Dear Trinity Family,

I am writing to let you know how much I am looking forward to worship this coming Sunday as we kick off a new ministry year here at Trinity with a focus on Learning for Life. After a summer spent worshiping outdoors, it will be wonderful to be back inside in our normal worship space again. While many have enjoyed outdoor worship, I know many are also excited to get back inside. With the ongoing complexities of the pandemic, every decision comes with tradeoffs. Being outdoors has allowed us to be mask-free all summer long in the beautiful weather God has given us, but it has also made it difficult for a few of our worshipers to join us. Going indoors will require masking for everyone for the time being in accordance with current state mandates, but it also means we will not be subject to fall weather conditions (although the smoke this past Sunday showed that there are exceptions even to that!), and our worship will be able to return to a greater sense of normalcy in many ways.

Over the summer I had the opportunity to spend some time in three different places that have played a major role in my life. Back in June, our family traveled down to southern California. Being back in the state where my parents grew up, where I was born, and where my surviving grandparents still live was especially nostalgic this time around as we gathered for my grandmother’s memorial service. In August, we headed out to Michigan to spend some time with my wife’s parents and see some dear friends, and I had the opportunity to connect with a number of people I was privileged to serve with at St. Lorenz for 7+ years. Just last weekend, we visited my family in Hermiston as we got together to discuss how we can all support my sister and her husband who are planning to adopt internationally. It’s always a strange feeling being in your hometown that isn’t quite home anymore. As with any return to one’s former stomping grounds, these visits brought back memories of triumphs and challenges, struggles and joys experienced in each of these places.

Each of these three visits were refreshing for me, and I am grateful for the time I was able to spend in these special places. They also drove home for me all the more that we are in an incredibly unusual and challenging time. Covid restrictions were never before a part of my experience in any of these places as they were this time around. God allowed me to see in a new way the parallel truths that “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven,” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) while at the very same time, “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). We have always faced challenges. There have always been controversial issues and divisive topics. Though many of us feel especially pressed right now, God has seen us through many trials before, and He will see us through this unique time in which we find ourselves now.

But what does God desire for us as we navigate these times when fear and anger seem to hold sway over us in equal measure and consensus even among God’s people is so hard to reach? I am reminded of Paul’s treatment of a controversial topic of his day—the sacrificing of meat to idols. In 1 Corinthians 8, Paul introduces the topic by saying this: “Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that ‘all of us possess knowledge.’ This ‘knowledge’ puffs up, but love builds up.” Some of the Corinthians were absolutely convinced that their own personal view on the topic was the only one that was correct and God-pleasing. Other Corinthians held the exact opposite position but were equally convinced that they had the right answer. As Paul waded into this mine field, he could have chosen to adopt one position and reject the other. He could have chosen to tell the Corinthians that none of their opinions had any merit at all and dismissed the entire topic out of hand. Instead, Paul chose to uphold the truth that there is only one God and that idols are nothing. But in affirming this true knowledge, he also pointed out a few other things: (1) Not every member of the Body of Christ has the same level of knowledge (2) Those who think they have all the knowledge don’t know everything quite as well as they think they do (3) God’s desire for those who are “in the know” is not to lord this knowledge over their brothers and sisters in Christ. In fact, Paul challenges those who believe they know better than others to “take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak” (1 Corinthians 8:9), going so far as to say that “sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ” (1 Corinthians 8:12).

I believe all of this is directly applicable to the ongoing question of how the church and we as individual Christians should respond not only to masking and vaccination mandates but also to how we treat one another in all things. Many of us have acquired a great deal of knowledge regarding Covid-19, the effectiveness of certain safety measures, the impact of these measures on our rights as free Americans, and more. Frankly, some of this “knowledge” is accurate, while some of it is likely not. When our knowledge comes into direct contradiction with the knowledge of others, we can either stick to our guns and double down, disparaging and demeaning those who hold a different view, or we can reexamine our own assumptions and perhaps find that there is yet more to learn. Regardless, no matter how confident we are in our own position, we ought to examine our hearts and our actions to see if we are allowing our knowledge to puff up instead of love to build up. Are we allowing our perception of our personal rights to become a stumbling block to those we see as weak? Is it possible we are sinning against our brothers and wounding their conscience?

It remains the case that some of our family remain unable to worship in-person due to specific health needs they may have. We are very glad that we can still nevertheless join together thanks to the technology of our streaming services. But for all who are able, God’s clear desire for us is to be together, and together in every sense of the word. We know that Satan is always working overtime. We know that division is his tool, and he loves to sow seeds of discord. We can play right into his hands by separating ourselves and looking down on one another. Or we can love the weaker brother and sister. We can “encourage one another and build one another up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). We can honor and uphold God’s clear command of “not neglecting to meet together… but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:25).

As with my experiences in California, Michigan, and Hermiston this summer, one day we will have the benefit of hindsight and greater perspective. I wonder, as we look back on this time a few years from now, will we see how Satan used the ravages of Covid to try to drive wedges between us? Will we regret some of our decisions and actions? Or will we be glad we put the needs of others first? Will we be thankful that the Spirit led us to love one another and make sacrifices for one another? One thing for certain is that we will see the grace of God! He remains faithful through every misstep we take, every time we have looked to our own interests instead of the interests of others. When we were lost in confusion and fear, anger and sin, He sent His Son to rescue us and bring us unity and clarity and life eternal. He is the One who has made loving our brothers and sisters possible in the first place. “We love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).