I have not written about the earthquake and devastation in Haiti because I know my words will get lost in the deluge of rhetoric and genuine feelings of others. The same may be true now, but I have been living with this horror as you have through the lens of news sources and want to make a couple of comments.
First, as I mentioned at Legacy Church, my prayers are first for the Christ-followers there. Some lost loved ones, homes, and friends. Others missed the crumbling effect of the earthquake but know many who did not. How they respond to this event and how it affected them will be their witness to Jesus. I pray that in this time of trial they will be bold in their witness to the love of Christ in both their actions and words. Secondly, I pray for the Church in Haiti. I pray the church will be the ekklesia Jesus called them out to be in times like this. This is an opportunity to demonstrate the love of Jesus in tangible ways to a hurting world.
Jay Abernathy, friend and Pastor, guided me to a book by Rodney Stark at Baylor called Cities of God: The Real Story of How Christianity Became an Urban Movement and Conquered Rome. His premise is that Christians provided "social services" when no one else would and in doing so gained a foothold in the culture and history. May the church in Port-au-Prince become such a church that conquers a city with the tangible love of Jesus. May the Church international support them so they may be the hands and feet of Jesus.
We have beg
un our planning for Easter, and we have settled on answering the question, "Is God Good?" with God's answer of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. In light of the inexplicable suffering in Haiti and the evil we read and hear about every day, we felt we all needed some answers. One resource we are accessing is Randy Alcorn's tome, If God is Good...Faith in the Midst of Suffering and Evil.
It's a long, but thorough read that addresses the problem of evil and suffering in light of our claim that God is both loving and in control of things. I'll say more in the future, but wanted you to know about it as you wrestle with the suffering in Haiti and how to explain your faith to others.
Join me in praying and giving to the needs of Haiti through the people called out to be Christ's Church in this epic season of need.
First, as I mentioned at Legacy Church, my prayers are first for the Christ-followers there. Some lost loved ones, homes, and friends. Others missed the crumbling effect of the earthquake but know many who did not. How they respond to this event and how it affected them will be their witness to Jesus. I pray that in this time of trial they will be bold in their witness to the love of Christ in both their actions and words. Secondly, I pray for the Church in Haiti. I pray the church will be the ekklesia Jesus called them out to be in times like this. This is an opportunity to demonstrate the love of Jesus in tangible ways to a hurting world.
Jay Abernathy, friend and Pastor, guided me to a book by Rodney Stark at Baylor called Cities of God: The Real Story of How Christianity Became an Urban Movement and Conquered Rome. His premise is that Christians provided "social services" when no one else would and in doing so gained a foothold in the culture and history. May the church in Port-au-Prince become such a church that conquers a city with the tangible love of Jesus. May the Church international support them so they may be the hands and feet of Jesus.
We have beg
un our planning for Easter, and we have settled on answering the question, "Is God Good?" with God's answer of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. In light of the inexplicable suffering in Haiti and the evil we read and hear about every day, we felt we all needed some answers. One resource we are accessing is Randy Alcorn's tome, If God is Good...Faith in the Midst of Suffering and Evil.It's a long, but thorough read that addresses the problem of evil and suffering in light of our claim that God is both loving and in control of things. I'll say more in the future, but wanted you to know about it as you wrestle with the suffering in Haiti and how to explain your faith to others.
Join me in praying and giving to the needs of Haiti through the people called out to be Christ's Church in this epic season of need.