Life in Tension

In the world we will have trouble; in him we will have peace.

By: Lindsay Christerson, Perimeter Church Women’s Ministry Media and Communities Coordinator

Summer can be hard. As a working mom, it often feels full of tension. It used to be my favorite season - schools out, slower days, my birthday is in August. It used to be a tension release. And it still is in some ways. I would likely burn out at the pace we go during the school year. There are different rhythms, different schedules, but time, time is still a tension. My kids have so much of it, and I have so little. That dissonance creates tension. Often that tension feels like ropes attached to my wrists, pulling me in two opposing directions.

There are many definitions of tension. The first one in Merriam-Webster’s dictionary is,

“1a - inner striving, unrest, or imbalance, often with physiological indication of emotion.”

Yet, we live in tension-adverse, content-heavy times.

We want to resolve the tension.

We want to resolve our own tension, and we want to resolve it for others. We can have decision paralysis, trying to choose, do, or say the right thing that will relieve this tension and get us back to “the good life.” A quiet mind. Shalom in our family, in friendships, in our budget, in our diet, in politics. Everything in balance.

This is a good and lofty goal. This is heaven, the “sweet by and by.” This is the picture we are working toward, but we are not there now. One day this shalom will be as simple as breathing. But the Bible calls us, in this fallen world, in this life of sorrows, to walk a narrow road, to hold hard things in tension, because sin complicates everything.

As much as we try to avoid tension, even the Bible gives us tension to hold:

“In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

We are tempted to run toward the doom of the world or we ignore the complexity and slap a happy, clappy religious cliché on it to avoid the trouble. We try to outsource the trouble - throw some money at it, go numb, avoid dealing with it. Sometimes we compartmentalize so deeply that we forget that it is there. But this verse has something in the center.

“But take heart.”

In the world we will have trouble; in Him we will have peace.

What if we aren’t supposed to release the tension? What if we don’t opt out or run toward one or the other opposing force in this world? What if the tension keeps us on the narrow path because it keeps us from trying to find peace in the world? It keeps us awake, keeps us from complacency, and keeps us from resting on our own understanding, capability, or strength. It keeps us going to the source of peace, the source of wisdom, the source of freedom as we hold the tension of this world.

Jesus walked the ultimate tightrope of a perfect, sinless life, holding the profound tension between His blameless glory as fully God and the humiliation and suffering He willingly endured as fully man.

“Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” (Luke 22:42)

Now we can be forever grateful that the Father didn’t release Him from that tension, and the Son didn’t opt out under the unspeakable pressure and anguish. He walked the narrow path because we couldn’t. We would always opt out. We would always choose ease and false peace over tension. But IN HIM we can not only “have good courage” in the center of the tension but find shalom in the perfection of Christ and His presence with us in the tension.

There is another definition of tension, one that hits different than the rest.

“1c - a balance maintained in an artistic work between opposing forces or elements”

I pray that the Lord, in His mercy and grace, would keep us in perfect peace as we abide in Him, transforming the peace we find in the midst of life’s tensions into a beautiful representation of Christ’s work to the world. That we aren’t pulled by the forces, but we hold it, move with it, use it to build strength and resilience to stay on the narrow path.

That you and I don’t look to the left or the right to find peace, but we,

“Turn our eyes upon Jesus.
Look full, in His wonderful face.
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
in the light of His glory and grace.”

One way God meets us in the tensions of life is through His people. We were never meant to walk the narrow road alone. As you consider the year ahead, we encourage you to pursue community by registering for a discipleship group. Make space to know and be known, to encourage and be encouraged, and to walk together toward Christ in the midst of life’s tensions. Explore Discipleship Groups at Perimeter Church here.