The past few months have been nothing short of a wild roller coaster for which I don't even remember getting in line. More than that, it feels like someone blindfolded me, forced me into the seat, and conveniently forgot to strap me in. Plus add the fact that this ride feels never-ending AND I’ll be missing the free ice cream scheduled at 2 that I’d been looking forward to all day. Honestly I could go on and on with this analogy.

If you’re like me, then you kind of want to shut off all forms of media just for a little bit. I’m not promoting becoming less informed but sometimes it feels like you’re being told a million different ways to “do quarantine right”. However, I think it’s important to know that (besides well-educated healthcare professionals) the example we are called to live by is Christ’s.

So why is Jesus our perfect quarantine lifestyle to live by?

To me, everything that Jesus represents is beautiful, heart wrenching, soul stupefying grace. And it’s the gift I find most comforting about Him. Right now, I think it’s probably the most difficult it’s ever felt to cultivate grace-for others and for myself. Even under normal circumstances, I often struggle to have grace with myself. I set too many expectations for myself. So as these new waves of emotion began tossing me around, I find it increasingly difficult to show myself kindness. I feel sad for the losses I was experiencing yet guilty because my circumstances aren’t as difficult as others. I feel anxious and fearful about the future but wrong for not having enough faith. I feel angry because I don’t understand why things are happening this way but doubtful because I was questioning God’s mysterious plan.  And sometimes I feel that overall I am too emotional and I need to tame the feelings. It’s nauseating. And when you don’t have enough grace for yourself, it can be difficult to have grace for others as well. But I also think it is the most critical time to have it.

This passage in Phillipians is powerful for many reasons and gives us 3 main messages on how and why we should follow Jesus’ example.

1. Exercise humility by sharing grace with others.

Our world is hurting. Physically, mentally, spiritually, financially. It always has been but now on a pandemic-level scale. Our hearts are broken. We are all on this emotional rollercoaster: we’re furious, we’re grief-stricken, and-most evidently-we’re afraid. But just as Jesus carried the burden of our brokenness, he calls us to live out his example. His gift is not mine to amass for myself.

I’m not saying don’t hold people accountable. We all can reference the sassy remarks Jesus delivered to a Pharisee or even a disciple on many occasions. I’m simply suggesting to ponder the damage of another person’s heart, their circumstances, and experiences, just for a minute. And choose to share the gift of grace.

2. Exercise love by allowing yourself grace too.

Jesus was fully human for a reason. He was fully God and fully human, not simply to have a standard to live by but to have a soul with whom we can relate and be in relationship. Someone who is fully God, with fully divine intent and action, and yet still experienced the depth of human emotions, the devastation of a broken heart. In the garden of Gethsemane, before he was arrested, Jesus prayed to God aware of the events on the horizon, “Father...everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will” (Mark 14:36). And later as he was being crucified it is said that as he died “Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) Even the Messiah, King of Kings, fully divine does not deny his broken heart. He bears 8 billion broken hearts in the beating flesh of his own. Because this heart, broken like the world He loves, is part of what leads us to the greatest gift in history.

Reading this scripture helps me know that it’s okay to be on this crazy roller coaster of emotions and thoughts. Because Jesus is right beside me, at times shouting with fear and joy in the same way, but always holding my hand. And that means I can have a little grace with myself: for feeling fearful, angry, and sad; for feeling clueless; and for wondering if I’m doing anything right. It is human nature. And to deny my broken heart would be to deny the workings of His grace.

3. Exercise empathy by taking action.

Jesus is fully man and fully God. He suffered the greatest trial and bore the greatest burdens of our broken souls. The intertwining of his ability to bear the greatest burdens of our souls and in doing so relate to our human nature while simultaneously saving it, should in some way not only inspire us to take action but compel us to do the same.

I often find it difficult when I talk about suffering because I know that I come from a place of privilege. It’s something we all possess in some capacity but it exists differently for each of us. The point is that it is not earned necessarily and it usually isn’t something that you asked for; sometimes you can’t even control it. But the importance is in the times that you can and how you use that power for the good of others. The greatest first step is to start with empathy. The divine nature of Jesus provided us with an eternal priceless gift. But don’t forget his human nature which provided us the eternal example of empathy. Learn to empathize. Help take on the burdens of those who are suffering from this situation. Because-the Lord truly knows-there are so many. So many of us have had to sacrifice something because of this. Yet there are things we can be doing to help relieve the weight of others. I’m not encouraging you to forget about your own struggles, compromise your safety, or shaming you to meet some impossible standard. But I am inviting you to contemplate what this looks like in your life. Don’t be afraid to recognize the privilege you possess as well.  Our circumstances are all different, but I challenge you to find a way in which you can help do this within your individual means. We can’t possibly bear the broken hearts of 8 billion people, but we can try to share the weight of some of the broken pieces of another.

*This blog was written by, Loren Pierce, who is studying speech therapy at South Alabama. Loren is a senior and the ministry assistant at the Wesley Foundation.*

Endurance for Today

Endurance is described as the ability to withstand hardship or adversity. Endurance tends to be a word that we use for physical activities. But often times, we do not consider what it means to have mental or spiritual endurance. 

Right now more than ever, we are having to endure, not only physical hardship for some, but mental and spiritual hardship. The world we are living in today seems like something we would read in a science fiction novel. We seem to have found ourselves in this strange limbo land between reality and a dream.

We have all had to create something that we can perceive as a new normal and then try to to adjust to that new normal. Now that we know that this is something we will live with for the foreseeable future, we have to find a way to endure it. 

If I were to guess, I would say that many of us, myself included, are probably looking for this endurance from the wrong source; we tend to look to ourselves and other earthy things first. We think, “What can I do to make this easier?” or “How can I occupy my time to relive my stress?” But these are the wrong questions to ask ourselves. The question should be “How can God help me through this?”

If the only place we search for hope and endurance is within our own thoughts or externally, we will find very quickly that the answer is simply not there. We search so many other places (social media, the internet, music, or whatever it may be) looking for something we’ll never find. Not to say that these things are bad, but they are certainly not the answer to our problems. God is the only one who can and will get us through this unprecedented time we’re living in now. 

We’ve all heard the old cliche “everything happens for a reason.” Now I’m not sure how true this is but what I do know is that things happen that we can’t control. Some things happen that are unexpected or unwarranted, and we have to know that while the specifics of each instance may be different, our spiritual response should be largely the same. There is nothing that has said things are always supposed to be easy. In fact, trials will most certainly come. But, if we put our faith in God, we become stronger through them. 

As said in James 1:2-4:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

I would like to challenge all of us to do exactly that. Although this may be a trying time, let’s use this time to strengthen our faith. Let’s use this time to grow closer to God. Let’s put all of our trust in God. During times like these, that’s something that sounds easy but can sometimes be difficult to do. But just because it’s difficult does not mean that it is not worth it.

While this is surely nothing like we have experienced before, that does not mean that an answer or solution is found any differently. We may not know what that answer or solution is, but we should know right where to find it. 

I believe this a perfect opportunity to allow God to witness to us. He can empower us to endure and persevere through this by relying on him. The strength to endure any hardship we may go through, is always found in God. It is found in God’s word, it is found in prayer, it is found in God’s community. We can not only strengthen our own faith, but also continue to grow in fellowship with one another, encouraging each other to use this time wisely.  

Instead of feeling down or lost right now, let’s make the most out of it. This is surely a time where in the future we can look back and say, if I put my trust in God then, I can put my trust in him now. We have all of this free time to do as we so choose, so let’s choose to focus on God. Let’s choose to focus on how God can help us endure this together and come out stronger in every way on the other side. 

*This blog was written by Blake Batchelor. Blake is a sophomore at South Alabama and he is majoring in International Business.*