Be Confident, Endure, Be Prepared to Receive By Beth DeCristofaro

 Be Confident, Endure, Be Prepared to Receive By Beth DeCristofaro

 

Therefore, do not throw away your confidence; it will have great recompense. You need endurance to do the will of God and receive what he has promised. (Hebrews 10:35-36)

 

Jesus said to the crowds: “This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. (Mark 4:26-28

 

Piety

At times my confidence and endurance wane, Brother Jesus.  Please fill me with the grace to know that, like a mustard seed, they are sustenance for my soul and potential for doing your will today and tomorrow. May your Holy Spirit guide me in my piety, study and actions. 

 

Study

Time-lapse photography and video have revealed unseen plant development to which Jesus alludes in his imagery of crops growing of their own accord.  That we can watch seeds sprout roots and stem, leaves and blossoms within minutes doesn’t dilute the wonder nor answer all questions. With our technology, we do not have to wait with all the self-discipline that being Christian demands.  In the early years of Christianity, believers expected Jesus’ coming in glory soon.  Two thousand years later, we know that “soon” is a term beyond understanding in the infinite mind of God.

 

Our waiting might be fraught with anxiety, dread, doubt, perhaps even tedium.  We tend to place our hopes in whatever is most comfortable or appealing.  The author of Hebrews tells us confidence and endurance are needed, human emotions that need reinforcing to remain strong.  I’ve often wondered if I would make a good farmer because my nervousness over the uncontrollable weather, commodity prices, and pests would be draining.  Hope does not rest in past performances; hope resides in accepting the mystery that God wants what is best for me and that the Spirit of God bends me toward the good even if hidden.  Jesus doesn’t promise that all good, all compensation will be furnished, nor that all setbacks and brokenness will be healed in my lifetime.  Confidence and endurance are indeed called for. Created in God’s image means anchored – if I accept the mystery – in God’s grace, God’s call, God’s time.

 

 

 

Action

As we wait with confidence and endurance, Jesus tasks us to sow, till, weed, and harvest in our little corner of life with faith, hope and love. Rather than be anxious and drained, we ask for the sure knowledge that Jesus accompanies us on our work of building his Kingdom in an uncertain world. What do you ask of Jesus today in confidence and endurance?