"We ought always to thank God for you brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing." 2 Thessalonians 1:3 (NIV)
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Advertising would lead us to believe that growth is this simple. It’s all about being bigger and better, and with one step - boom! You’re done! Unfortunately, it’s not true, is it? The lush, green lawn requires year-round care. The ripe, red tomatoes had to be planted in the right soil, receive the right amount of rain and sun, and get picked at the right time. Investments for retirement need to be planned when we are young. And the key to all of this growth is consistency, year-round care, daily monitoring of the ripening fruit, having a plan that weathers the ups and downs of the market. Yet, consistency is work. Consistency can be tedious and monotonous. So, we fall back and give up or seek simple solutions. We don’t pull the weeds in the lawn and now there are twice as many. We don’t take the time to check the plants, and now the tomatoes have split and are rotten. Or we pursue greed over charity or supporting more than our own financial gain.
Consistency is necessary for our growth in faith as well. Finding ways to care for one another, to be patient and kind, to be open-minded and forgiving, to be charitable, is no less work than anything else in life. To be honest, even “faith work” can be tedious and monotonous. I think we can all admit that at some point, we have said, “Whew! I’m getting a little tired of trying to do the right thing!"
But we are blessed by a God whose love is always consistent. God knows our struggles, and cares for us whether we have weeds in our lawn or were not as kind as we could have been today. He never gets tired of us, even when we are not growing our faith bigger and better and faster, because his love for us is through grace and faith alone.
We thank you, God, for your unceasing love, compassion, and forgiveness. Amen.
