First person: Sometimes the gospel shines brightest amid chaos and crisis

Reading the urgent prayer requests coming from friends in Lebanon recently, I thought of the preparation for Easter challenge we issued a few weeks ago.

“How would I respond if what I did to another was done to me?” appeared in the Feb. 19 edition. The opinion piece asked if we might all agree to check our hearts and fast from any ugliness we discover related to how we think about or reference other people — no matter who they are or what they’ve done or not done.

The idea presented is to:

1. Humbly and genuinely pray for the Lord to show you where you are not treating others in the way He has modeled for us.
2. Confess those shortcomings to the Lord and ask Him to help you move toward demonstrating His love and grace even when the other person has differing opinions, life circumstances, decision-making skills and an overall understanding of life and the world.
3. Be intentional between now and Easter to check yourself before using subjective labels, especially when they are meant as an attack or negative description of others.

Then, as you sit in church Easter morning worshipping our Lord, remembering His sacrifice and celebrating His resurrection, reflect on your personal walk with the Lord.

What did He show you about Himself? What did He surface for you about you?

How did removing any potential ugliness toward others change you? Were you able to discover that we can still have differing opinions, disagree at the most extreme levels and even not like someone while still choosing to treat each other respectfully and with grace?

We can still work to protect the values we prefer, help educate those who don’t understand and engage the community in powerful and effective ways. And we can do it all with courage, confidence and charisma.

Privileged opportunities

Reading about courage, confidence and charisma exhibited by believers in the Middle East, I’d like to expand the Easter challenge to include a moment of gratitude for all that we as individuals and communities of believers get to experience for the sake of the gospel.

We have the opportunity every day to make a difference, and sometimes those moments are more intense than others.

Our friends at Thimar, which means “fruits” in Arabic, work to strengthen communities and churches in Lebanon and throughout the Middle East by helping believers proclaim and live out the gospel.

Part of their work includes informing those outside the region about what is happening in the Middle East. For instance, information shared in early March noted the more than 500,000 displaced people in Lebanon.

Reports indicate churches are among the main groups showing up, opening their doors, distributing emergency supplies and demonstrating the love of Christ to families in crisis.

Churches are transforming their campuses into temporary housing for those who are forced to leave their homes. The congregations and others also are providing mattresses, blankets, food boxes and hygiene kits.

Think about your church building and property for a minute. Would your congregation be willing to allow a bit of chaos and potential damage to the building to house a flow of people not from the area?

Would the vote be an easy one if the pastor asked for the contingency funds to be used up to help provide mattresses and other temporary items needed?

Rosette Mansour, who works with a group helping raise awareness for Thimar, said, “This is how the gospel advances — not through words alone, but through the church meeting people’s immediate needs with both truth and compassion.”

Running to help

Leaders of Arab Baptist Theological Seminary also are finding ways to provide shelters on campus and assist churches throughout the region.

Similar stories of churches and the seminary running toward the crisis rather than away from it continue to surface from Ukraine.

What about the crises happening in our communities? Are we running toward them or choosing to hide from them?

For the latest news out of Lebanon, visit Thimar’s website.