The Good Shepherd and Good Shepherding
Conversation #5 - Synchronized Dance - Part 1
Ministering to a world of grief while immersed in our own pain and loss.
A SYNCHRONIZED DANCE - Part 1
I’m always fascinated by a couple dancing when it looks like they’re just one entity. Our dance doesn’t look flashy to outsiders, but I’m fascinated by watching God’s people do our kind of dance in a way that looks natural. It’s more intricate and beautiful than a “Texas Hold ‘em” routine. Our unique dance is the dance of Christ in us—treasure in clay pots—utter weakness, dancing with absolute power and perfection.
It’s easy to slip out of sync… but the way back always beckons.
When a health crisis invades people’s lives, I hear things like: “We’re going to fight this battle together. Losing is not an option. We must fight. We must win. If this doctor can’t fix it, we’ll go to Hell and back to find one who can. And when the battle is lost, I hear: “Well, they fought bravely. We didn’t think they would have lasted as long as they did.” Sometimes it sounds like: “We were winning, but God didn’t show up today.” Or, “We didn’t pray hard enough.” Or, “Our faith wasn’t strong enough.”
Staying in sync means finding the balance between praying for health and accepting our reality. A well-known passage in the Bible is the bedrock for our frail bodies and souls.
“Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 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.” (2 Corinthians 12:8-9, ESV)
Go ahead and ask… but after a few long silences, maybe it’s time to take it to the next level… resignation (not giving up, but acquiescing to the sovereign will of God), rejoicing in our newfound source of strength… (yes… our source of strength!)
“For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.” (2 Corinthians 1:5, ESV)
We remember the suffering with great detail, in living color. Are we so immersed in the comfort that we also remember every detail of that? Do we come away assuaged by the Spirit’s comfort? Can we talk about what we’ve gained as eloquently as we can describe what we’ve lost?
We must confront our addiction to “creature comforts” for what it is. Our main goal here is not to find a way to take away the pain and keep it away. Once we get that straightened out, we can think again about serving God and helping others—even while immersed in our own painful experiences.