Weekly Meditations with Pastor Tom - June 8, 2024

"Put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation." - I Thessalonians 5:1-11

             I could use a "helmet of hope" right now.  Of course, the world provides so much despair and destruction it's a wonder we all don't go stark-raving mad.  We must harden our hearts to some degree to withstand the suffering we witness on the nightly news.           

      Watching the suffering in Ukraine and Palestine is hard enough. So, maybe it's a good thing our news channels pay so little attention to the suffering in places like Sudan, Myanmar, Mali, Somalia, Niger, and Ethiopia. (I never thought I'd say such a thing.)

       But then tragedy strikes closer to home and pierces the protective wall we've erected around our hearts to withstand the ugliness of the world.  In my case, a dear friend announced that his marriage of 43 years is ending in infidelity and divorce. The news literally sickened me. A son of another friend witnessed brutal stabbing death of a 3-year-old child in a grocery store, and he is traumatized.  My heart is pierced once again.  Hanging onto hope becomes more difficult.

            Paul tells us to put on the helmet of hope of salvation.  It is an apt metaphor.  Hope often seems under siege.  I need that helmet to keep my hope alive.  I need that helmet to keep me from going completely crazy or having to become totally unfeeling.

            Paul says it is the "hope of salvation."  Yes, it is the saving grace of Jesus Christ, but it's also more than that. It's the hope that saves us from utter despair. It's the hope that God is always working in the world, that God is always with us, and for us, and working in our best interests. That is a helmet I could use right now.  Maybe you could, too.

The Sermon this Sunday

Do Not Lose Heart