2 Corinthians 6:4-10 says,
4 as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5 in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6 in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7 in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; 8 through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9 known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
Although this passage is a lot to take in, it has become one of my favorite pieces of scripture.
I came across these verses and first truly and deeply resonated with it while on an 11 week mission trip on the Jersey Shore this last summer through Cru, a Christian ministry organization for college students.
To simply put it, this past summer changed my life. And to be completely transparent, God used that time to truly break my heart for what breaks His, to experience community with others who had a passion for serving and sharing the Gospel so genuinely, while grieving and processing through a broken relationship.
I think the reason this verse really stood out to me at first glance was just how concrete Paul's words are about perseverance. Paul -- the one who experienced severe persecution and hate from others because of his faith in Jesus Christ, is preaching of how glorious and joyful a life with Christ in the picture is, no matter what the circumstances.
And as I sat on a couch covered in sand one morning, flipping through my Bible, this verse physically brought me to my knees. I stared at it forever, taking in the words. I remember praying, Lord, thank you for reminding me that these hardships I'm experiencing right now are only temporary. This life will bring so many more curveballs I will never anticipate coming. God, help me to constantly remember that You will be there with me through all of it.
The Christian life is hard. In this life we will experience judgement for what we believe and hear hurtful words that will have the intention of destroying us. But through all the hardships and every tough conversation, we are reminded that our faith in Jesus is so worth it.
Patience in Trials
One situation that I will never forget from this summer was one that happened during one of our team's outreach nights on the boardwalk. A friend and I paired up together and approached people as we walked by, asking them questions about life with the intention of possibly leading into sharing the gospel. I noticed two ladies laughing with one another at a pop-up henna booth, and decided to strike up a conversation.
They shared that both of their families were from Christian backgrounds. They seemed to know and understand why my friend and I came over, which allowed them to open up about things they've battled with in their faith and so on. As the conversation grew, I pulled out a booklet to give to them an explanation of the four main points of the gospel:
1. God loves you, created you, and has a plan for your life.
2. Because of our sinful nature, we are separated from God.
3. God sent down His son, Jesus in order that we may have a relationship with Him.
4. We must receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives.
And as I began to go through the booklet with them, one of the women threw the booklet to the ground and started to yell,"You're lying! My sin is a part of God's plan for me. Just shut up! You are going to go up to all of these people and I know you are going to be rejected every time. No one will believe you. Stop doing this!"
And as I stood there, I remember thinking, all I can do is listen.
Looking back, as I mentally prepared for the mission, I played out scenarios of what this would be like in my mind. The mere thought of someone yelling at me made me nauseous and want to curl up in a ball and cry. But months later, as I stood there in that moment and listened, I knew the Holy Spirit was giving me the strength and patience to keep going and not give up on her. I gave her the booklet back and left that conversation with a smile and a "it was great meeting you, have a nice day!"
This passage in 2 Corinthians reminded me so much of that memory, because although I was mocked and told that the words I was saying weren't true, I knew it was a lie. I knew that the words that came out of my mouth were genuine and that God had so much more in store for this woman; that by me reaching out to her, would possibly be the start of something incredible in her life.