Responding as Disciples to a Time of Unrest

When the virus hit our house, my family had only been back at school for a week. So even though my kids had protested the return to school after the long summer break, the prospect of isolating so soon after reuniting with their friends dealt a serious blow.

Add to this that we had finally succumbed to the very thing we had been so careful to avoid for the last 2 years and the very real possibility of sickness sweeping through our family, and we were dealing with disappointment, sadness, grief, fear, and uncertainty. There were tears, anger, sullenness and long stares out the window.

And all of this raised the question for me: as a family of believers, how do we deal with this collective adversity?

Yesterday Russia invaded Ukraine. 

Today the death toll is at 57 (since I began writing, it has climbed to 137). The air is filled with the noise of sirens and bombs. Ukraine has ordered a full-scale military mobilization to counter the Russian attack. Thousands are withdrawing money from their banks and stockpiling food and water. Cars are lined up for kilometers seeking to cross the borders of neighbouring countries. The western world is imposing severe economic sanctions on Russia.

This is serious. This is scary. Where will it all go?

And line this up with all that’s happened locally and globally in the last 2 years. It’s safe to say that the world is dealing with collective adversity as well.

The young people in your youth or children’s ministry might be: scared, sad, uncertain, confused, angry or any number of other responses.

And all of this raises the same question I had for my family: as a community of believers, how do we deal with this collective adversity?

I think there are some clues in a book of the bible I’ve spent time in recently:

Lamentations chapter 3 has that beautiful verse: 

Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)

But what’s amazing is the context of that verse in chapter 3. Here’s a selection of ideas that come earlier in the chapter.

• I became the laughingstock of all my people; they mock me…  

• I have been deprived of peace  

• My soul is downcast within me. 

Leading up to the famous verses the writer is cataloguing all the ways in which “he” – read “God’s people” – have suffered adversity. He can “remember [his] affliction and wandering, the bitterness and the gall” (v19).

And yet, in the middle of listing all this hardship he “calls to mind” (v21) that “because of the Lord’s, love, we are not consumed”, and that “his compassions never fail” (v23).

And therefore he “has hope” (v21).

What this amazing chapter shows us is that we can simultaneously:

1. Experience grief and sadness in adversity

2. Have hope in the Lord’s great love and faithfulness

How did I deal with collective adversity with my family?

I called a family meeting (we’re one of those weird families) and we had a time of lament. This included two things:

1. We prayed together expressing our sadness and grief to God. Each of us prayed, “Dear God, I’m sad about…”

2. We read scriptures that reminded us of the great love and faithfulness of God. We read Psalm 123 which reminded us to look to the Lord for help “till he shows us his mercy” and recalled Revelation 21 and the eternal future for all those in Christ where “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain for the old order of things has passed away”.

Could you do this in your ministry? Here’s a plan for you to use: 

1. As a big group, reflect on the current situation in the world and read lamentations 3:1-23.

2. Break into small groups and pray prayers of lament such as: 

   • Dear God I’m sad that…  

   • Dear God I’m scared about… 

   • Dear God I’m worried about… 

3. Have a few people lead in prayer for: 

   • Peace in Ukraine 

   • The People of Ukraine 

   • Christians in Ukraine 

   • For leaders in the conflict to desire what God desires 

4. Read some scriptures that remind people of God’s love and faithfulness such as: 

   • Deuteronomy 7:9 

   • Psalm 46, Psalm 91, Psalm 121, Psalm 123 

   • Matthew 11:28 

   • Romans 8:38 

   • Ephesians 1:18-23 

   • Revelation 21:4 

5. Have someone close in prayer.

God of the nations, whose kingdom rules over all, have mercy on our broken and divided world. Shed abroad your peace in the hearts of all men and women and banish from them the spirit that makes for war; so that all races and people may learn to live as members of one family and in obedience to your laws; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Peace – An Australian Prayer Book, p96)