The Joy of Glory

Discovering endless joy in the boundless glory of God…

Tag: pain

February 2, 2014

Dear Faith Family of SVCC

*Today, at our annual family meeting, I breifly reflected on many things that happened among our SVCC faith family during 2013.  Below are the thoughts I shared in the form of a letter.

Dear Faith Family of SVCC,

_DSC0152It is difficult to express everything that I feel in my heart about 2013. I think the greatest analogy that comes to mind is that of childbirth…after all, my third little one, Talitha, entered the world this past year. Through that miracle of life I have found myself reflecting again and again on the joy that comes through pain.

Perhaps that is the best way I can describe 2013…it has been a year of joy amidst pain. In our own home we experienced quite a scare through the birth of Talitha as Holly dealt with some serious after-effects of the birth. Our daughter Charis was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder and our parenting challenges seem new every morning. My brother and his bride moved overseas. And there are various other challenges I will not mention…I do not want this to sound like a list of complaints. It is not.

Amidst all the pain, and I know many of you have endured much greater this year, we have seen the faithfulness of God again and again. He never left us as Holly struggled through birth complications, He is ever present in our parenting and Charis is a constant reminder of his grace, and I praise him daily that my brother and sister-in-law have followed his leading to take the gospel wherever he leads. Without fail, there is joy amidst pain for he is amidst the pain!

IMG_2232At SVCC this year we have experienced pain. I have sat with some of you before surgeries or beside hospital beds and prayed. Some of you have seen loved ones make the transition from this life to the next. There are some which have been hurt by those who they trusted. Many of you have allowed me to see and know you amidst your pain and you have shared in mine…and it has been beautiful for I have seen your joy.

Even when some have felt like there was no joy to be found, I have watched others gather around them and pray for them, fight for them, hold on to them. There have been relationships healed, children born, adoptions granted…both physical and spiritual. We have seen many come to Christ, be baptized and grow in him. Amidst all the pain there has been extreme joy because Jesus is always amidst our pain!

IMG_2233Of course there have been some practical, external things that we are thankful for in 2013. We’ve partnered with Common Thread Community to open a studio, there are nearly 50 musicians involved in the worship ministry, and John-Mark joined us as our worship leader. The women’s ministry had their largest retreat, there are college students coming out our ears, we’re setting up chairs fairly regularly, and there are two new community groups. The youth have grown, I have parents sending me Facebook messages like this, “Is youth group happening tonight…I just need to check because it is my daughter’s favorite part of her week.” The children’s ministry is the same, especially with interact, this past fall we saw our kids really engage through prayer (evidenced by the prayer walls).  We’ve also prayed over Ashford Taylor as she heads to Spain, Carley O’Neal to Australia, and Emily Echevarria to India. All of these things are awesome…massive blessings…but they are only happening by the grace of God!

Any success here is not in how large retreats are or how many chairs we set out…we do not boast in numbers (that’s why we don’t really count them), we do not boast in anything but Jesus…and the only reason I list all of those things is to say…Jesus is at work.  Amidst pain, through pain, we see him at work and we rejoice!

Nothing has increased my faith more this year than seeing you praise amidst pain. I’m not trying to make it sound like this year has been all pain…it hasn’t, but many times you can hear from a church leader and it just sounds like life is totally awesome all the time and that’s not reality. We have had pain this year, but you have praised amidst it all and that shows the world the glory of Jesus unlike anything else!

Praise amidst pain magnifies the majesty of Jesus!

Let’s keep magnifying Jesus! No matter what comes our way in 2014! No matter if the year is awesome or awful, let us be full of awe! No matter if it feels like we are being showered with blessings or if it feels like we are being beaten down by a deluge of suffering…Jesus is with us amidst any storm and he can walk on any amount of water!  Let’s trust him and praise him and make him known to the nations.

I love you all. May his grace be with us,

Jonathan

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May 21, 2013

Talitha…

IMG_5064This one was different.

I awoke at 5:45am to my wife telling me she was in labor and immediately I knew…this was not the same as before. Sure it was our third kid, but something in her voice said that was irrelevant. This morning was sure to be full of surprises. And, why wouldn’t it be? This entire pregnancy had not been anything like the other two.

Intense labor pains began to set in, and by the time we got to the van, I knew we had to hurry. As I climbed in the driver’s seat, Holly began to get into the back when a strong contraction hit! She grabbed onto the side of the van and spoke to me in a voice I had never heard come out of my wife before, “Jonathan! We are gonna have this baby NOW!!!”

She made it into the car, and the scene became something you would picture happening only in the movies. I threw caution (and the law) to the wind as I ran stop signs, doubled (even tripled) the speed-limit, and raced through Homewood. I must give props to the folks at Toyota…the Sienna is a mini-van with some real get-up and go power!

Throughout the drive, my foot grew heavier as my wife’s extreme pain became more apparent…via volume. This was different. Holly was able to receive pain medication with the first two and wanted to go natural with this one…natural would be the only option at this point.

IMG_5062I zoomed into a parking spot and rushed her upstairs as fast as I could. We didn’t fill out paper work or go through any normal protocol…there wouldn’t even be time for an IV. We were rushed straight into a room where the nurses tried to keep Holly from pushing until the doctor could arrive.

He made it, but barely.

Her water broke at 6:55am and just 22 minuets later, Talitha Mae Haefs made her way into the world at 7:17am.

Going through labor alongside my bride with no pain medication was a whole new experience. Never before had I seen her or another human being in such pain…and I’ve witnessed some pretty painful events in my day (just ask my brother). I felt so helpless, so lost, so useless as she thought her whole body was about to break.

During those minutes that felt like days, Genesis 3:16 went through my mind over and over, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.”

Scripture was alive in the room with me.

I thought I had always understood this verse…understood why God determined that children should come into the world through pain. You see, as a result of sin, all humans have come under the judgment of of God and deserve death. We experience death gradually through pain and ultimately as our life expires.

I always thought that children were born through much pain as a reminder to us that every human comes into a world of pain, through pain, under the judgment of God. Every new life will experience pain and death in this world for we are all children of wrath by nature. I still believe that is true, but it is only half the truth. It is only half the reason for the pain in childbirth.

As I encouraged my wife through immense pain, the moment finally came…Talitha was here. In that moment…pain lost.

IMG_5052There was not only sheer relief, but extreme ecstasy and joy! The room filled with laughter, and my wife broke into a full on smile! This was the truth I had missed concerning pain in childbirth…

The pain ends and life wins.

Pain is not the last word of Genesis 3:16. The last word is life! “In pain (first word)…you shall bring forth children (last word).” You will go through incredible, unbelievable pain, but through this will come new life!

This is a small picture of the Gospel itself! Jesus Christ took all of our sin and its consequences of pain and death upon himself on the cross. He went through immense, incredible, intense pain (first word)! But, he rose from the dead (last word)! Through his death comes new, ultimate life.

The pain ends and life wins!

Pain and suffering are a guaranteed part of this life, but it is also guaranteed that they have ultimately been defeated by Jesus! And, just like in the delivery room where there came a moment when my wife and baby were delivered from pain to joy…so also will there be a moment for every believer in Christ when we are delivered from all trials into the everlasting arms of our father!

IMG_5119The pain will end and life will win.

For this reason, we can victoriously endure! Think about it like this…God gloriously designed the female body to endure birth pains for the joy that is set before them…so also, he has provided the power and grace for us to endure for the joy set before us! For a mom, birth pains lead to new life. For a believer, suffering leads to eternal life!

Suffering serves God’s glory and our good! Therefore ,we are MORE than conquerors when we suffer! Because Jesus not only guarantees that we will have victory over suffering (that makes us a conqueror), but victory in the midst of suffering for it serves our purposes to bring us to him (that makes us MORE than conquerors)!

Through suffering, we will know life…through death, we will know resurrection…because the pain will end and life will win.

Through Talitha’s birth, Jesus has taught me this truth ,and he will always remind me of it simply through her name. Talitha is Aramaic for “little girl.” It comes from chapter Mark 5 where Jesus raises a little girl from the dead with the words, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, get up.”

When Jesus speaks, death loses.

IMG_5157The name Talitha reminds me that God is in the business of calling forth life from death. He will bring us through pain and suffering by his power and grace, for his glory, and the joy will be ours! Everlasting joy that will overshadow all the pain.

As I go through suffering in life, Talitha helps me remember that Jesus is with me, working a miracle of resurrection for his glory and my good. Talitha helps me remember that pain is not the end and that death does not get the final word.

Talitha helps me remember that the pain ends and life wins.

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