Faithful in a Fractured Land

It's been far too long since I have written here in our little corner of the blogosphere. As silly as it sounds, actually sitting down to the keyboard with this purpose in mind even makes my eyes water a bit! Life has been so full and sometimes frantic and it saddens me that so many stories of our family life are only occasionally captured in an Instagram or Facebook post anymore. With an 18-year old leaving home in just 5 1/2 months (yes, I am counting) and a 4-year old who is almost never still and three pre-teen/teen boys in basketball near daily and a 17-year old finding her place in the world, just with our "Sweet Six" there is enough chaos and conversation in a day to suffice.

But added to that are numerous changes in schedule and ministry with FLORECE's move to its new permanent location and this week's soft launch of a downtown church plant on Sunday evenings in addition to the south side church plant on Sunday mornings. Not to mention the 45+ days of political and social unrest in Chile which currently has our city of Iquique looking like a war zone with sheet metal protecting store windows and barbed wire wrapping around businesses while marches still take place, sometimes multiple times a day.

And then there is the weight of need all around us, the consequence of these weeks of wanton destruction which have left many without work as rent comes due and there is no money to pay it. Also the tension of conflicting ideologies as each and every faction seems to clamor for their rights regardless if doing so infringes on the rights of others. There is little sense of joy or excitement in the air despite entering the Christmas season and what should have been the beginning of summer vacation. Most schools in the city have been without classes for many weeks now, having been overtaken by students and/or parents whether by choice or by threats from other parties.

One day rolls into the next and I barely seem to make a dent in my ever-lengthening list and often I start and end my days with dueling pressures and priorities stealing my own joy and sitting as an invisible burden on my shoulders. Tears well up at random moments, though my fourteen-year old assures me that his cousin said his mom (my sister) cried all the time during her oldest child's last year at home, too! ;) It is this humor and sweetness of my kids that lightens my days and it is the timeless truth of God's Word that stabilizes and centers my life. 

His Word rings truer and shines brighter the darker the world around us becomes. Only God's eternal purposes and plans make sense in the midst of so much insanity. No man and no government will ever provide the answers sought through peaceful protests and anarchy alike. When one party decries "neither forgiveness nor forgetting" and each group seeks its own best interest and revenge for past wrongs, this is not the way of Christ. When those in positions of power refuse to deny themselves or empathize with the weak and poor, this is not the example of our servant King. When Christians show more passion for politics and social justice and financial security than the salvation of eternal souls, their priorities are not those of Jesus.

It is so much easier to turn off emotions than engage with the hurting; to fling frustrated words at those doing obvious wrong; to give the cold shoulder to someone with whom we disagree than to live righteously, compassionately, and sacrificially in obedience to our Savior. When our home is in the "safe" zone and we can be personally unaffected in a physical sense by conflict and confrontations, it is tempting to tuck ourselves inside and allow mindless entertainment to numb the stress. Yet it is so important that we seek to provide a safe harbor to those in need around us. What does that look like? I cannot say that I know for certain. Sometimes it is just offering a family atmosphere to a lonely friend. Other times it is helping financially as we are able. Often it is simply checking in by phone with a word of encouragement, Scripture or prayer. Frequently it is choosing responses carefully and occasionally erasing the carefully typed statement we really want to spout on social media. All I know for sure is that God is still on His throne, and we are still learning to stay faithful in a fractured land.