Are you tired? Does it feel like all your efforts are lost in an all-consuming ocean, thrashing around, and with each crash, they drift further away, leaking out a little bit of hope each time? Can you relate to the feeling of pressing on towards a goal but not seeming to make any difference? Does it feel like you have seen more loss than life? More hatred than love? Anybody with me in this season? If you can relate, this is for you.
Galatians 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
The call of every Christian is to fight for flourishing life in every image-bearer of God. This is an important fight, but it can often make us weary. As a teacher, I fight for the ongoing flourishing of life in my middle school students as they make their way through some of life’s most difficult years. I can often question if what I am doing is making a difference, especially teaching art. I am blown off and eye-rolled to no end by my students. My goal while those students are with me is to train their hearts and eyes to recognize what is truly beautiful. I am talking about the type of beauty that reflects the truth, not the counterfeit beauty that ends up as a well-disguised snare that leads to death. That very goal is wrapped up in projects, elements & principles of design, daily grades, classroom management, cranky teens, paint on every piece of clothing I own, long hours, and code red drills. Giving the next generation the tools to look, see, create, and problem- solve in the context of beauty that relates to the truth, not a snare, is the mission I’m on. This was my first year of full-time teaching, and let me tell you, it kicked my butt. The words written in the first paragraph describe the state of my heart at the end of the school year.
During the last weeks of school, I was given the opportunity to write this article to you all, and I could sense the Holy Spirit gently pointing out to me that I am not alone in growing weary in a Kingdom fight. For those of us who are weary in battling in whatever gradient of this pro-life fight you find yourselves in, allow this art teacher to share some encouragement God gave me:
“Return to your first love. Be Free. The battle is the Lord’s.”
Return to your first love. Look and remember whose you are! You belong to God. He made a way for you (despite all of your you-ness) so you could be in a relationship with Him, the Father, Maker, and King over every person, place, and problem. My pastor puts it like this, you are not primarily a tool being used by God, you are primarily His child who he loves. God is first and foremost beautiful. God, would you show us your beauty and let us be satisfied in who you are. As we remember the joy of our salvation and our first love, let us run and see clearly what Jesus did on the cross.
Be free. I can get so caught up in the works that I am doing for Him that I begin to see my works as a way to control what others think of me, God, outcomes… and just about anything else that I think can or needs to be controlled. My works easily become a way I put myself under the law AND then I have the audacity to wonder why I am so tired. I am not my works. I am who God says I am. I get to join in the work that HE is doing. I get to be with Him, and as that goes, I reflect Him in my thoughts, words, and actions. In my weakness, He shows Himself strong. I get
to be the person who is used by God for His glory. I get to live in freedom from control. I get to live freely in servanthood as a child of God, and from that place, all my works are rather an offering of love in which I find much peace, joy, and fulfillment. At my church we sum that up in one statement, Be Free. God, forgive us for returning again to the heavy burden of the law of self-righteous works but set our hearts again on the freedom we have in you.
The battle is the Lord’s. 2 Chronicles 20:15: “And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s.” We fight not for our own glory but for His, from a place of victory already secured. My friends, each wave of opposition crashing against you is real and giant, but don’t grow disheartened and don’t be afraid because the battle is His. God, thank you that you are in control, and we fight from a place of victory in a battle that you have already won.
To my fellow pro-life Christians, we will have times where we grow weary and tired. Galatians 6:9 encourages us to keep doing good, for in due time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. The battle for life involves standing firm against opposition and shining a spotlight on the intrinsic value and beauty of life as ordained by God. Our dedication to protecting and cherishing life in all its stages reflects His truth and love. Despite the difficulties, we can press on with the knowledge that He is strong in our weakness. Our efforts, though seemingly unnoticed at times, contribute to a greater divine purpose. Remember, the battle is the Lord’s, and we fight from a place of victory already secured. Continue to find peace, joy, and fulfillment in serving God and others, knowing that each wave of opposition is met with His strength and grace. Keep pressing on in His work, anchored in His truth, knowing that we will bear fruit in His perfect time.
Aubrey Vinke, Church of Eleven22
To learn more about Church of Eleven22, visit coe22.com.