"Feeling must follow, but faith, apart from all feeling, must be there first."
Martin Luther
I slipped out of the bed slowly, careful to avoid becoming tangled in the mosquito net. I gently wrapped myself in a wool blanket, tiptoed to the sitting room, and plugged in the tea pot. As the water boiled I peaked out the window, eager to see the monkeys around our cottage. Finally, with a steaming cup of tea in my hand, I slipped out on to the veranda, quietly pulled up a chair, curled up inside it, and waited patiently for the rest of the family to wake up on Christmas morning.
There is nothing like Christmas in the rain forest. So as I sat there and listened to the birds sing and watched dew drops fall from the branches, I was overcome with emotion. "Thank you, Lord," I whispered, "for all your blessings on our family in this past year."
There is nothing like Christmas in the rain forest. So as I sat there and listened to the birds sing and watched dew drops fall from the branches, I was overcome with emotion. "Thank you, Lord," I whispered, "for all your blessings on our family in this past year."
2014 has been a year of extreme highs and lows. Our Territory has celebrated the opening of 45 new corps and several new districts and divisions. We have seen thousands find Christ. But we have also mourned the unnecessary loss of officers and soldiers to preventable diseases. Family illnesses back home have caused us great concern, and corruption and terrorism have threatened to destroy peace in Kenya.
There have also been some moments that I'll never forget. I cringed when I recalled the day I discovered a slaughtered cow in an officer's bedroom. She had wanted to surprise us with a special feast, and while I don't recall the meal, I certainly remember the surprise! Then my heart began to melt with the memory of the day that the street boys of Kakamega, who literally have nothing to celebrate in life, defeated our Territorial Headquarters team in football and then ran around the pitch in triumph, holding aloft the simply trophy they had won. It was memories like these that signaled the start of a great Christmas Day.
When it was all over and we started to pack away our little tree, I looked one more time at every ornament, each of which elicited an emotional reaction, some of them pleasant, and others more difficult. As I sealed the box, I concluded that emotions are a precious gift from God, for without them our lives would be dull, empty and joyless. But I was also reminded of the truth found in Proverbs 3:4-5:
When it was all over and we started to pack away our little tree, I looked one more time at every ornament, each of which elicited an emotional reaction, some of them pleasant, and others more difficult. As I sealed the box, I concluded that emotions are a precious gift from God, for without them our lives would be dull, empty and joyless. But I was also reminded of the truth found in Proverbs 3:4-5:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
Emotions, I thought, really can't be trusted, because they are based solely upon my perception and my understanding. God is a lot bigger than that. I then realized that it's the tree that matters. Put a sparkling ornament on a dead, lifeless tree and it will lose its sparkle. But place a less than attractive ornament on a beautiful tree, and it will take on new life and brilliance. In the same way, I decided, it's my faith in God's promises that makes my life beautiful, rich, and satisfying. Emotions are just the ornaments.
As I praise the Lord for all the lessons and blessings showered on me in 2014, I commit once again to place my faith in Him. I will dance with joy when I feel like it, of course, and I will cry when circumstances dictate. But even when I'm crying, I'll know that there are other dancing days yet to come.
May the Lord bless you and yours in 2015.
