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Vibrant Faith, Hope, and Love

My friend James is hospitalized with COVID, his medical history perhaps heightening his susceptibility to the virus. His pain level upon coughing has been a 7 to 9 on a scale of 10; fortunately, this is improving a bit. But to all the medical professionals who tend to him (including caregivers from Thailand, Philippines, Morocco, Nigeria, and, of course, the US), James’ top priority is to honor them for who they are and to affirm them for what they do. “I tell them that, in [my hospital room], you are a person first.” For James has come to realize that, while the staff is there to help him, he also must “be ready when called upon to offer encouragement to [them, even if] through . . . suffering.”

Where does such a heart—this others-first focus—come from? I believe it is the outward overflow of an inner freedom that pours forth in joy when we accept and rest in the fact that God knows us individually, loves us personally, and cleanses us from all our sin. This is “truth that sets [us] free.”1 The apostle James stated it most simply: “We love because [God] first loved us.”2 Such love is not an obligatory burden to bear impossibly in our flesh, but a joyful emancipation to live out fruitfully in the Spirit. It is that for which Paul commended the Thessalonian church: “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.3 Faith, hope and love—spiritual growth and meaningful impact are rooted in these.

Yet if we affirm this triumvirate merely in the abstract, as if nodding academically to tenets of a creed, we miss the point. For vibrant faith, hope, and love are more than conceptual; they are relational. Exhorted the writer of Hebrews, “Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience . . . Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.”4 By God’s grace, no matter where we are, even if in a hospital bed, we can “be ready when called upon” to reach others in faith, hope, and love.

Father, draw me close to You today, that You would speak and I would hear. Lead me to where You want me to share the faith, hope, and love that are found in You. In Christ I pray. Amen.

1 John 8:32
2 1 John 4:19
3 1 Thessalonians 1:3
4 Hebrews 10:22-24

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What Did You Get for Christmas?

“What did you get for Christmas?” It was the very first question we as children asked our friends upon returning to school in January. We couldn’t wait to tell others what we received, and we listened intently as they recalled their Yuletide treasure. Now that we are adults, our question is a bit more grown up—“What did you do for Christmas?” we ask. Some gather here and some travel there. Some meet with friends, while others relax alone. Some are ready to get back to work; others perhaps not so much. But Christmas still stirs its curiosities: What did you get? and What did you do?

We celebrate Christmas as a promised fulfilled: Jesus, our Immanuel—our “God with us”1—has come, just as God through Isaiah foretold.2 Paul tells us Jesus “is the image of the invisible God”3; He is not a man who became God, but God taking on human flesh for a time and for a purpose. Then we might ask, what did Jesus do here? And Paul would answer that, through the obedience of Christ, God has “rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption the forgiveness of sins.”4 “He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.”5 What did Jesus do here? He took away our sin at great cost to Himself.

Then what did Jesus get here? In a word, us. He redeemed—purchased back for Himself—that which had been lost, that which was “created through him and for him.”6 We were created for Him and now He has redeemed us to be His very own. Just think how important we must be to Him. Imagine how He must love us. You. Me. Us. What, then, is left for us to do but to thank Him, praise Him, and worship Him through our redeemed lives. For He made us for Himself, He redeemed us for Himself, and now we are His.

“For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.”—Romans 11:36

Father, thank You for redeeming us through Your Son and making us Your own. May we never lose sight of our worth to You or Your love for us. In the name of Christ our Savior we pray. Amen.

1 Matthew 1:23
2 Isaiah 7:14
3 Colossians 1:15
4 Colossians 1:13-14
5 Colossians 2:13-14
6 Colossians 1:16

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The World Needs You

[As a Salvation Army in Central Ohio board member, I once again have had the honor of writing a letter to be distributed at this year’s Christmas Cheer program. Through this annual event, over 6,000 Central Ohio families will receive groceries and toys to celebrate the Season. Merry Christmas! ]

What a year this has been! For many of us, 2022 has marked at least the beginning of a return to normal from a global pandemic. We are socializing more and distancing less, commuting more and telecommuting less, and smiles radiate again, reemerging from behind the confines of our masks. Freedom feels good together, for among the many things we will ultimately learn from the recent worldwide health crisis, one in particular stands out: people need people—we are made to engage with each other in meaningful and supportive ways.

For well over 100 years, the mission of The Salvation Army (TSA) has been “to preach the gospel [good news] of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.” Under TSA’s banner, people serve people every day through food pantries, housing assistance, learning centers, anti-human-trafficking measures, Bible studies and church services. God cares about every facet of our being—body, mind, and spirit—and He ministers through His people to others every day.

Yet The Salvation Army is just one organizational means through which God blesses His people whom He loves. The fact of the matter is, no one person or organization can even come close to meeting every human need in the world. Then again, no single individual or group has to, for that is not how God works. Rather, God works through His people everywhere, for each of us has our own relationships and our own gifts, and we are uniquely suited to serve God by blessing others wherever and however He calls us to serve them. Every believer can thrive in the knowledge that God “created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”1

Sometimes we receive, and sometimes we give. Sometimes we are served, and sometimes we serve. So, be the gift you are designed to be. The world needs you.

Merry Christmas, everyone! Rejoice! Christ has come.

Written by Paul Nordman
Advisory board member of The Salvation Army, Columbus Area Services and author of two books—Christ in Me and Working in Us What Is Pleasing to Him

1 Ephesians 2:10 NLT