As we navigate the raging waters of a surplus of instant information and deficit of deep wisdom, I hope the following will calm our hearts, enlighten our minds, and strengthen our hands for service to God and our communities.
“Lord, help me displace outrage with obedience, and instant reactions with intercession. Help me stand for truth with tears and pursue peacemaking as your child. Please continue your delivering, healing, and reconciling grace in my life and empower me toward victory over sin and all the schemes of evil. Jesus, you are Lord over all creation, including all powers of injustice and oppression. Thank you for your love and power. Amen.”
Isaiah 44:19 is a great verse for today’s hyper-reactive public square. As the prophet repudiates idolatry and the folly of using the same wood for a cooking fire and an idol, the little phrase, “no one stops to think…” leaps from the page. Pausing, considering context, and reflecting are lost arts in our pursuit of clicks and likes. As we necessarily debate issues, let’s stop and think and then share in a way that makes our world better.
“Loving Lord, awaken us to your pathos for the hurting, your providential care in our lives, and your power to help us walk in holy love. Holy Father, bring your divine embrace to the vulnerable and your wise discipline to the haughty. Jesus, as you were sent, so send us to share your light and love. Sovereign Spirit, unite your church in faith, hope, and love. Help us edify, not efface, the beauty of your church. Amen.”
There is a need for fresh intellectual leadership. The late Dallas Willard, renowned Christian author, shared with leaders that he longed for the day when pastors and local churches once again were the intellectual leaders of the community.
A special thank you to all faithful scholars. You pursue your fields with dedication and discipline and your discoveries help us understand world better. Yes, you have some dishonest and intemperate colleagues, but your efforts to learn and then teach remain important to our world. Throughout history, church and society have kept learning alive through much tumult. Always position your work as service and remember your good influence.
Friends, as we go forward, let us do so with passionate prayer and principled thinking, with a desire for all to meet Christ and a willingness to cooperate with people of conscience.