A Faithful Defiance

One year ago, we thought we had turned the corner on COVID-19 and life would soon return to normal. 

Yet the following months offered little relief.

A toxic yeast of intolerance and assumption — around masks and vaccine mandates and political motivations — had been kneaded into all spheres of society and was expanding the dough of dissension at an exhausting rate.

As the following months unfolded, more ingredients were  added to the recipe of global distress: a new COVID variant, further political polarization and, most recently, the devastating events transpiring in Ukraine. 

The weariness of the world can seem too heavy to bear, yet incessant streaming headlines of dissent and despair tell only a part of the larger Story.

Peter Greer, CEO of HOPE International, shares how  everyday work can be  a powerful source of light and hope in the midst of unfathomable darkness:

“Ukraine is known as the breadbasket of Europe. Its abundant harvests feed people throughout Eastern Europe and beyond. Many of the entrepreneurs we [HOPE Intl.] serve work in agriculture, and amid attacks they’ve had to determine whether to leave their homes and businesses to move west. For greenhouse farmers, this would mean abandoning their already-planted crops. For those who farm in open fields, this is the time to plant. If farmers wait to see the war’s outcome, they will miss the window to yield a successful harvest. If they plant now, with the outcome of the war still unknown, occupying Russian forces might seize their harvests.

Yet many are choosing to plant.

They know that without their crops, Ukraine will likely face a food crisis, unleashing a ‘hurricane of hunger’ that will add to the war’s casualties. As they sow their fields, some farmers bear Ukrainian flags on their tractors. They’re sending a strong and clear message to Russian forces that they predict an end to this war, as they toil on their land for their people.

Choosing to plant is a defiant sign of hope.”*

We’ve witnessed such beautiful, faithful defiance before. It echoes throughout history:

When Corey ten Boom embroidered flowers on bits of soiled material while in the Ravensbruck concentration camp. She didn’t know that one day she’d use her hand-stitched tapestry while sharing her story of hope redeemed. 

When Mary Magdalene, full of grief and despair, dutifully trekked to the tomb so she could finish anointing the lifeless body of Jesus. She didn’t know that she’d bear witness to a miracle that would be celebrated throughout human history.

When you, in the midst of a broken world or a broken body or a broken spirit, do whatever daily work you’ve been given to do to the best of your ability. Particularly when the work itself feels insignificant OR overwhelming.

As you go about your work of creating strategic plans, cleaning restrooms, or caring for young children, take heart.

Yes, we are weary. But just like Corrie ten Boom and Mary Magdalene and the farmers planting crops in Ukraine, the overwhelming circumstances of the day don’t dictate the end of the story. In reality, our daily work is woven throughout the larger narrative and provides innumerable glimpses of the world as it one day will be.

Sometimes the seemingly mundane work we’re given to do

 is the brightest light we can shine 

into the darkness of the world.

Because He lives.

* https://www.peterkgreer.com/2022/03/29/after-the-siege-preparing-for-new-life/