New seasons of life call for new ways of thinking. I’ve seen many “seasons” in the shared adventures for Christ that shape our experience as a church. In each of these, there are obstacles to be faced as well as richly rewarding relationships that help us realize that yes, God is doing “a new thing” among us by the grace and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

An essential ingredient that makes everything else in life lighter is that singular aim Paul describes in I Timothy 1:5 when he says, “the goal of this instruction is love from a pure heart.” 

A wise and energetically visionary leader I met in central Florida many years ago was Gerald Derstine. The “Tabernacle” congregation he led in Bradenton was a conference center that drew thousands of retirees as well as young families.

Many of them bought double and triple-wide prefabricated homes on the Tabernacle campus to be part of a dynamic Christian community. Through the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, it was a magnet for vacationers on short stays as well as drawing musicians, singers and writers from all across the USA.

With that many diverse believers in one locale, conflicts and contradicting expectations were bound to emerge.

In a small gathering one evening in 1977, Brother Derstine stunned us as he described some of the crazy things they endured as thousands of seniors and families joined themselves to The Tabernacle. Some of the episodes cracked us up with the humor of “real community”, i.e. what happens when ideals meet up with human behavior.

Amidst our laughter though, what I will never forget is the lesson Gerald Derstine drew from both the ministry and business side of that endeavor: Love must be tested in order to be real. It can only truly be “love” when it is exercised like a muscle. The love we need most, found only in Christ, requires us to learn how love really works – and that is only possible when our love gets tested.

In virtually every new situation we face in life, exercising that “love muscle” is a powerful resource for good. It doesn’t guarantee changes in those who make it difficult to find common ground. But this muscular view of love-on-a-mission is practical and effective. It works!