Escape from the desert...

This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.

1 John 3:19-20

I think that everyone can identify with the phrase, “whenever our hearts condemn us” if I simple rephrase it into more commonly used expressions (or laments) today. How often have we said of ourselves, or hear someone say to us, “I don’t feel saved/forgiven/joyful/free/close to God/happy/etc.?” I have heard this so often in recent months, mostly from those who worship Christ as their Savior, those who have grown up in the church, even those who are pursuing ministry vocationally! All of the wind is out of the sail, all motivation is lost, God seems silent or far away… I know the feeling. Biblically, the expression that articulates this problem is in this passage: your heart is condemning you.

I love it when I see shreds of multiple disciplines in Bible passages. John, in this part of his letter, is doing some pastoral care, some theology, and some psychology, all in a tight space. And as we expand out from this tight space, and see the context, and consult the full counsel of the scriptures, we find a pathway, albeit a long and arduous one, out of this misery.

When I have felt this way, I have called it a “desert experience.” Spiritually, I feel like I’m off in the middle of nowhere, confused, with no direction. I don’t sense the Holy Spirit’s leading and, frankly, I’m upset and don’t particularly want to sense it. I think that these particular seasons of life are when many people choose to slip into corners of darkness, finding sparks of life or distractions from wrong sources. It is a vicious cycle, especially for those who call Christ Savior: we seek a spark, attain a “high”, then a corresponding “low”, guilt and shame and frustration sets in, we seek that spark again to make us feel better… the heart is condemning us.

How do we break out of this cycle? John says the most immediate help is in resting in the truth that God is greater than our hearts, and that He knows all things (v.20). We must take refuge in an OBJECTIVE truth… and yes, we must do this in a world that angrily tells us that truth is only subjective, only up to you, but “your truth” does not apply to anyone else. We need the absolute, and it will be the only kind of truth that works. Think about the crisis that we are in during these moments! When our FEELINGS are not providing us comfort, when our hearts are condemning us, won’t “subjective truths” that are only based on our private mental meanderings get a few holes poked in them? God is absolutely God, Jesus is absolutely the Christ, and we must take hold of it when our hearts condemn us.

If we expand our focus and look at verses 16-23, John lays it out. We must love our neighbors, even laying our lives down for our brothers and sisters (v. 16). In other words, treat love as a verb. So get off the couch! We must do things and get the heck out of the abstract abyss of our minds when we are in crisis mode. We must live it “in actions and in truth” (v. 18) and by this radical approach to life, “we set our hearts at rest in His presence,” (v.19).

This is not some boring call to be a monk living in a cave, with all apologies to the ascetic monks out there. This is about laying your life down for the sake of the gospel, for the sake of your neighbor. Spill your testimony to someone. Give comfort and encouragement to someone who is hurting in your life. Serve at a youth retreat. Go on a mission trip, pray over someone for healing, go into the world’s war zones… do SOMETHING to live into a bigger, God-sized story for your life!!!

There is something supernatural about sharing and living your faith that boosts your joy. And living “dangerously” for the cause of Christ requires God’s divine aide to accomplish the call… and I have this suspicious feeling that you will not feel so distant from God anymore when you watch Him performing miracles in your midst. You are not going to feel like doing it. That’s the nature of the condemnation. Do it anyway and God will breath faith into your soul as you step forward.

The feeling of having a “condemned heart” is common to all of us, but we have to get up and act to set our hearts at rest. Rather than drifting further into darkness, lean on the truth, and rely on those truths as you implore God to move in your midst.