More than conquerors

This week I went to see the film Noah with the youth group from church. Despite the film having very little in common with the Bible story we had a good time with the teenagers, who enjoyed some time chilling in the shopping centre as well before we went in to the cinema. I also saw Noah again on Monday evening with my Old Testament theology class, which was fun although led to lots of my classmates exasperatedly declaring that the director has clearly "slipped on the mayonnaise" (got very carried away - my favourite Portuguese idiom to date!)

Some of the teenagers at the cinema!

This week I also had a tapioca making lesson at my friend Dulce's house (one of the other volunteers at the project in Barra). Tapioca is this amazing kind of pancakey, bready, pastyish food, made out of a grated root vegetable - I'm mildly addicted. I'd like to claim those below as my own but sadly they are very definitely thanks to google, however by the end of my lesson my tapiocas were getting a bit less holey and ragged-looking! 

Halfway through tapioca eating, an adorable pair of twins turned up. I had met Davi and Vitória (who will be one in May) once before and so was very very happy to see them again and get to play with them!

On Thursday we went to visit Maria, a lady who came out of hospital last week. It was great to see her looking so much stronger and finally back with her two small children at home. It was also particularly exciting to hear that she'd been loving reading the Bible we'd left with her in hospital and had even decided to go to a church that Sunday. She is still pretty ill but she seemed so much more herself and it was really encouraging. 

I had a quite challenging lesson at the project in Barra on Monday due to one of the children's very disruptive behaviour. However definitely a good way of learning patience and despite this it was great to be there as always. 

I went for a long walk on the beach this morning to think some things over and this combined with the run up to Easter, the book I've been reading and just life in general made me want to write these next few thoughts down. 

The best thing in my life without a question is my relationship with God. However that doesn’t mean that life as a Christian is all smiles and easy and problem free, it doesn’t mean that tragedy, illness and pain will not be a part of our journey. In fact The Bible describes the Christian life as “a fight”, a “race” in which we “wrestle” and struggle and are  called to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily and follow Jesus (Eph 6:12, 2 Tim 4:7, Luke 9:23). I see that battle each day, in my own struggles with sin, in the health and money and relationship problems of the Christians around me, in the teenager teased because of his faith, the wife striving to save her marriage, the grieving father. However The Bible does not only tell us that this struggle is to be expected, but that it is already won. We do not have to despair, because as Christians we can have confidence in a certain victory; “weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). There’s an analogy that I love by a guy called Oscar Cullmann who likens the Christian life to the end of the Second World War, after D-day, when the decisive battles had been fought, Hitler’s defeat was inevitable and yet the battle was not over for another eleven months. The war was essentially won and yet the fighting went on. If we believe in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross then this is the position that we stand in as Christians. On the cross Jesus made a way for us to have freedom, forgiveness, peace and eternal life and if we trust in his death and resurrection then we can be sure that we can have these things. Yet the struggles here on earth are not quite over; for now we are still sinners, we still have those moments when we mess up, when our heart and our head seem to be longing for opposite things and when we are tired of pressing on. But how incredible to know that we are “more than conquerors” through Jesus and to see just how worth persevering it is. How amazing would it be to one day be able to say like Paul?

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 

Maybe you’re reading this and thinking ‘what an absolute load of rubbish, I wish she’d stop waffling on and just put some cute photos of children up!’ If that’s the case, then I beg you this Easter to think about what it really means, to take a few minutes to read about that man who died on a cross 2000 years ago and changed the course of history. To read the story of his life, (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+1) to understand what it’s all about, as I should have taken the time to do many years before I finally did.

Or maybe you’re reading this and you believe and trust in Jesus but you’re feeling worn down by the battle that the Christian life can be. Be encouraged that the victory is certain, that God is with you every step of the way and that Jesus walked where you are walking; he was tempted, he wept, he felt joy and sadness and excitement and pain. Keep going and remember this Easter how many reasons we have to praise God!

I hope this finds you well and that those of you at home for holidays are getting some chance to rest, sending lots of love xxx