Every New Year’s Eve I find myself wondering what the upcoming year will look like for me. What joys will surprise me? What newness will unfold before my eyes? What adventures will color my camera roll, what memories will have etched themselves into my mind when I am in the same position one year from now? I also consider what might make my year difficult, what trials may lead to moments of somber and quiet reflection. But what I never stop to consider on New Year’s Eve is what will happen in the lives of those around me in this new year. What joys, excitements, tragedies perhaps, are waiting for them? What opportunities will I have to, as Romans 12:15 suggests, rejoice with the rejoicing and weep with the weeping?
I think the reason we struggle to consider these possibilities at the outset of a new year is because life is rarely ever “balanced.” Maybe for a time two people are in the exact same season of life, celebrating the same joys or enduring the same trials, but more often than not, we can identify a person or people who are a step “ahead” of us, or a step “behind” us. There is always someone who is experiencing something we would love for ourselves, and another who is walking through something we would never want to endure. The ministry of presence is what compels us, in either of these situations, to show up and never miss an opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
What It Isn’t
To understand what presence is, we must first understand what it isn’t.
First, being present in people’s lives isn’t equivalent to simply liking their social media posts. Now, supporting someone through social media is not wrong, and there can be definitie benefits to being able to connect with people and stay updated with their lives especially when you don’t live in proximity to them. However, I think in our modern society we tend to think we can substitute doing real life with people in our sphere for a curated response on a social media post. We avoid uncomfortable moments of rejoicing with the rejoicing and weeping with the weeping through a simple “thumbs up” or through a comment that doesn’t force us to make eye contact with someone who is suffering or give a hug to someone we are struggling to be happy for. If the only way we can bear to live life with people is through social media, we are missing real moments to show up for the people in our lives who need more than a “like” or a well-written comment—they need a friend.
Second, being present doesn’t come with stipulations or “out-clauses”. Consistent presence means we don’t excuse ourselves from things that are too hard to show up for. We don’t “give ourselves permission” to skip out on opportunities to show up in support of the people God has put in our path to love on, minister to, and serve.
The ministry of presence is what compels us to show up and never miss an opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
Allow me to say here that I understand how hard this is. Weddings are painful when you’re in a season of singleness. Pregnancy announcements are uncomfortable when you’re walking through infertility. Visiting a beautiful, new home or watching someone go on a dream vacation when you’re struggling to make ends meet can be disappointing. But it is in these moments where the ministry of presence causes us to see the Gospel go to work as we set ourselves and our hurts aside to choose to celebrate all of life’s most beautiful moments with those God has entrusted us with.
What It Is
If you’ve ever invested money in the stock market, you know that the biggest challenge of investment is patience. When the market declines, it’s tempting to become impatient and pull all your money out of the market. But, if you can be patient and weather the market long enough, odds are you will see a good return on that investment over time.
Paul viewed the Gospel as an investment, entrusted to us by God Himself. He says to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:13-14–
“Follow the pattern of sound words that you have heard from me, in faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.”
The best way to guard what has been given us is to invest it into others. Pulling out of our investment for any reason will cause us to miss moments to see the Gospel do its work, not just in those we are showing up for, but within us as we see the Gospel heal the things that ache the most.
The ministry of presence causes us to see the Gospel go to work as we set ourselves and our hurts aside to choose to celebrate all of life’s most beautiful moments with those God has entrusted us with.
Bear it Well
Someone I respect very much once told me that “God gives you the grace you need for the hard thing when the hard thing happens.” Being present in the lives of those in a different season than us is hard, but God has given us “everything required for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3). The things that we think will crush us, won’t. We can bear what is unbearable because Jesus bore the unbearable for us. He has given us His Spirit, to help us walk the path He has for us with grace and love. He has called us to see the Gospel as an investment that takes time and patience, but that will yield God-glorifying fruit in its time (Galatians 6:9).
We can bear what is unbearable because Jesus bore the unbearable for us.
This new year, whatever seasons we find ourselves in, may we ask God to make us ministers of grace through our presence in people’s lives. By His strength, whatever is heavy, may we bear it well.
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