Don’t Lose Heart.

Hey there, you beautiful soul. Let’s just pause for a second, wherever you are—sipping coffee, folding laundry, or maybe stealing a quiet moment in the car. I want us to lean into something together, something ancient yet still alive, something that feels like the still, small voice of the Divine. We’re going to dig into a few verses from 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, and I promise, they’re like a tiny spark that can light up the whole room of your heart. Here they are:

“Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Wow. Just… wow. Can you feel or sense the substance of those two verses? The tenderness? Paul, this guy who’s been through shipwrecks and prisons and all sorts of chaos, starts with this bold, gentle nudge: Don’t lose heart. It’s like he’s sitting across from you at a coffee shop, looking you in the eyes, saying, “I know it’s hard. I know you’re tired. But don’t give up.”

What does that stir in you? Because, let’s be real—sometimes life feels like it’s fraying at the edges. Maybe your body’s aching, or your heart’s carrying a grief that’s too heavy to name. Maybe it’s just the slow grind of the everyday, where you’re juggling bills and schedules and a million little worries. Paul sees that. He’s not pretending it’s all fine. He says, Outwardly, we’re wasting away. That’s honest, isn’t it? Things break down. Bodies age. Plans unravel.

But then—oh, then—he flips the script. Inwardly, we’re being renewed day by day. Isn’t that wild? It’s like there’s this quiet, steady work happening inside you, even when you can’t see it. Like a seed splitting open under the soil, or the first hint of dawn before the sun even crests the horizon. Renewal. Not a one-time fireworks show, but a daily, almost invisible unfolding. What if that’s true? What if, right now, in the middle of whatever you’re carrying, something new is being born in you?

And then Paul goes deeper. He calls our troubles light and momentary. Now, I don’t know about you, but sometimes my troubles feel like boulders, not feathers. Momentary? Some of you are thinking, “Paul, this pain has been my companion for years.” So what’s he doing here? I don’t think he’s dismissing our struggles. I think he’s inviting us to zoom out, to see the bigger canvas. These troubles, as real as they are, aren’t the whole story. They’re weaving something—something Paul calls an eternal glory.

Glory. That word’s got some heft, doesn’t it? In the Bible, it’s this sense of radiance, of divine weight, of something so real it makes everything else feel like a shadow. Your pain, your questions, your long nights—they’re not wasted. They’re part of this mysterious process, shaping something eternal, something that far outweighs the heaviness you’re carrying. Can you imagine that? That the stuff you’re walking through is somehow contributing to a beauty that’s bigger than you can grasp?

And here’s where Paul gets really mischievous: So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. Okay, Paul, how do you see the unseen? It’s like he Ascendant, right? It’s this cosmic paradox, this invitation to shift your gaze. The seen—the doctor’s report, the bank account, the broken relationship—that’s real, but it’s temporary. The unseen—the love that holds you, the hope that flickers, the divine presence that’s closer than your breath—that’s eternal. It’s like one of those optical illusions where you see a vase, but then you blink, and it’s two faces. Paul’s saying, “Blink. Look again. See the eternal.”

So, how do we do this? How do we train our hearts to notice the unseen? Maybe it’s as simple as starting your day with a breath and a question: What’s renewing in me today? Maybe it’s naming one thing you’re grateful for, even if it’s just the warmth of your coffee mug. Maybe it’s sitting in silence for a minute, letting yourself feel connected to something bigger. These aren’t grand gestures. They’re small, daily practices that tune your soul to the frequency of the eternal.

Here’s the thing: this isn’t about ignoring the pain or slapping a smiley face sticker on your struggles. Feel it all—the ache, the fear, the questions. But don’t let that be the only story. There’s another story, an unseen one, where renewal is happening, where glory is being forged, where the eternal is breaking through.

So, my friend, wherever you are today—whether you’re standing tall or barely holding on—don’t lose heart. Fix your eyes on the unseen. Trust that something beautiful, something eternal, is unfolding. And here’s an open-ended invitation: What’s one tiny way you can practice seeing the unseen today? Maybe it’s a moment of gratitude, a kind word to someone, or just a deep breath where you whisper, “I’m not alone.” What’s stirring in you? Let it simmer. Let it lead you somewhere new.

Grace and peace, always.
-Pastor Scott.

May 2, 2025 0

The Upside-Down Kingdom: Finding God in the Pressure Cooker

Friends, have you ever felt like you’re in a pressure cooker? Like life is just too much? The kind of pressure where you feel like you might crack under the weight of it all? The Thessalonians knew a thing or two about that. They were facing some serious heat, real challenges, and Paul, in his second letter to them, doesn’t shy away from it. But he doesn’t just offer a pat on the back and a “hang in there” either. He dives deep, offering a perspective shift that’s as relevant today as it was back then.

He starts, as he often does, with gratitude. “We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters,” he says, “and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.” (2 Thess 1:3, NIV). Think about that for a second. Even in the midst of their struggles, something was growing. Their faith. Their love for each other. It’s easy to focus on what’s wrong, what’s broken, what’s not working. But Paul, he flips the script. He highlights the good, the beautiful, the growing.

It’s a reminder for us too.
What’s growing in your life, even now? Even in the midst of the mess?
Maybe it’s a tiny seed of hope. Maybe it’s a flicker of compassion.
Nurture it.
Pay attention to it.
Because growth, even the smallest bit, is a sign of life.

Then he says something really interesting. He talks about their “persecutions and trials.”
He doesn’t sugarcoat it. Life was hard.
But he connects those very trials to something bigger. He says these trials are “evidence of God’s righteous judgment, so that you may be considered worthy of his kingdom, for which you are suffering.” (2 Thess 1:5, NIV).

Now, this isn’t some cosmic math equation where suffering equals worthiness. That’s not how grace works. Instead, it’s about character. It’s about how we respond to the pressure.
Do we become bitter and resentful? Or do we, somehow, through the struggle, become more like the person Jesus was?
The pressure, the trials, they can actually refine us, shape us, mold us into people of greater resilience, greater compassion, greater love. It’s not that God causes the suffering, but God uses it.
He redeems it. He transforms it.
Like a potter working with clay, the challenges we face can become the very things that make us stronger, more beautiful, more…us.

This idea of “God’s righteous judgment” isn’t about some distant, angry judge waiting to whack us with a gavel. It’s about the universe having a certain order to it. A rightness. A justice. And in this upside-down kingdom, it’s often through suffering that we learn what that justice truly looks like.
It’s through the cracks that the light gets in, as Leonard Cohen so beautifully put it.

So, where does that leave us? It leaves us with hope. It leaves us with a God who sees us, who knows our struggles, and who is working even in the messiest parts of our lives. It leaves us with the understanding that even the hard things, the painful things, can be a part of our journey towards becoming the people we were created to be. It leaves us with the courage to keep going, to keep loving, to keep believing, even when it feels like the world is falling apart. Because in this upside-down kingdom, the last shall be first, the weak shall be strong, and even suffering can be a pathway to glory.

And that, my friends, is good news.
Grace and Peace,
-Pastor Scott.

February 11, 2025 0

Eye of the Tiger

Ok…cue the music…let’s get it over with.

Perhaps I am showing my age, but I can remember going over to a friend’s house and cranking up his dad’s stereo and singing at the top of my lungs this song “Eye of the tiger”. I associated it with Rocky of course, but to me it spoke to the essence of my own life. It evoked for me a sense of iron determination and if I had that iron determination I could accomplish anything in life! I played soccer at the time and so I imagined myself out dribbling my opponent and scoring the game winning goal all because I had the ‘Eye of the Tiger’.

Still today I occasionally think about that song and even though many years have passed since I was young and screaming its lyrics at my friend’s house, I still get a charge out of it. The song still pumps me up and encourages me to keep on going no matter what obstacles might lay in my way.

In the spiritual realm, many so desperately need to have this ‘Eye of the tiger’ buried within their faith. Unfortunately it is not uncommon for fellow Christians to get so bogged down by burdens and stress and issues that they abandon their faith all together. Sometimes when the going gets tough those that lack the proper endurance fade away or simply abandon the cause all together. How sad it would be to have come so close to grasping the image of Christ in our lives and to just give up when we are spiritually attacked or oppressed.

Do spiritual crisis’ still come to those who are in Christ? You bet they do, in fact sometimes they often increase instead of diminishing. The father of lies, Satan himself, would love to deter us and convince us that this path that we’re on is too hard or impossible to continue. Often times when we see victories for Christ taking place in ministries and in our lives we may face strong spiritual opposition because Satan would love for us to give up and abandon instead of witnessing these victories that God provides.

You and I need the ‘Eye of the Tiger’ in our faith! We cannot be deterred by the slings and arrows that the evil one throws our way. But we must also be careful because, we cannot claim victory by and of our own strength. Our Heavenly Father will supply us our needs and our His strength all we have to do is ask for it and it will be given!

Perseverance is often viewed as keep on keeping on…willful determination in the face of adversity. We too, must keep going no matter what types of discouragement and obstacles we face!

Galatians 6:9 “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Do not give up! Don’t quit the fight or lose your way! Embrace this strength that comes from God so that we too can be more than conquerors!

“In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” Romans 8:378

Do you have the Eye of the Tiger in you today?

Better yet do you have the Eye of the Lion of Judah in you today? Don’t quit, your battle is not fought alone! You are not engaged in this spiritual war in and of your own strength either, He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion (Phil 1:6)!

Get on with it, stand boldly on your faith and keep on keeping on!

May 29, 2013 0