Rev. Dr. Devin Strong

Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church

There is almost always something that I have read, heard, or had a conversation with someone about that has me churned up. This week it’s the weather.

It’s not exactly news that in the Coastal Empire in July temperatures are in the upper 90’s and humidity is through the roof. What is new is that in Arizona, they are experiencing a string of 110-degree days, that there is massive flooding in the Northeast, and smog in the East and the Midwest from those Canadian wildfires, all at the same time. What is new is that based on data recorded from around the world, the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Prediction reports that Monday, July 3, 2023 was the hottest day on record, and July 4th was hotter still! Back in the ‘80’s a billion dollar weather event happened every 82 days. Today those costly events—adjusted for inflation--happen every eighteen days. This worries me.

But I can’t let myself get consumed by bad news. In a short story written by Russell Sanders, a father writes about backpacking with his son. Dad really hoped that spending some time hiking in the mountains would help thaw the relationship between the two. There was a nagging, underlying tension between them that dad could not put his finger on, and hiking together was not helping. Finally, the father decides to be more direct, asking the teenager what the real problem was. The boy blurts out, “You hate advertising,” he said quickly, rolling now. “You hate billboards, lotteries, developers, logging companies, and big corporations. You hate snowmobiles and jet-skis. You hate malls and fashions and cars.” Dad was taken aback, but after unpacking the outburst, the father realized that his son was overwhelmed by his father’s “wokeness.” Dad had intended only to express thoughtful concern about the struggles of modern life, but the son heard incessant negativity that left him feeling discouraged and hopeless.

What do we do when the news is bad? I know people who stay off social media and don’t watch any national news at all. They focus on their families and watch cat videos for their mental health. I get it, but being a news junkie and a dog guy, this approach is not for me, but neither do I want to bring my kids, my congregation, or my readers (few as they may be) down with endless dwelling on bad news.

I am convinced that our chief responsibility as Christians is to be people of hope—not blind hope or sickly-sweet hope, but genuine hope built on the actions of a gracious and powerful God.

The challenges in our world and in our personal lives are real and numerous, but so are our blessings and our gifts. It is so easy for me to take my family and friends, not to mention a cool breeze or a chocolate custard cone, for granted!

I need to celebrate the people who are faithfully tackling hard problems. I need to lift up the ones who have the courage to change and grow. I need to point to signs of life. I need to be hope for others around me as often as I can.

I believe that we need to look hard at the problems in this life but not live there. We need to face our own faults without being consumed by them, and we need to keep our eyes open for God at work in everyone, everywhere.

God Loves You, and So Do I!