What Augustine is seeking is not a theological concept or an explanation as such, but the living God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the "Trinity that is God, the true and supreme and only God." If one asks, What does it mean to find the one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit? the answer is not so obvious. Finding means more than simply getting things straight or discovering the most appropriate analogy in human experience for the Triune God. There can be no finding without a change in the seeker. Our minds, he says, must be purified, and we must be made fit and capable of receiving what is sought. We can cleave to God and see the Holy Trinity only when we burn with love." (p. 108)
Hosea teaches that God wants us to pursue knowing Him. The knowledge of God is everywhere and He desires us to pursue a loving, intimate relationship with Him through obedience to His Word.
Hosea 6:3-6
Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD;
his going out is sure as the dawn;
he will come to us as the showers,
as the spring rains that water the earth.”
What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes early away.
Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of my mouth,
and my judgment goes forth as the light.
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
John 14 is one of the main teaching passages about the doctrine of the trinity. The following passage links loving God to obeying God's commandments to a growing knowledge of God.
John 14:20-24
In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.
In the GCLI (Great Commission Leadership Institute), Book III: Studying the Scriptures on page 195, the author asked a question that a young leader may ask, "How much time should you spend studying the Word?" The author proceeded to answer the question by providing advice in very practical ways: he gave a set of key questions for the readers to ask themselves. For example, "Can you defend your church/GCC statement of faith?", "What is the nature of your ministry?", "What is expected of you from your culture?", "What is the best use of your time?", and "What phase of your ministry-life are you in now?".
This section seemed misguided to me. As I thought about the topic, a more biblical approach suggested itself. I propose that the following questions might be better to ask a young leader.
As a young man, how can I keep my way pure?
How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
(Psalm 119:9-11 ESV)
How often should I speak of the Word and meditate upon it?
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 11:18-20
“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates,
Joshua 1:8-9
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
Psalm 119:48
I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.
Psalm 119:97
Oh how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day.
Psalm 119:148
My eyes are awake before the watches of the night,
that I may meditate on your promise.
If I should not live by bread alone, how should I then live?
Matthew 4:4
But he answered,
“It is written,
“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
How should I learn more about Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith?
Luke 24:25-27
And he [Jesus] said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
John 5:38-39
and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,
How should I handle the Word?
2 Timothy 2:15-16 ESV
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
How should I continue and grow in my faith?
2 Timothy 3:14-17
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
1 Peter 2:2-3
Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
As a young pastor, in what should I instruct other believers?
Titus 1:9
He [an elder] must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
2 Timothy 2:2-3
and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
The author wrote about "acceptable gifts" to God. Using the story of Cain and Abel (Genesis 4), the author pointed out that "Not all gifts are the same to Him. Not all gifts are acceptable." (p. 24). He defined "acceptable" as "It's a word that expresses delightful, surprising, perfect, tearful, proud, ecstatic, happiness. What word would that be? It's what acceptable means." (p. 25).
The author defined "Acceptable Gift Truths" on p. 108. I added scriptural references that were used by the author earlier in the book to validate the points.
The amount matters (Matthew, 6:21, 2 Samuel 24:22-25)
We determine the amount (Deuteronomy 16:16-17)
We give according to ability. (2 Corinthians 8:12, Deut. 16:16-17, Acts 11:29-30).
The heart makes the gift count. (Proverbs 21:3, 1 Sam. 15:22).
The book also taught about what the author called, "heart prompts."
"God commands us to give freely. These giving instructions come through promptings of the heart. Some of these heart prompts--called direct prompts--are firm and clear. Some are less so, like whispers from God." (p. 52). (see Deut. 15:7-8, 11)
"Direct prompts are commands from God that direct our gifts." (p. 53).
"Like direct prompts, whisper prompts help us act on the command to give freewill gifts. But unlike direct prompts that are load and clear, whispers are subtle nudges from God." (p. 55). (see Exodus 25:2)
"God initiates heart prompts to draw you nearer to Him." (p. 58).
Here are some quotes that summarize the author's teaching:
"Everyone should determine a personal giving standard in their budget." (p. 47)
"Just because God gives us the freedom to determine our gifts, that does not mean any random choice is a pleasing one to him. To choose or not to give freely and willingly is to ignore God's clear desires." (p. 50).
"Nor is Plastic Donuts a message about triggering blessings, dodging curses, sowing seeds, or not robbing God." (p. 63)
"But by now, we have clear scriptural guidelines that address these type of questions. When it comes our gifts, we know the amount matters. And when selecting gifts, we determine the amount, in order to delight our Father.
In summary, the book is very good. It teaches that our goal in giving should be to please God. The more the gift matters to you, the more the gift will matter to God. If you disagree with the book from my notes, it is probably my fault. I am still processing the teachings of the book and hence, the blog. Please read the book and form your own conclusions. It is very short and a very easy read.
This is the third in a series of blog posts about what I termed, "Haiti Hangover." When we go on an one-week medical mission to Haiti, the team is excited to serve. We go out into the communities. We see families living in one-room huts with no windows. We see children playing in grassless yards, which have strands of barbwire for a fence. When we get back home, we watch our HDTVs in living rooms bigger than the huts we saw in Haiti. Our yards are well manicured lawns with swingsets and sandboxes. We see how our lifestyle contrasts drastically with the Haitian people to whom and with whom we minister. We feel anguish and guilt. We feel anguish for their suffering and we feel guilt because we have so many material possessions.
The guilt we suffer could be a good thing. Because if we have a tendency to make things or money an idol, this time of self-reflection would be an ideal period to re-evaluate our priorities. However, after a certain period, carrying around guilt is not spiritually healthy. Additionally, spontaneously selling possessions and giving to the poor out of guilt is not wisdom. We are commanded to give with a "cheerful heart" (2 Corinthians 9:7), not a guilty heart. If we are to combat the Haiti Hangover, we need to ask ourselves how God views our possessions.
Job
The Bible does not teach being rich is sinful. Consider the book of Job. Job was rich and God blessed him. For His own reasons, God decided to discipline Job through trials instigated by Satan. The first set of trials removed Job's wealth and his children. Prior to the trial, Satan predicted that Job would curse God when God removed His protection. When Job heard the news of his losses, contrary to Satan's prediction, Job did not despair and cursed God, but blessed God instead.
Job 1:20-21 ESV
Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”
The following notes are from Dr. Hughes's excellent commentary. The author points out that Job understood the Godness of God. God, by His very definition, has the right to take away Job's possessions.
R. Kent Hughes
Job knows that eventually he will die and take nothing away. It is almost as if he has died today. He understands that all his possessions and all his children were gifts from the Lord. By the nature of the Godness of God he gives, and it is therefore entirely his prerogative to take away as he sees fit, as and when he chooses. This is part of God being God.
So Job blesses the name of the Lord. He expresses the wish that all who hear his story will bless God for it. The Satan said Job would curse God to his face. On the contrary, his response to terrible loss is wonderfully blessing the God who has given and has now seen fit to take away. In the moment of his loss his first thought is of the God who had first given. (p. 49, Job: The Wisdom of the Cross (Preaching the Word))
The Bill Cosby Show
This teaching from Job reminded me of an episode in Bill Cosby's show titled, Vanessa's Rich. Cliff Huxtable's daughter, Vanessa, came home from school after getting into fight with two other girls. Her mother asked her why she was fighting. Vanessa explained that her fellow cheerleaders found out how much her mother paid for a painting and started to tease her about being a spoiled, rich kid. Vanessa emphasized to her parents that she tried to explain to her friends why her mother spent so much on a painting, but they would not stop teasing her. So she concluded that she had to start swinging at them. At the end of the her story, Vanessa blamed her parents, "Life would be so much better," she exclaimed to her parents, "if only we were not so rich!"
Cliff rubbed his face, paused for effect, and then slowly replied, "Listen carefully. Your mother and I are rich, you have nothing." He continued to emphasize that his children were under a grave misapprehension about what possessions they personally owned. He explained to Vanessa that everything his children owned, Cliff and his wife gave them. Cliff told Vanessa that he could take all her stuff away because she was living in his house by his generosity. The father then encouraged his daughter to explain to her friends that she was poor, she had nothing, and she depended upon her parent's charity.
One of the main lessons of Job is that we all are like Bill Cosby's children: we are under a grave misapprehension that we own things. We may have worked hard for our possessions; however, God gives us everything we have and He has the right to take away everything from us including our health. We are merely the stewards of God's resources. We don't own anything, even our children. God blesses Job at the end of the book through giving Job possessions and children (Job 42:11). God obviously intends for Job to enjoy being rich and fruitful for the rest of his life. In a similar manner, God wants us to enjoy our possessions and use them wisely.
Ecclesiastes
Centuries after Job lived, the writer of Ecclesiastes, asserts that life without God is meanlingless or a "vanity." But to those who fear God, God gives the gift of enjoyment of food and of work. God gives wisdom and knowledge to those who love Him and from those gifts come joy.
Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 ESV
There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment? For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Walter Kaiser Jr., an Old Testament Professor, points out in his commentary that purpose in life is not found in things, but in fearing God.
Walter Kaiser Jr.
The conclusion of 2:24-26: The purpose of life cannot be found in any one of the good things found in the world. All the things that we call the "goods" of life--health, riches, possessions, position, sensual pleasures, honors, and prestige--slip through man's hands unless they are received as a gift from God and until God gives man the ability to enjoy them and obtain satisfaction from them. God gives that ability to those who begin by "fearing," that is, believing, Him. (p. 59, Ecclesiastes: Total Life (Everyman's Bible Commentary))
A few chapters later in Ecclesiastes the author mentions that wealth, possessions, and the power to enjoy them is a gift of God.
Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 ESV
Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.
Kaiser points out that having wealth is not the problem. When we start seeing wealth and possessions as an ends in themselves, they become idols. God's tells us the underlying principle to enjoy life: knowing Christ.
Walter Kaiser Jr.
The conclusion remains the same (5:18-20). Man must get enjoyment, not possessions. And that capacity to enjoy, no matter how great or how small, is a gift from God. It is much better to receive wealth as a gift from God, along with the God-given ability to enjoy it, than to see wealth as an end in itself. The condition for the reception of this gift is the same as it was in 2:26, and therefore it is not repeated. How sad that men can spend all their days working and sweating to receive the enjoyment that God offers as a gift if men will seek it in the manner that He, in His excellent and beautiful plan, has chosen to give it. Happiness, enjoyment, pleasure, and a knowledge of how the whole substance of life is integrated into a meaningful pattern in the plan of God are all linked in the living God. To know the "eternity" of all things is, if we may rephrase John 17:3, "to know Him."
(p. 77, ibid)
Contentment
We are commanded in the New Testament to be content with what we have. As the Paul writes in 1 Timothy 6:6, "there is great gain in godliness, with contentment." Paul teaches in a couple of verses later in the same epistle (1 Tim. 6:9), "those who desire to be rich fall into temptation." We can commit the sin of greed no matter how rich we are. However, Paul teaches that contentment is more than controlling the desire to be rich: it is a dispostion that needs to be learned no matter what circumstance God has placed us. We need to follow Paul's example in Phillipians 4. We need to be content in both prosperity and poverty.
Philippians 4:11-13 NASB
Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction.
Peter T. O'Brien
As he raises the subject of the Philippians' gifts Paul shows a combination of delicacy and independence. He was clearly sensistive about money matters in general. But he has been deeply touched by their kindness, and he expresses his great joy at their thoughtful concern for his welfare. For some time they had been concerned about his well-being, but it was only more recently that they had had the opportunity of showing it again in a concrete way (v. 10). Paul had not felt neglected in any sense, and his joy did not arise because of the satisfaction of his material needs (v. 11). He had learned to be content in whatever circumstances he found himself, whether in poverty or when he had more than enough. This contentment, however, was not the self-sufficiency of the Stoic, the cultivated attitude of the wise person who could face life and death with equanimity because of his own inner resources. Paul's sufficiency was from God and related to Christ, who alone empowered him in various situations (vv. 12-13).(p. 514, The Epistle to the Philippians (The New International Greek Testament Commentary))
The author of Hebrews in verse 13:5 also challenges us to be content with what God has given us, "Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have ...."
2 Corinthians on Giving
A closely related topic is "Giving." However, giving is a complex topic and beyond the scope of this post. This post will focus only on a few of the many concepts that overlap between affluence and giving. One of the main teaching passages in the Bible on giving is 2 Corinthians 8-9. The following is a key passage in chapter 8. I highlighted the two verses that contain the key concepts.
2 Corinthians 8:10-15
And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack."
Here's Charles Hodge's commentary on those two key passages.
Charles Hodge on "it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have."
The apostle was not desirious to urge them either beyond their inclination, or beyond their ability. What they gave, he wished them to give freely, and with due regard to their resources.
(pp. 578-579, 2 Corinthians (Geneva Series of Commentaries))
Charles Hodge on "For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened"
The meaning therefore is, that Paul did not desire that the Corinthians should go beyond their ability in giving, for had no wish that others should be enriched, and they impoverished. It is not obligatory on the rich to make themselves poor in order that the poor may be rich. That is not the rule. (pp. 580-581, ibid)
Charles Hodge summarizes 2 Corinthians 8:10-15.
This is not agrariansim nor community of goods. The New Testament teaches on this subject,
That all giving is voluntary. A man's property is his own. It is his own power to retain or to give away; and if he gives, it is prergogative to decide whether it shall be much or little. Acts 5, 4. This is the doctrine taught in this whole connection. Giving must be voluntary. It is the fruit of love. It is of course obligatory as a moral duty, and indisposition to give is proof of the absence of the love of God. 1 John 3, 17. Still is is one of those duties the performance of which others cannot enforce as a right belonging to them. It must remain at our own discretion.
That the end is to be accomplished by giving is relieving the necessities of the poor. The equality, therefore, aimed at, or intended, is not an equality as to the amount of property, but equal relief from the burden of want. (p. 580, ibid).
Paul, a chapter later in 2 Corinthians, emphasizes it is the heart attitude that is important.
2 Corinthians 9:7
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Charles Hodge
Though he [Paul] wished them to give bountifully, he desired them to do it freely. Let each one give as he purposes in his heart, i. e. as he cordially, or with the consent fo the heart, determines. This stands opposed to what follows, and, therefore, is explained by it. Not grudginly, ἐκ λύπης, not out sorrow; i. e. let not the gift proceed out of a reluctant stae of mind, grieving after what given as so much lost. Or of necessity i. e. constrained by circumstances to give when you prefer not to do it. Many gifts are thus given sorrowfully, where the giver is induced to give by a regard to public opinion, or by stress of conscience. This reluctance spoils the gift. It loses all its fragrance when the incense of a free and joyful spirit is wanting. For God loveth a cheerful giver; ἱλαρὸν δότην, a joyful giver one to whom giving is a delight, who does it with hilarity. (p. 597, ibid)
Conclusion
We can fight depression or discouragement through pursuing joy in Christ. We can pursue joy by following these teachings.
Everything we have is a gift from God, whether it be possessions or children or our lives God has the right to take them from us at anytime. Therefore the amount of things we have is dependent on God and not us. As Jesus commands in Matthew 6:33, We need to "seek first the kingdom of God and and his righteousness."
Enjoying our possessions and our work is a gift from God. If we fear and love God, we will be able to truly enjoy our possessions, our jobs, and even our children.
Contentment in our circumstances is key in our walk with God. Whether we are rich or poor, we should trust God and not ourselves to meet our needs. This contentment is not easily learned, it is empowered by Christ.
Our giving should be prayerful and purposeful. It should meet actual needs. It should be out of our abundance. On the other hand, in our need, we should be humbly willing to accept God's gifts.
Our giving should be out of our love to Christ for what He has given us. It should be voluntarily and not out of guilt or compulsion. Our giving should be a joyous celebration of God's love for us. We should be willing to give all our possessions and even on our own lives away, because Christ gave his life for us on the cross.
This is second of series of blog posts concerning what I call the "Haiti Hangover." Short-term mission members suffer depression from a variety of reasons when they return from Haiti. My last post addresses the cause of discouragement which comes from switching from a God-focused, very defined mission to coming back home to the daily grind. This second post concerns the feeling of unfinished business that envelopes team members when they come back. With insufficient resources and very limited time, the team can not help every one medically or spiritually. Furthermore, team members lead people to Christ, but do not have the means to make sure they are being discipled. The team goes back home leaving new believers on their own. The team members know it is very unlikely they will ever see those young believers again. This lack of closure can cause discouragement. It can also cause cynicism and disenchantment with short term missions.
One of the ways to attack discouragement is to combat it with God's promises. No other prophet preaches on the promises of God more than Isaiah. In Isaiah chapter 55, Isaiah is encouraging the people to repentance. He is pleading with them to give up wickedness and to trust and follow God. In the following two verses, God is promising that His Word through which He is calling them, will not return to Him empty.
Isaiah 55:10-11
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
J. Alec Motyer's commentary of Isaiah explains how God's Word in Isaiah 55:11 is both a call to repentance and a promise that the people will repent.
J. Alec Motyer
The word of God is the unfailing agent of the will of God. ... the whole chapter pivots on the call to repent. On the one hand, repentance is the way to enter the great, free feast; on the other hand, the call to repent is a word of God bringing with it its own power of accomplishment. As the rain furnishes both seed and bread, so the word of God plants the seed of repentance in the heart and feeds the returning sinner with the blessed consequences repentance produces. In the present context this is what I desire, the purpose for which I sent it. The Lord wills and effectuates the repentance which brings sinners home to himself, into the freedom of his banqueting hall.
(pp. 457-458, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary)
In our limited viewpoint, we do not have the whole story of how God is accomplishing His purposes. God may be using other people and circumstances to draw people to Himself. God builds His Kingdom through His Word and He does not need a specific missionary or a particular mission team to accomplish His will. As it says in the previous verse,
Isaiah 55:8-9
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
We must humby trust God's wisdom and God's sovereignty that God's Word shall accomplish the purpose for which God sent it.
Here are a few examples where God works outside the limited perspective of well-intentioned believers.
Example 1: Elijah
Elijah humiliated and killed 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah in a showdown. Elijah thought he won, but he miscalculated. The queen, Jezebel, put out a contract on his life. Elijah ran away discouraged. He felt like no one was left to stand up for God. Elijah thought he failed because total victory did not come from him. God found Elijah hiding in a cave.
1 Kings 19:14-18
And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He said, “I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” And the LORD said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus. And when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael to be king over Syria. And Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. And the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu put to death, and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha put to death. Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
God did not need Elijah to preserve a faithful remnant from Israel. God wanted Elijah to be obedient to God's calling, God was in control. It was God who will save the remnant.
Example 2: The Scottish Reformed Church
In June 1547 AD, John Knox and other Protestant church leaders were captured and enslaved by the French. Protestant leaders across Europe despaired for the church in Scotland. Knox was in slavery for 19 months and then exiled. Knox returned to Scotland in 1555 A.D. and to his amazement, found a spiritually hungry, but thriving Church.
A. M. Renwick
When the Castle of St. Andrews was captured by the French it seemed as if the cause of the Reformed Church was lost. Scotland was virtually governed by the French, and the Roman Church seemed permanently established. Indeed, throughout all Europe, the the Protestant faith was at its lowest ebb. Yet the amazing fact emerges that, at this very time when the Protestant movement in Scotland was without a leader, the Reformed doctrines took an ever-increasing hold upon all classes. Thus, when, in 1555, John Knox returned from Geneva for a visit of a few months, he was overjoyed to find great masses of the people thirsting for the gospel. This he related in a letter to his mother-in-law, Mrs. Bowes, and declared they were 'night and day sobbing and groaning for the bread of life. If I had not seen it with my eyes in my own country, I could not have believed it. Depart I cannot until such time as God quench their thirst a little.'
(p. 48, The Story of the Scottish Reformation)
Example 3: The Church in China
My final example of how God worked outside our limited perspective. The Communist took over China in 1949. At that time, missionaries left the country: they were expelled or they departed voluntarily. The regime had a complicated relationship with the indigent Church. Eventually, the Communist leaders sanctioned certain Protestant Churches and called them the "Three-Self Patriotic Movement" (TSPM). However, these Churches were very liberal and were monitored very closely by the government. They did not preach the Gospel. Even so, the Communists at times even persecuted the "sanctioned" churches.
Kim-Kwong Chan
For an even longer period (1966–79), all church buildings were closed and Christian activities were banned. Bibles were burnt, and many church leaders (including TSPM pastors) were imprisoned for long years in labor camps. Meeting for prayer and Bible study was extremely dangerous. Miners met in the depths of the northern coal mines, their hymnbooks and scribbled Bible verses disguised as Mao’s “Little Red Book.” Miao Christian tribes people in the far southwest hid Bibles in mountain caves to which they climbed for secret meetings. While the official church was moribund, the house churches kept alight the flame of Christian witness. The church survived as a lay movement, often led by poorly educated Bible women who memorized Scripture and passed on the faith to family members and (if they dared) to neighbors and friends.
(Jesus Rising in the East: The Extraordinary Story of the Church in Modern China (Christianity Today Essentials Book 3))
I remember in the 1980s when Communist China started to allow more visitors: for example, Billy Graham visited in 1988. Stories about how the house church movement thrived in China during the exile of the missionaries sent ripples of praise throughout the global Church. No one expected the church to survive in Communist China, but God's Word could not be thwarted.
The Church throughout history has had Christ's promises to encourage it. Jesus, before his crucifixion, encouraged His disciples with His promises. He not only promised them the Holy Spirit in John 16, but Christ told the disciples that He had already "overcome the world." The disciples may have had to face persecution, but the battle was won and the disciples could take courage in that fact.
John 16:32-33
Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.
Merril C. Tenney wrote a classic commentary on The Gospel of John which highlights that this command "take heart" is only possible because of our relationship with Christ.
Merril C. Tenney
The close relationship with Christ which the disciple sustains affords him surcease from conflict, from fear, and from doubt. "In the world" is tribulation; "in Christ" is peace. Victory over the forces and circumstances that cicumscribe human life is attainable through Him, for He has overcome the world by His cross. (pp. 242-243, John: The Gospel of Belief
)
The apostle Paul understood this principle that Christ has already overcome the world. Paul encouraged the Phillipian church that the work Christ began in them will be completed when Jesus Christ comes back.
Philippians 1:6-7 ESV
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.
Wayne Grudem comments on this verse in his chapter on The Perseverance of the Saints in his book on systematic theology.
Wayne Grudem
Another example of assurance that believers will persevere to the end is found in Paul’s statement to the Philippians: “I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). It is true that the word “you” here is plural (Gk. hymas), and thus he is referring to Christians in the Philippian church generally, but he is still talking about the specific believers to whom he is writing, and saying that God’s good work that began in them will continue and will be completed at the day Christ returns. (p. 791, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine)
God is at work in Haiti. Like the apostle Paul with the Phillipians, we can be confident that God's work will continue in Haiti because we have seen Him work in the lives of the Haitians already. Furthermore, we have seen Him work in our lives. This confidence will combat the discouragement we feel.
How can we encourage this confidence in Christ's promises? First, developing our personal relationship with Christ is key. The better we know the Promise Giver, the better we can trust His promises. This is where the spiritual disciplines are helpful.
Spend time reading, studying, and meditating on His Word.
Try journaling or blogging about Haiti. Journal about what you are learning in His Word.
Pray for Haitian people in general and the Haitians you know. Pray for your mission team members. They are probably going through the same struggles you are.
Fellowship with believers. Try talking to other people on your mission team. Encourage them as they encourage you. Have them pray for you.
Tell other people about the trip. Tell Christians and non-Christians. Tell others about the great things you have seen God do. Have your short, medium, and long talks ready to go. Use these opportunities to share the Gospel.
As our closeness with Christ and His body increases, our joy will increase. The same disciplines we practiced in Haiti will serve us well in the United States.
Second, our obedience to His commandments is key to His manifesting Himself to us (John 14:21). As we abide in Him and love Him, the more we will trust HIm and the more confidence we will have in His promises. Disobedience and sin will feed into discouragement and cynicism. Trust and obedience fosters joy and confidence.
Finally, start praying for the next mission trip. God is using Grace Community Church to minister in Haiti. God is not done working through our church to serve Haiti. Pray that God will give the leadership wisdom on how to best serve Haiti. God will save Haiti.
by Rober Louis Wilken. In the following quote, the author is summarizing how Augustine pursued knowledge of the Triune God through the love of God.
.
)
)
)
)
)
) 
)
)
)
