Director’s Letter
Encouragement for All Circumstances
God calls His people to suffering, but He also gives them the Gospel and a sure and certain salvation.
“Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of His own purpose and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim. 1:8–10)
Be encouraged, dear reader, and don’t give up. Your fallen nature is all too prone to flinch, falter and forget when things around you spiral downward into rampant unbelief and paganism. But St. Paul calls a timeout on any descent into hopelessness. He advises self-examination and repentance. You and I need a Paul constantly to reappear, disrupt our daily grind of suffering in this life, and point us once again to a confession of Christ.
God Himself has called you to your trials. That is such a difficult lesson to learn. He sends to every Christian particular sufferings. Do not be ashamed of this. Paul neither despairs over suffering, nor is he ashamed of his imprisonment. He is, after all, a prisoner of the Lord who appoints and guards, preserves and protects.
Like the missionaries, ministers and servants of the church described in this issue of Lutherans Engage the World, you have been called to a sacred vocation, appointed to exercise the Gospel to its utmost. This Gospel is the exclusive source — theirs and yours — of Christian love and self-control. It is the love of Christ crucified and lifted up on a cross to pay for your sins. This Gospel is designated unto you for safe delivery to others, even as you have been equipped with a clean conscience, unshaken, filled with patience and humility and supreme confidence. Be encouraged despite these perilous times and circumstances. Your salvation is sure and certain as you await the paradise that has been prepared for you in the shed blood of Jesus.
In His hands,
Rev. Kevin D. Robson
Chief Mission Officer, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
