Bible Text: 1 Peter 4:12-19 | Preacher: Pastor Karen Bartkowski | Series: Living Hope | I am tired.  Are you?  I am tired of COVID 19!  I am tired of wearing a mask.  I am tired of being anxious when I go to the Acme.  I am tired of worrying about my friends and family. I am tired of being away from the people I love spending time with. I am tired of trying to navigate the news for the right information.  I am tired.  Are you?  I am tired of seeing injustice on the news, on the radio, on the internet.  I am tired of seeing the violence.  I am tired of the challenge it brings in my soul to take action, to stand up and speak up.

I am tired, yet I am healthy.  I am tired, yet my table is full.  I am tired, yet I am privileged!

I am telling you the truth!  I am tired today! But, I am not giving up.  I am tired today!  But, I am not done!  I am tired today!  But, the work is vital!  We are running a marathon and if you are anything like me, we need to find some ways to persevere, to keep up our energy and to not give up!

In our reading today, Peter continues his encouragement of people who were likely WAY more tired than I am!  People who were WAY more weary and WAY more anxious.  During this time, the Christ followers in Rome were hunted by Nero, they were killed by Nero, they were even set  on fire alive in order to light up Nero’s gardens.  Can you imagine the fear?  The worry?  The anxiety? Peter could. Did you hear how Peter starts this part of his letter?  He says, “Beloved”, “Friends”, “Dear ones”  It’s like he is walking up beside them, putting his arm around them, lowering his voice a little and saying “I care about you”, “I see you”, “I am here for you”, “You are important to me”. “I hear about your suffering.  I want to offer some words of encouragement and affirmation to you.”

Now, living in the United States, we might say, Peter’s words aren’t really for us.  We don’t have those challenges here. We can go to church, we can talk about our faith, we can encourage others to believe. We don’t fear our very lives when we say we are a Christian. And we are right.  Yet, as we know that to be true for us, we must not and cannot forget those who do not have those freedoms.  Did you know that in 2019, worldwide:

Over 260 million Christians were living in places where they experience high levels of persecution
2,983 Christians were killed for their faith
9,488 churches and other Christian buildings were attacked.
3,711 believers were detained without trial, arrested, sentenced or imprisoned

I feel the need to just take a deep breath and be grateful, to offer a prayer for all those worshipping today, even right now, with a real risk of persecution.  For those whose belief in Jesus can be reason to be murdered.  Not for what they did or do, but simply for who they claim to be- Christians.

Perhaps we cannot relate to the situation of those in Peter’s time or others worldwide today, but Peter’s letter still has much to teach us about suffering in any quantity, facing hard times of any kind, or working through any challenging situations. Peter’s words can help us in this pandemic, in this time of the rising justice movement, in this time of uncertainty and suffering. Physical, emotional, racial, psychological, spiritual suffering.  We seem to be surrounded.

We shouldn’t be surprised we suffer  though. Peter says, “Don’t be surprised that you are going through this”.  Suffering is part of the human condition.  Jesus said “In this world, you will have trouble…:”  Jesus, himself, had trouble and suffering.

I read an article this week where 3 kinds of suffering were described.

There is the suffering that happens because we are human. Things go wrong, time advances, we get sick, our bodies don’t work like they used to, situations around us impact our finances.  We might say “Yep…life happens”.

Then there is suffering that is likely caused by our own choices. On a simple note, we eat too much and we suffer from stomach ache or heartburn later. On a more serious note, we choose to break the law and we may suffer the consequence of time in jail. This suffering requires us to examine our own choices.

And, thirdly, there is the suffering we endure because we are believers in Jesus. We may suffer for doing good. We may be harassed for our faith, we may be kidded about our belief in something we can’t see, we may be challenged that we would stand up for injustice or that we would even care about people we don’t know. We may be made fun of for going to church every Sunday morning, people may call us hypocrites or worse. We may be ridiculed as people say “Where is your God now?” Jesus suffered like this. This suffering comes only because of our faith in Christ- only because we call ourselves Christians.

I don’t find it helpful to spend a lot of time categorizing suffering.  I start to feel a little comparison going on then.  Well, my suffering is worse than yours, or I don’t have reason to feel tired when there are others going through much more intense situations.  This is not a competition.  The emotions that come with any suffering and challenge are shared: anxiety, worry, guilt, unworthiness, sadness.  You can make the list- you have felt that way.  These feelings are not desired by God for us and we should not be OK when anyone feels anxious, worried, guilty, unworthy, unloved or left out. .

So, what do we do?  Especially when we are tired and weary.  We know giving up is not really a choice, so we need a plan of action.  Peter must have known that the persecuted Christians of his time needed this too.  I think his advice is timeless.  He doesn’t promise that one thing, practiced one time will help relieve suffering.  There is no magic wand to be waved or fancy words to be spoken.  Perseverance, energy, and commitment are necessary.

Peter says “Rejoice”.  I say “what?” Rejoice and suffering don’t seem to be words that belong in the same conversation.  But, understand, Peter isn’t saying be happy about your circumstances. He is not saying be glad it is happening. He is not saying enjoy it.  He just says rejoice- find something worthwhile and try to keep some amount of a positive attitude.  He says that we should especially rejoice that we have something in common with Jesus- suffering for doing good.  And we know that if we stay connected to Jesus, we live in hope. That’s worthy of rejoicing!

Most times, it is our times of suffering that bring us closer to God, right?  It is those times that our prayer life intensifies, our reliance on God is palpable, and we are listening for the “still small voice” with more intentionality.  Our deeper relationship with God is certainly something to rejoice in!

Now, don’t get me wrong- Rejoicing doesn’t mean we have forgotten our pain, or anger or anxiety. It doesn’t mean we stop feeling those things either.  This is not an either/or situation, this is a BOTH/AND situation.  We can have hard times AND hope.  We can have suffering AND joy.  We can feel downtrodden AND still make room for rejoicing.  Maybe we are only able to rejoice for 1 minute.  Maybe we are only able to move aside the bad stuff for 60 seconds.  But, maybe tomorrow or next week, we can move to 2 minutes and then 5 until we may find ourselves allowing rejoicing to take up more or more  space in our hearts and souls.

Peter says, suffering will happen, but do not be ashamed or back down. In suffering we remember that the Spirit of God rests on us. God is present with us in our suffering.  Suffering makes us acutely aware of God’s presence in our lives. God doesn’t desire that we struggle, but God calls us friends, like Peter did.  God comes alongside us, wraps his arms around us and reminds us that we are loved and worthy and important.  Can we try to use this time to find gratitude for God’s presence in both the good and bad times. Can we strive to feel the Spirit resting on us?

Jesus calls us to be the light in the darkness.  If people choose to challenge us, ridicule us, or hate us because of our Christian lifestyle, then our light must be shining brightly!  Can we be thankful for that witness?  Can we see the benefit of our lives mirroring Jesus, even if that makes others uncomfortable?

And Jesus, goes even further and promises blessings when our light shines in spite of persecution or challenge. Again, I am struck by the irony that blessing and persecution could share the same space.  Only by the grace of God.

Jesus says  “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” and  “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.  We have a promise of blessing!  A promise of a reward in heaven!   That might not change our current circumstance, but that should give us HOPE!

How do we get from bad times to blessings? From persecution to promise? From suffering to singing? From hard times to hopeful times? Sometimes that bridge seems so long.  But it is built with hope- hope in the promises of God.

Peter wanted nothing more than for people to rest in the hope that we are promised by the death and resurrection of Jesus.  He says it again in this part of his letter.  It is this hope that we have been promised that centers us, holds us firm, keeps us grounded. We read in Hebrews 6:19- This hope is like a firm and steady anchor for our souls.  An anchor does not keep the boat from rocking, but it does keep it from drifting away and getting lost.  Hope doesn’t eliminate the suffering in the moment, but it certainly provides a vision for a brighter future.

In our key verse today, Peter says “therefore”.  That’s like saying, in summary, or here’s the final word, the most important thing to remember if you remember nothing else. So, listen up!  Peter tells us, first, to continue to trust God’s faithfulness. The best definition of trust I have heard is “consistency over time”.  How do we recognize God’s consistency over time?  I have found that my gratitude journal has become an important tool for helping me trust God’s faithfulness.  The very fact that I have the ability to write down at least 3 things every day is an amazing credit to God.  I have moved from listing people or things, to listing situations or conversations or opportunities.  I choose to be grateful for the times when I was aware of God’s presence or guidance in my day.  When I go back and re-read my entries, I am in awe of those situations that I would not have recalled without my journal.  My ability to see God’s consistent work overtime is growing.  If you don’t keep a gratitude journal, I encourage you to start!  I think you will start to find new things that cause you to rejoice!

Peter ends this part of the letter with an instruction to “continue to do good”.  Even when the suffering makes us tired.  Even when we are weary.  Even when we are angry, worried, and anxious. Even when we are trusting God will be faithful. We must continue to do good.

The coronavirus pandemic, social injustices, division among people, mental health concerns, poverty, unemployment …suffering is all around.  What can we do?  How can we impact any of that?  Can I really make a difference?  Bishop Johnson wrote a blog post this week and addressed these questions.  She said “Individually we cannot do everything but each of us can do something”.

Each of us can do something good. Something right. So, I encourage you to do the next right good thing.  And then do the next right good thing.  And then do the next right good thing.

And then Rejoice! And again I say Rejoice!  Thanks be to God.  Amen.