Happiness in the Dark

The other day I was having a conversation with a friend who had recently left my church. He said to me, "The church (Burnaby Alliance) is falling apart".

I thought he was right.

Recently, Burnaby Alliance (BAC) had been going through many changes. We got news that our youth pastor was leaving, and several long time members of our church had already done so weeks before. They were (and still are) all good friends of mine, so it was tough to see them go. It felt like a piece of me and the church was leaving.

I must admit, with the departure of these people, things had begun to feel hopeless, pointless, and despairing. For a while, I, like many people in the church, felt a sense of disbelief and sadness. Why would God bring such troubles to our doorstep?

For the past few weeks, I was feeling quite down the last little while because of all that had happened.

Until today.

We had a baptism this morning, and as I sat there watching all the young teens and children giving their testimonies, I realized something: God has not left us. My friend was wrong.

Indeed, we had and will continue to lose many important people in our church, but God continues to bring in new individuals and strong young leaders to take over. Moreover, even though we were going through hardships (and still are), God has not stopped working in our church and making changes for His glory. Finally, these troubles are when our faith is tested, and not only can and will this bring us as a church family together, it can, in the end, better us as a whole because of it. It is when a family is put to the test must they band together to find strength and comfort in each other.

Ultimately, prior to today I felt like BAC was in the darkness, as was I. However I realized that despite being in the darkness, so too can I find happiness and optimism, and it is only when I fix my eyes upon Christ do I see it.