Pastor’s Corner: “Shoestring Theology”
Hebrews 10:23 (NLT) – 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who are suffering and those who will suffer.” None of us are immune. The floor will drop out from underneath us at some point; not because God isn’t there or doesn’t care, and not because we haven’t been good enough. Christians and non-Christians alike are subject to the consequences of living in a fallen world. Solomon said: “The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all” (Ecclesiastes 9:11).
The rain falls on the righteous and the unrighteous. Drought also comes to both. Believers lose their homes to hurricanes and their health to cancer alongside unbelievers. Dementia doesn’t discriminate. From time to time we find ourselves being the one in the position no one wants to be in; being the one with the stack of problems that seem bigger than one person or even a family can possibly attempt to deal with, let alone overcome.
Perhaps you’re there now. You may be experiencing a broken relationship. Maybe you need to be saved from some addiction or financial trouble. Whatever the case, you feel alone, scared and weak. Your situation is hard, wrenching and painful. You’re losing your grip on faith. You feel like you are hanging on by a shoestring, literally!
Hebrews 10:23 (NLT) – 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Trusting God to keep His promises requires more than just confidence; it demands endurance as well. Maybe that’s why God’s Word reminds us over and over again that faith and patience are partners. One without the other can leave us dangling in discouragement. Romans 8:25 (ESV) – But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. The original word in this verse for “patience” is hypomone. It paints the picture of a person holding on, persevering and refusing to give up. I once heard a pastor describe this particular kind of patience as “Shoestring Theology.”
Patience is what keeps us holding on when it seems like God is holding out. Patience is what keeps God’s mysterious timing from undermining our faith. Waiting on God isn’t easy, but with patience, it is possible. When you are hanging on by a shoestring in your life and all you can do is wait on the Lord, you come to the realization that you are no longer holding on to God’s promises; GOD’S PROMISES ARE HOLDING ON TO YOU!
That’s the wonder, majesty and love of God. He sustains us and supports us. He restores us and remakes us. And when we take hold of His truth, the truth holds us, too! Even when we’re hanging on by a shoestring; especially when we’re hanging by a shoestring.
I don’t know what you’re waiting on today, but I know God’s Promises can be trusted. So, hang in there, beloved – Keep believing! Psalm 27:14 (NLT) – 14 Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
In His Grace,
Pastor Hamilton