BOOK CLUB RECOMMENDATIONS: Freedom to Flourish by Elizabeth Garn
Freedom to Flourish by Elizabeth Garn LENGTH: [...]
John 16: From Sorrow To Joy
PEY CHU|GUEST I am a huge fan of modern medicine. My first three children were born in North Carolina with the marvelously numbing help of an epidural. Sure, I felt uncomfortable but I did not feel the excruciating agony of childbirth. This was not the case for baby number four. He was born in East Asia where the epidural was not often administered and so, it did not take. I did not know that birthing a baby was actually supposed to be so painful. At one point, I was so convinced that I was dying in childbirth that I tearfully looked into my husband’s eyes and apologized for dying and leaving him a widower to care for three, possibly four, children. From Sorrow to Joy In his farewell address to his disciples, Jesus compares his impending earthly departure with a woman’s sorrow in labor. This metaphor would not have been a new one to those listening to Jesus. It was used in Old Testament biblical literature to allude to “the birth pains of the Messiah refer[ing] to a period of terrible trouble that must precede the consummation.”Jesus uses this imagery to show his disciples that they were at that point. The misery of Christ’s death would be countered with the bliss of Christ’s resurrection. In the Upper Room Discourse, Jesus has been preparing his disciples for what was about to come. As he looked ahead to his own death, Jesus tells them in John 16 that soon they would not see him. Their sorrow at his departure would be like the pains of childbirth. But their sorrow would not be the end; their sorrow would turn to joy. The intense agony of labor (and their sorrow) would be followed by inexpressible joy just as a woman “no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world” (John 16:21). Jesus follows with, “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:23).
E-174 GRID: Living Covenantally with Chandra Oliver
Join host Karen Hodge and gospel friend Chandra [...]
Falling Down Laughing
LEAH FARISH | GUEST Events of the last couple of years have robbed us of several wonderful things, and one of them is laughter. Oh, we’ve had a few humorous moments—I recall trying to talk from behind a mask. I wanted to ask an acquaintance, “Are your roommates nice?” and instead said, “Are your roommates mice?” I suppose she could have said, “Yes--I wanted to get a cat and they won’t let me….” And as we all resorted to written communication, typos abounded: “I loom forward to seeing you,” and “I’m drowning in the hot tub” when my friend meant “drowsing.” I contributed this gem to one discussion: “I have a couple of other thighs to point out.” Churches tried to market themselves online, which reminds me of one cheery offer—“Don’t go crazy in isolation; let the church help!” My hope is that God will return joy and laughter to His people in the coming days. Laughter is not something mentioned much in the Bible, but let’s compare two of those mentions. In Genesis 18, we see Abraham’s wife Sarah, eavesdropping beside the tent flap where, outside, Abraham was entertaining three mysterious “men.” Through them, God spoke to Abraham and said that Sarah would bear a son. She was old, well past childbearing age. So she “laughed to herself” at the idea of pregnancy.