Page 38 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 14

first release what we have held onto that God is opens with the idea of purity being refined by
now not ordaining. That allows us to next en-
gage in submission and perspective taking, not
unlike “radical acceptance” in Dialectic Beha-
vior Therapy (DBT, Pederson, 2017) but letting
go in favor of a greater meaningful context, not
just what I take to be what is. Meditating on the
myriad realities of His goodness and contem-
plating His presence in the here and the now
is the basis for gratitude and hope (again, not
unlike DBT). Of course, clinical work, and life,
is comprised by the myriad of obstacles to this
process and patiently walking down the road
becomes part of the “Way we should walk” tog-
ether. It is about the journey, but it is also about
the destination – that’s the point of a path.
Suffering as both normative and fundamental
It is a truism that life brings suffering. The questi- himself with that fraternity before ending
on is not whether life brings difficulty and pain
(Peck, 1978, p. 1) but its meaning. In Matthew
10:16-39, Jesus, in sending out the twelve, pro-
mises them painful, humiliating and dangerous
experiences. In John 15 and 16, Jesus first tells
the twelve that he “loves” them (v. 9-12), and
that there are his “friends” (v. 13-15), they are
to “love one another” (v. 12- 17) but then tells
them that the world will “hate” them (v. 19-21).
He expands on this theme of rejection, suffering
and tribulation (chap 16) but importantly con-
nects managing this with the “Helper” (15: 26)
upon which he expands (16: 5-15). Weathering
this requires what the King James Version calls
the “comforter.” (John 15:16, KJV)
Paul in Rom 5:3 and 8: 17 and 1 Th 1:6, and 2
Tim 1:8 and 2:3 considers suffering normal and
a necessary part of Christian growth deeply
intertwined with the ministry of the Holy Spi-
rit and power (2:3), in Phil 1:29 with salvation
and the Holy Spirit. In this world, “self aid and
buddy care” while being an important tactic is
stress management, not an overall strategy (see
also Acts 14:22). Further, James asks us to as-
sign positive value of suffering, considering this
as an investment that will pay large dividends.
James appears to have Mal 3:3 and Zech 13: 9 in
mind where the heat of refinement results in an
increase of value when he returns to the theme
of refinement in James 5:10-11, referencing Job.
Peter’s first letter echoes these themes which
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trials, again with reference to the word and to
the Spirit (e.g vs 1:22). He moves on to us suf-
fering harsh and unjust behavior by those with
power (2:19-20), then discussing close relati-
onships, moving on to loving one another but
possibly suffering at the hands of other belie-
vers and others for our righteousness (3:14),
and in 4:1, when we accept such suffering, that
sin has far less control over our lives. But it is
in 4:12-19 that Peter paints the most powerful
image of those who have served together and
suffered. The image is like the special intimacy
war buddies share who suffer the same sorrows
and then experience the same victories when
coming home together. They are bonded both
in suffering and later in glory when that comes
(vs 13), and further in 5:1, this time identifying
in 5:9-10 where God will “perfect, establish,
strengthen and settle” (NKJV) us.
Gaining Some Perspective
Now, it is important to be clear that I am using
the term “Christian” in a more restricted sen-
se, meaning someone who approaches life,
thought, and relationships first with God as a
fundamental axiom of reasoning, relating, and
organizing their life and behavior, and this firm-
ly rooted in Christian scripture. The connection
of the Christian with God, furthermore, is me-
diated through the person of Christ, the under-
standing of this being also rooted in the scrip-
ture though augmented by their theological
tradition. All of this is to say that the Christian
is an authentic disciple of Christ (Acts 11:26).
In Christian Psychology faith is not ancillary to
how a person’s life operates but is fundamental,
definitive and pervasive in its influence (Deut
6:5; John 8:42; 14:15). But with that comes the
concern not simply to offer services, but to also
love God and to love others (Mar 12:29-31).
But this “loving God and others” is not prima-
rily affirmational, though does affirm, but is
highly principled as it derives from 1 John 4:7 -
5: 3 where “the love of God” is defined in terms
of principles of behavior, though it is modified
and further expanded by 1 Cor 13 because the
latter is not a definition but a description. No-
tice that the issue is 1 John is both following