Recently I sat down and had a catch-up conversation with a friend of 30 years who is grieving the tragic loss of one of her adult children—a young man taken in the prime of life where so many wonderful things were just beginning to happen. He was married only a short time, and he and his wife had just found out they were expecting their first child. I found myself mostly without words. I could feel her pain and exhaustion as she described her grief and wrestled with questions about faith. How does one even carry on?
Just a day or two before this, I spent time with a pastor processing their present situation. They were experiencing significant tiredness and a sense of being overwhelmed by life. A busy family, the complexities of leading a church, caring for an extended family member, all the while trying to care for themselves, and attempting to lead by example.
My guess is that all of us can relate to the weariness life inevitably brings. Life just keeps coming at us. Whether it is the unexpected hardships or the daily grind, all of us experience the ebbs and flows of managing full calendars. There are times where we seem able to “fire on all cylinders” despite the busyness. But there are also times where we get overwhelmed, discouraged, anxious, or afraid. Jesus did say to us “In this world you will have trouble…” Now, to be sure, sometimes we create our own trouble. We can overfill our calendars or overestimate our capacity; we can carry the expectations of others or ignore the signs our bodies are giving us. Realistically, not of us is invincible.
As a regional minister, there are times where I can feel the weight of the world on me. Most of the time I get a call not when everything is sailing along but when there is uncertainty or difficulty. I am thankful that a pastor will call me when they are working something out, or need a listening ear, or simply need to know they are not alone. It is an honour to come alongside a church in a time of transition or difficulty and help them to work through a situation as best as they can. But, in all honesty, there are moments where I wrestle with the cost of what I often carry.
By now, you might be deciding whether you wish to read any further; this just sounds depressing! So, let me take you to a familiar passage of scripture that invites us to recalibrate to Truth in the midst of the realities and challenges of life.
‘But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you’. 2 Corinthians 9:7-12 (NIV)
When Paul in 2 Corinthians speaks of a ‘treasure’, he is referring back to verse 6 which says: ‘For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ’.
By faith, we have the light of Christ in our hearts. But… this treasure is in fragile containers. Why? To show that this power is from God and not from us. As we face the challenges of life, there is a realism we are invited to recognize. We are fragile, and anything that is fragile needs to be handled with care. But in these fragile containers resides the light and life of the God of the universe. And so…
The pressures of life do not need to destroy us. (We are hard pressed but not crushed.) I don’t know anyone who isn’t dealing with the pressures of this life. Relationships, finances, time management, personal health (we could make a long list…) God promises to give us strength when we are weak, and He reminds us of what is true. First, the church does not belong to us. He’s got it. He tells us rest is a part of His plan for our lives. His burden is easy, and His yoke is light! How much are you carrying? Is it yours to carry?
Confusion need not overwhelm us. (Perplexed, but not in despair.) In a world where we are overrun by social media, where it is hard to determine what is true, and where chaos seems to rule the day, Christ invites us to find our rest in Him. Is Christ still in control? Does He have a plan that is still in place? Are we spending time in the scriptures and with Him? Do we need to put down our phones or reorient our time?
Opposition will not defeat us. (Persecuted but not abandoned.) In a world of increasing polarization and individuality, we can find ourselves feeling attacked from every side. We are daily being scrutinized, judged, or marginalized, but Jesus knows and has walked this road ahead of us. While we face opposition will we trust in God’s provision and plan? Do we look forward in faith?
We may get knocked down but not knocked out. (Struck down but not destroyed.) Life will bring the unexpected. In the midst of the ordinary challenges of life there are things that take place that are just the horrible outcomes of sin and confusion in the world. Situations that we cannot tie up neatly or outline with a silver marker. But Christ in us means that His life is alive in us, and we are not alone. He will show us how and give us the ability to get back up and carry on. Will we trust God for things we cannot see? Do we believe that we grow most in the easy or in the hard?
The call for us is to reflect the Light that already lives in us by faith. We are stewards of all that God has graciously and generously given us. We are not called to save the world, Christ already has. We are fragile so that we might recognize we were not made to go it alone. I am challenged in these days to lead in a better way. To see my work each day as a vessel for the light and life of Jesus. I don’t need to have every answer. I don’t need to meet every need. I cannot fix every situation or solve every problem. But, in faith, I can bring the Kingdom to the light in my conversations, my community, and my interactions. I can trust that God will give me all I need, and that by His Spirit He will do far more than I could ever hope for.
Submitted by Tim Kerber, Regional Minister for the Mountain Standard Region
Holding Hope in Unexpected Hardship–
Strathcona Baptist Church
Chris and Peggy Ward are deeply cherished members of Strathcona Baptist Church and have played a vital role in the life of SBC for many years. In May 2024, Chris first met Pastor Duane Guthrie during the pastor’s initial interview, while serving on the SBC Search Committee. Just days later, Chris suffered a devastating mountain bike accident that left him quadriplegic.
In the wake of this life-altering event, Pastor Duane met with Chris again and was introduced to Peggy for the first time. From that moment, a journey of love, faith, and resilience began—one marked by deep grief, unwavering prayer, profound pain, and steadfast hope. For the past eight months (and counting), Chris, Peggy, and the entire SBC family have walked this road together, leaning on God and one another as they navigate the immense challenges and unexpected changes that have come to a family so dearly loved.
In December 2024, Chris wrote his church family a letter to share some of his journey. It is a profound and honest testament to his faith and questions in the midst of this life-altering event. A congregant shared this with regional minister Tim Kerber who asked if it might be okay to share with our greater CBWC family. With Chris’s permission, here is his letter:
“To my dear brothers and sisters in Christ at Strathcona Baptist Church, thank you so much for your love and kindness to Peggy and me over the past six months. Your many prayers and visits have truly helped carry us through many dark and difficult days. I do not understand God’s purpose in my life at this time, but I trust in His love.
I have heard that some of you are also struggling with “how a loving God could allow this to happen?” Or “Why do bad things happen to good people?”
For those struggling, God is with us. At times, He feels very distant and silent. A dear friend encouraged me that God is closest to us when He is quietest. I still want Him to speak with me and rescue me, but I am encouraged that He is close and understands my pain. He rejoices over us with gladness; He exalts over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). His quiet presence has helped me through some very dark and difficult days, and I pray that you will also experience God’s presence in your life.
I am not ‘good.’ When God created man and woman he did declare us, along with all creation, good (Genesis 1:31). However, we lost our goodness as a result of the fall (Genesis 3). Man and woman, along with all of creation, can no longer claim to meet God’s standard of ‘goodness.’ What we are usually asking is not ‘Why do bad things happen to good people?’ but ‘Why do bad things happen to me?’ The simple answer is because of the fall. As a direct consequence of the fall, suffering and death has entered the world. This includes the unfortunate situation in which I find myself. Daily I am in prayer with God pleading with Him for physical healing and to lessen the burden. However, this is on bended knee, as a penitent sinner begging Him for mercy.
With so many friends around the world all brothers and sisters in Christ, fervently praying for a healing miracle, why has God not responded? We are promised that “by His wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). This is a wonderful prophecy of the suffering servant that was fulfilled by Jesus on the cross. All who believe in Jesus are healed and are restored in righteous relationship with God. We are healed from the bondage of sin. But what about physical healing? Jesus chose to heal many during His earthly ministry including a paralytic (Mark 2:1-12). He also reminded His listeners that God doesn’t just save the chosen people (Luke 4:26-27). We can’t expect a healing miracle simply because we are Christians. Jesus is aware of humanity’s weak nature. When He healed ten lepers only one came back to give thanks and praise God (Luke 17:11-19). What Jesus is seeking is a change of heart and that every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that He is Lord (Philippians 2:11).
But what about the fervent prayers of so many faithful followers, and the many visions of a physical healing? It is very hard to understand God’s will through this accident. He promises to command His angels to guard us in all circumstances (Psalms 91:11). Yet still accidents happen to all, including God’s followers. It is hard to reconcile God’s promises with the severe nature of my accident. Even if I never understand, and should God never deliver me from this burden, I will stand with the three faithful followers facing the fiery furnace and declare I will serve Him alone (Daniel 3:17). My faith is not dependent on God providing a miracle, and my prayer for you is that your faith remains strong through the time of testing.
I am still stretched to the breaking point, and continually struggle with God to relieve the suffering, even to complete physical restoration. God promises that He will never allow us to be tested beyond our strength to endure (1 Corinthians 10:13). In my anguish I have cried to God, yet He has chosen to date to leave me in my distress. So, should we give up on prayer? Not at all. God promises that you will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13). One consequence of my accident has been a significant increase in my prayer life. I am much more on bended knees before God than ever before in my lifetime. My previous practice had been a short morning devotion, including a brief time for prayer, before beginning my day based on my own sense of priorities. I am now spending considerable time throughout the day in prayer, including many prayers for you, my dear friends and family. You have often been in my thoughts and prayers, as well as my own circumstances. My priorities are now more based on God and others and less on my own desires, although I still find myself being distracted from doing that which God has put on my heart. Yet, God keeps patiently calling me back to His priority for my life. God has shown me how my priorities were completely upside down from His. My prayer is that through my circumstances we can all gain a deeper appreciation for continuous prayer, spending time throughout the day seeking God’s guidance and direction in all we do.
Through this incident God is also teaching me a lesson in patience as I wait on Him to respond. Whereas I assumed I was a fairly patient person, I have become aware just how impatient I am in certain situations. We live in a world of instant gratification. What we want is almost immediately available. When you are dependent on others to supply all of your needs, you are forced to be patient; waiting for others to respond as they are able. (Times of waiting have now become time for prayer.) We are also impatient as we wait on the Lord. Often we expect instant gratification from Him in line with our expectations of how He should respond. This is applying worldly expectations to Him. But God doesn’t act in that manner. He is waiting for us to ask Him what we need in line with His desire to give us good gifts (Matthew 7:11, Jeremiah 29:11). We must patiently and persistently ask God, day and night, to supply our needs like the persistent widow (Luke 11:7). This is not an easy lesson to accept.
Should we give up on hope? This is what the world is telling us every day—accept your circumstances as a result of fate. But we don’t believe in a capricious God who plays chance with the destiny of people. Three times, Paul prayed that the thorn in his side be removed before God spoke to him to accept it as a demonstration of His power working through weakness (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). Until God tells me to cease, I will continually seek to be released from my suffering. I empathize with the psalm writer’s cries of lament – My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! (Psalm 22:1-2, 19).”
Your brother in Christ,
Chris Ward
Reflecting the Glory of God
Back in 2018, before the pandemic, Janice Wilson, a missionary kid who had grown up alongside Greg Butt (Pastor of Northmount Baptist Church in Calgary) had an idea. Janice was an artist who had learned the skill and come to love the art of creating stained glass. In conversation, they decided to float the idea of creating a stained-glass group at the church who could create beautiful stained glass inserts for the many plain windows in the building.
A small and enthusiastic group of congregants who had no experience in this medium engaged the idea and, with Janice’s instruction and guidance, began to create their first window. In partnership the church, congregants, and Janice contributed to the project with the supplies of glass, lead, and tools.
Over the past many years, the number of completed projects has grown to 7. The stained-glass group that meets in the church basement once a week has had a few people come for a season, but the core group of 4—Mary, Brandi, Shirley Ann—and Janice have remained constant.
As the confidence and skill level of the group has grown, so has the scope of the project. They have created a couple of windows in honour of long-term serving members. They have done work on a series of windows depicting the story of the scriptures, from creation to resurrection. The project includes windows with themes such as sheep, fish, the cross and the empty tomb.
Shirley Ann, who has grown up in the church and is the creative lead behind drawings for the windows, says that she remembers being fascinated by the stained-glass windows in the sanctuary as a child which stimulated curiosity about the stories they represented and helped cement some of the ideas presented during sermons. Stained glass and other art forms are uniquely able to tell a story and captivate the mind with the message of the Gospel.
Submitted by Northmount Baptist Church- Calgary, AB
This regional newsletter is published quarterly within the CBWC’s monthly newsletter, Making Connections. Have a story idea? Email our senior writer, Hannah Hamm: hhamm@cbwc.ca