“I am so done with COVID-19! The vaccine can’t come soon enough. Hopefully things will open back up in the spring. I can’t wait for things to go back to normal! I’ll be back at work, the kids will be back to normal activities, and life can resume. For now, we just have to wait it out.”
“The political climate can’t seem to get any worse! Ongoing division about the election? Rioters breaking into the Capitol building? I really don’t know what the future will bring! I’m just going to tune out…hopefully the nation won’t fall apart.”
“I haven’t been to church for close to a year. I don’t even remember what it was like! Does anyone even know I’m gone? Maybe I’ll go back once COVID is over, but I don’t even really miss it that much. I still read my Bible and pray. Maybe I’m OK as is.”
“Family life is so hard. Nothing feels normal. We’ve all been home for so long. The kids are checked out. My spouse and I are totally disengaged. I just wish we could have our normal routine back. Maybe things will be better this summer. I’ll just wait it out.”
“The church managed to make it through 2020, but forget about growth. This season is just too hard. How can we start something new or reach the community when everyone is keeping their distance? Let’s just hold on and pray we survive.”
When things get bad, often our inclination is to wait it out. We go into survival mode and just put our head in the sand. But is that what God wants from us? Think about the testimony of Jesus. He was falsely accused, abandoned, beaten, convicted, and crucified like a criminal. But that wasn’t the end…he rose from the dead! Our God is the God who brings life out of death, victory out of defeat, and light out of darkness! That is the hope of the Gospel. Even in the face of death, we press into life.
Because of Christ we can do more than wait life out when it’s tough. We can do more than just survive. By God’s grace we can grow, take new ground, and thrive. It might only be inches, but inches can change lives.
So, let’s not stand still. Let’s seek the power of the Holy Spirit to move forward, push ahead, and overcome the obstacles we face. Press into your Savior. Dig into the Word. Pray for the nation – cry out to God for unity, healing, and wisdom for our incoming elected officials. Pray for peace in our world, and peace in our homes. Engage with your kids – show them how you struggle, and show them who your hope is. Ask your spouse for forgiveness. Set new goals at work. Be committed to your local church. Step into that ministry role. Talk to your neighbor about the hope you have in Christ. Live for him!
You can choose to wait it out – whatever “it” is – but even if “it” is ever done, there will be another obstacle right behind it. Or instead, by God’s grace, you can choose to press on. May we be consumed with a passion to know Christ and attain to the resurrection.
“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:12-14