IDEA #1: Download TWC’s HOLY WEEK DEVOTION. Walk with Jesus through the final days of his earthly life. Be guided through Holy Week by daily Scriptures and meditative questions.

IDEA #2: John Piper’s NPR interview on suffering and the sovereignty of God after the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami that killed 250,000 people is one of the best pastoral responses to the problem of suffering that I’ve heard. As the coronavirus continues to grow, Christians should equip themselves now to answer this thorny theological problem that plagues both believers and non-believers alike.

IDEA #3: Watch and listen to what my friend, Dr. Kevin DeYoung, calls “one of the best sermons I’ve ever heard”. R.C. Sproul’s sermon on “The Curse Motif of the Atonement” at the Together for the Gospel conference in 2008 helps you meditate on the weighty truth of Galatians 3:13: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’”.

“Absolute seriousness is never without a dash of humor.”

This is one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite theologians. Dietrich Bonhoeffer knew a thing or two about living in solemn times, spending his last days in a Nazi concentration camp before his death for trying to “drive a spoke into the wheel” of Hitler’s cruel regime.

When I arrived in Equatorial Guinea, I remember a Brazilian missionary telling me, “If you don’t learn to laugh, you’ll end up crying.” The trials and travails of living in Central Africa called forth not only the harder edges of your character (courage, grit, resiliency) but also the softer edges, particularly the ability to laugh. On the face of it, Africa, which often sits on the hot-seat of human suffering, would not seem poised to be a place of joviality and laughter. Yet visitors to Sub-Saharan Africa are consistently caught off-guard and taken aback by the joviality and laughter of its peoples, diverse as they are. 

We Floridians are peculiar people, too. We often have a birds-eye view of the most devastating effects of hurricanes, yet, at the same time, we have an ability to make endless jokes and devastatingly funny memes while the cone of uncertainty barrels its way towards our houses and communities.

What gives?

Of course, I raise the question because our nation is now mimicking the response of Floridians to hurricanes, as my social media feed bounces back and forth between absolute seriousness and light-hearted humor in response to the novel coronavirus.

What gives? 

Maybe humor is truly cathartic. It seems like humor is acting like a gigantic stress-reliever in the midst of our collective anxiety. 

Maybe humor soothes our fears.  If we can laugh at something, then perhaps we are freed from living in its shackles or in its debilitating prison of fear.

Maybe humor is hopeful, which communicates a certain type of defiance in the midst of our trials and sufferings.

From time to time, I’ve reflected on my own pilgrimage with humor. I feel like I returned at 24 years of age, after a year in Central Africa, a genuinely more jovial person. Yet, I undoubtedly saw more extreme poverty and kept my heart closer to human suffering during that year than ever before in my life.

What I do know is this: the range of our human emotions is a gift from God. 

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. ~ Proverbs 17:22

Even in laughter the heart may ache,
    and the end of joy may be grief.~ Proverbs 14:13

A happy heart makes the face cheerful,
    but heartache crushes the spirit. ~ Proverbs 15:13

All the days of the oppressed are wretched,
    but the cheerful heart has a continual feast. ~ Prov. 15:15

The Counsel of Jesus for Anxiety (Matthew 6:25-34)

The following is a highly redacted blog based on Sunday’s sermon on March 22, 2020

The date was September 13, 1541 – dangerous and chaotic times for a Protestant Reformer. After an exiled absence of three and a half long years from the city of Geneva, John Calvin resumed his pastorate by opening up the Scriptures – picking up in exactly the place he had left off in the book of Psalms – before being exiled.

For Calvin, it was bold statement that no matter the times, no matter the trials, no matter the challenging exile and persecution that he faced, the expositional preaching of the Word of God verse-by-verse would be the foundation of his ministry.  Why?  Calvin was convinced that people needed a verse-by-verse exposition of the Word of God for their faith, to face the trying times in which they lived, and for their own spiritual growth & building up in the gospel of Christ.

Since early December, our church has been journeying through a verse-by-verse exposition of the Sermon on the Mount. For our text, we picked up yesterday -- not in exactly the same place  -- but in the same sermon of Jesus in Matthew 6:25-34.

Consider the following:

Anxiety disorders are now the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 18% of the population every year – 40 million adults.

Recent studies have shown that Anxiety disorders affect 25.1% of children between 13 and 18 years of age.

It is estimated that 15% of the adult US population will experience a depression at some point in their lifetime.

Depression is the leading cause of suicide about every 12 minutes; over 41,000 people every year commit suicide in the U.S. alone.

As Soren Kirkegaard put it, “No grand inquisitor has in readiness such terrible tortures as anxiety.”  Max Lucado pinpoints accurately the challenge facing all of us during the coronavirus: “Feed your fears and your faith will starve. Feed your faith, and your fears will starve.”  Friends, what are you feeding on during the coronavirus?  Are you feeding your fears or are you feeding your faith? 

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus commands us three times against anxiety:

Vs. 25:  Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life.

Vs. 31: Therefore, do not be anxious.

Vs. 34: Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow.

In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus gives us practical counsel for overcoming anxiety; beginning at the end of the passage and working backwards through the passage, let’s delve into three ideas from the text:

1.    Overcome worry by a relentlessly enjoying TODAY (vs. 34).

Vs. 34: Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

WORRY arises in your life when MENTALLY you are PARKED in the WRONG TIME ZONE. 

Friends, imaginary burdens are the toughest burdens to carry.  If you are trying to carry the imaginary and impossible burdens of tomorrow, that is a weight you can never bear. In fact, the energy and mental exertion that comes into your life when you try to carry tomorrow’s imaginary burdens only serve to diminish your strength for today. Anxiety often tries to carry “imaginary burdens” — burdens that do not yet exist because they have not yet arisen in time!

As George McDonald wrote:  “No man ever sank under the burden of the day. It is when tomorrow’s burden is added to the burden of today, that the weight is more than a man can bear.”

So it’s a paradox: you think your worry is helping yourself tomorrow, but what you are really doing is crushing yourself today. You may need to practice a mantra based on vs. 34: “Sufficient for the day…sufficient for the day…sufficient for the day” whenever your mind begins to worry or your heart begins to beat with anxiety.

2.    Overcome worry by relentlessly pursing RIGHTEOUSNESS (vs. 31-33).

Worry arises in your life when you love the wrong things in the wrong order. It’s that simple.  Human beings were designed by the Creator to prioritize certain pursuits as central to our lives.

So if a human being is running off the track designed by God – with priorities and pursuits that are out of whack – don’t you think that driving a train off a cliff or barreling a train into a forest would produce worry and anxiety for the conductor?

The pivotal question that Jesus is setting up for you to ponder is this:  Are you primarily concerned about “seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness”? Or, you concerned primarily about secondary concerns in life? 

Our lives get off track when we begin to say things like “I can have it all,” or “I can be double-minded in my pursuits”, as if we alone are capable of living a “super-human” life without boundaries or rightly ordered priorities and pursuits.

Worry arises in your life when you love the wrong things in the wrong order.

3.    Overcome worry by relentlessly resting in God’s Sovereign Care (vs. 25-30).

Worry arises in your life is when you rely on the WRONG TYPE of CARE and CONTROL – namely YOURS. Worry is a control issue.  Worry is a trust issue.  

Worry comes down to this: “I am the only one that I trust.” That’s what you are saying to God when you worry.  “God I don’t trust you, I must be in control.” “God, I don’t have any desire to release control to you.”  Worry is a control issue and a trust issue; and, therefore, it’s a heart issue.

Jesus makes a classic rabbinic argument, arguing from the lesser (birds, lilies of the field) to the greater (to human beings made in the image of God, the crown of the creation). Jesus asks rhetorically: “Are you not of more value than they?” (vs. 26).

Can you ponder the lower parts of creation and learn to rest in God’s sovereign care over your life?  God longs for you to live a worry-free, anxious-free life.  Learn to rest in God’s sovereign care for your life and see the worry and anxiety begin to evaporate from your life.

Follow-Up Guest Post by Lisa Carter

A Song to Calm an Anxious Heart


Scriptures to Calm an Anxious Heart

Joshua 1:9   

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.

John 14:27   

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Psalm 112:6-7

6 For the righteous will never be moved;
    he will be remembered forever.
7 He is not afraid of bad news;
    his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

Isaiah 41:10

fear not, for I am with you;
    be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Psalm 34:4

 I sought the Lord, and he answered me
    and delivered me from all my fears.

2 Timothy 1:7

7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Deuteronomy 31:6

6 Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Philippians 4:6-7

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 12:2

 “Behold, God is my salvation;
    I will trust, and will not be afraid;
for the Lord God is my strength and my song,
    and he has become my salvation.”

Isaiah 43:1-2

   But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
    he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
    I have called you by name, you are mine.
 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
    and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
    and the flame shall not consume you.

Zephaniah 3:17

  The Lord your God is in your midst,
    a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.

Romans 8:39

 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 42:5

 Why are you cast down, O my soul,
    and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
    my salvation.

Psalm 46:1

 God is our refuge and strength,
    a very present help in trouble.

Psalm 56:3

 When I am afraid,
    I put my trust in you.

Psalm 62:8

 Trust in him at all times, O people;
    pour out your heart before him;
    God is a refuge for us.

Psalm 4:8

 In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
    for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 27:14

 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord!

Psalm 9:10

 And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 40:11

 As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain
    your mercy from me;
your steadfast love and your faithfulness will
    ever preserve me!

Psalm 119:50

This is my comfort in my affliction,
    that your promise gives me life.

Psalm 143:8

 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,
    for in you I trust.
Make me know the way I should go,
    for to you I lift up my soul.

Isaiah 26:3

 You keep him in perfect peace
    whose mind is stayed on you,
    because he trusts in you.

Matthew 6:34

Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Philippians 4:6

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

1 Peter 5:10

 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

Isaiah 40:11

 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
    he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
    and gently lead those that are with young.

Isaiah 54:10

 For the mountains may depart
    and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”
    says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

1 Peter 5:7

casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

Philippians 4:8

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Guest Post written by Lisa Carter

 “The only thing in this life that doesn’t change is that there is always change.”  Life always felt a bit out of control living in an undeveloped country in Central Africa.  Will there be electricity today? Will our refrigerated food make it or will we need to throw it all out?  Is this fever malaria?  Will my toddler ever stop throwing up? Will the military harass our expat African night-guards at gun-point tonight? Will a thief finally break into our house and rob us? 

Deaths, shortages, and shutdowns were not out of the ordinary. Change, uncertainty, and flexibility were essentials as a missionary woman. These traits are not innate to me. Due to the family into which I was born, I grew up from a very young age struggling with anxiety. I have spent a great deal of my life battling anxiety and striving to maintain a sense of control. Yet, God has been pruning me for years in this area.

In my life, God has consistently used situations where the illusion of control has slipped away in my life. When I was in ministry in South Central Los Angeles, I lived in a gang-ridden area, living in an apartment where I often fell asleep to the sound of police helicopters circling above and crack addicts rolling their shopping carts by my bedroom window. In Central Africa, I lived in one of the most corrupt and chaotic countries on the planet. Even now, I find myself being a special needs momma to a boy with autism. God has continually awakened in me – in deep places in my soul – with the knowledge that I don’t have control. Through it all, it’s been a painful but also a life-giving process.

Today, we find ourselves in a world that seems to be changing by the hour. All of our normal rhythms and the things normally under our “control” have been disrupted. And, it is tempting to fall prey once again to anxiety when the world at-large seems so out of control.

This time around, the enemy may be an invisible virus, but, for me, the enemy is also this internal desire to feel a sense of control. Oh, how I pray for this enemy of Covid19 to be eradicated, but also this enemy within me—this propensity to want a sense of control that keeps me from full surrender and trust in my God. Thankfully, I can lift my eyes to the One who remains unchanged no matter the changes around me!

I remember going to Los Angeles as a young women never having left my little town in New England. I was scared to death. I still remember the encouragement of my pastor from Joshua 1:9: “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.”

I can honestly attest to the truth that faith comes from hearing the Word of God —because that Word sustained me. When I cowered in my room listening to the dangers that lurked outside my apartment in Los Angeles, that Word (and so many other verses) built up courage within me that I never knew was possible. It was not of myself but from God. God became my hiding place and my soul found rest in Him.

As the quakes and disruptions have come over the years, there is an unshakable faith that develops as we surrender our desire for control and submit to the Lord, trusting in His sovereignty, goodness, and love even when everything around us is in chaos.

Friends, these are unprecedented trying times for us. Let us hold to God’s Word and call out to Him in prayer for our families and for one another and our entire world.  As we are gathered in our homes, let us draw near to the Lord and seek refuge in Him as our only sure hiding place.

Let’s use this opportunity to come together in love rather than scatter in fear or simply be glued to our various devices.

Let’s take this opportunity to renew our household spiritual rhythms. For all of us, our normal rhythms have been disrupted. We have a great opportunity to form new habits and rhythms—to establish new habits and spiritual disciplines, to cultivate and create beauty, goodness, and truth – and to be more intentional in prayer and reading/meditating on God’s Word.

Prayer may seem outwardly unremarkable but there is great power in it. Prayer is essential spiritual work. This is our time for much prayer. All our excuses of being too busy are gone.

Despite our feelings of being sidelined right now, we have a great opportunity to make a difference with our prayers, and the truth is that all of us can join in from the littlest of us to the eldest. Even our little ones can make a difference!

My prayer is that during times of greater isolation – where the world seems to come to a stop – that we may redeem the time. May we pray daily :

• … for those who are dying and their loved ones…

• …for those on the front lines working in hospitals…

• ….for government leaders making decisions…

• ….for the elderly especially those in nursing homes or isolated in their own homes without visitors…

• …for those who are sick in the hospital like my own aunt who has a punctured, deflating lung and is now unable to receive visitors…

• …for those who have chronic illnesses and are now unable to get simple medical supplies like alcohol swaps for their daily blood sugar tests etc. because supplies are so low…

• …for the special needs families whose children struggle with change and who will no longer have the services they need…

• …for the business owners who are taking huge financial hits or already having to close their businesses…

• …for the families that have to wrestle with education at home, especially those who are doing so while still working…

• …for the children in abusive homes or children in homes without the money for food they normally get while in school…

• …for the teachers and school systems and churches all trying to navigate how to move forward from here.

I also pray that we redeem the time by building a family culture that honors and glorifies God more than ever before.

I pray that we may be mindful of what we are feeding on. Take our thoughts captive to Christ. Stay in the Word. Create and keep rhythms of prayer and reading for the spiritual health of our families.  Are we getting swept up in the fearful hysteria of the news feeds?  Are we taking moments in the day to express gratitude? Are we staying connected with those in our home or are we “present” only on our devices?  Are we creating, cultivating, and inviting beauty and truth in our home today?

May we check in on others, especially the single elderly ones you know. Create something beautiful, gather around the table, cook and savor food that simmers or rises that we rarely have time to make. Take a moment to let our kids rest and “ be” before we try to jump into creating a new normal for them because they, too, are experiencing the upheaval of disruption, but then may we have the discipline to maintain some kind of healthy educational routine. May we create a family culture of peace, love, hope, and faith. Create a sound track. I’ve got mine—I’ve already created my Spotify “Peace be Still” play-list, as I call it. Play the music, light the candles (LED ones in our little boy home), join your church community online. Wash your hands, stay your distance, and above all do not forget our God and the spiritual health of you and your family. Let’s ask Him to do His pruning, strengthening, and comforting work in us all!

May God be your hiding place surrounding you with songs of deliverance.

Love, Lisa

***Check out the follow-up blog post from Lisa Carter “Scriptures (& Song) To Calm an Anxious Heart”

For the next two weeks, our church will be gathering together online for Sunday mornings. This does not mean we “take a break” from corporate worship. Rather, it means our gathering together will look “different” during the coronavirus as we participate in worshipping the Triune God of grace in an online worship experience.

I have a hunch that many Christians who attend worship services faithfully each week may still not fully understand the New Testament ideas that undergird our corporate worship. Thus, I offer a short reminder on why we gather together —and why it’s such an unprecedented gut-punch for Christians to not gather in person to worship during the coronavirus.

Four Reasons Christians Gather in Corporate Worship:

1.     God said so.

Hebrews 10:23-25 -  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

The writer of Hebrews encourages Christians in an age of persecution not to neglect meeting together.  In fact, when the church faces suffering and persecution, scriptures heightens the imperative to meet together to face the sufferings of the world with wisdom, faith, courage, and love.

2.     The New Testament presupposes weekly gatherings (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2; Acts 2:42; Colossians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 16:19) to worship God.

Corporate worship was a natural response to the resurrection of Jesus, to celebrate and worship the God who raised Jesus from the dead. This historical event lead to a robust doxological response from the people of God.    

3.     Faith comes from hearing the Word of God in a communal setting.

Romans 10:17 – For faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.

The “church” never connotes a single, lone-ranger Christian listening to podcasts, online sermons, or reading Christian books on the beach by himself or herself.  The New Testament ekklesia gathered together to read the Old Testament, ponder Paul’s sent letters together, and to “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Col. 3:16). 

We should never pit “just go be the church” against “let’s gather as the church”. The individual who never understands “the church gathered” never truly understands or lives into “the church dispersed”. People who think they can “be the church” without gathering in a church testify by their bible reading (and typically by their actions) that they have not truly understood the inner spiritual dynamics of the Christian life.

The ekklesia (church) means “assembly”. Thus, a few Christians gathering for a dinner party or even to serve the homeless in lieu of gathering for corporate worship is not “the church” because the ekklesia is the NT sense of the word is a gathered church that worships the Living God,  hears the Word preached, celebrates the sacraments, appoints elders, gives generously to the work of the Lord, amongst other NT activities.

4.     We need each other as Christians.

Acts 2:42-47: And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

People who advocate that a church should “get back to its mission” and “stop wasting time huddled together” are setting up a Straw Man which pits “mission” against “worship”, whereas the New Testament sense of mission always flowed out of a robust sense of the worship of God.

Final Pastoral Word:

Will you join me in praying a dangerous prayer? 

“Lord, my prayer is that you would give me, by your grace, a supernatural experience of loss in not meeting together face-to-face in corporate worship. May I be reminded, by your Holy Spirit,  of the ways in which corporate worship fuels my life of faith and ignites in me Christ-centered passions in God-ordained and biblically-mandated ways. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.”