{"id":26368,"date":"2023-05-03T14:54:10","date_gmt":"2023-05-03T21:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/gospel-express\/2023-brief-copy\/"},"modified":"2023-05-03T15:16:40","modified_gmt":"2023-05-03T22:16:40","slug":"2023-tiredtents","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/gospel-express\/2023-tiredtents\/","title":{"rendered":"Tired Tents"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-0  avia-builder-el-no-sibling  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-26369 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/odb20230503-e1683150971384.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"119\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/odb20230503-e1683150971384.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/odb20230503-e1683150971384-300x60.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>While we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened.\u00a0<\/strong><strong>2 Corinthians 5:4<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe tent is tired!\u201d Those were the words of my friend Paul, who pastors a church in Nairobi, Kenya. Since 2015, the congregation has worshiped in a tentlike structure. Now, Paul writes, \u201cOur tent is worn out and it is leaking when it rains.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My friend\u2019s words about their tent\u2019s structural weaknesses remind us of the apostle Paul\u2019s words regarding the frailty of our human existence. \u201cOutwardly we are wasting away . . . . While we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened\u201d (2 Corinthians 4:16;\u00a05:4).<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-26370 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-1.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-1-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Though the awareness of our fragile human existence happens relatively early in life, we become more conscious of it as we age. Indeed, time picks our pockets. The vitality of youth surrenders reluctantly to the reality of aging (see\u00a0Ecclesiastes 12:1\u20137). Our bodies\u2014our tents\u2014get tired.<\/p>\n<p>But tired tents need not equate to tired trust. Hope and heart needn\u2019t fade as we age. \u201cTherefore we do not lose heart,\u201d the apostle says (2 Corinthians 4:16). The One who has made our bodies has made Himself at home there through His Spirit. And when this body can no longer serve us, we\u2019ll have a dwelling not subject to breaks and aches\u2014we\u2019ll \u201chave a building from God, an eternal house in heaven\u201d (5:1).<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-26371 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-2.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-2-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>How does it make you feel that Christ resides in you by His Spirit (5:5)? When you find yourself \u201cgroaning,\u201d how does prayer help you?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Father, thank You for Your continual presence. When I\u2019m physically uncomfortable, help me to trust You even as I anticipate an eternal dwelling that will last forever.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-26372 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-3.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tent-3-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>By\u00a0Arthur Jackson|May 3rd, 2023<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":26370,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[],"portfolio_entries":[29],"class_list":["post-26368","portfolio","type-portfolio","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","portfolio_entries-29"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/26368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/portfolio"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26368"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/26368\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26373,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/26368\/revisions\/26373"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26368"},{"taxonomy":"portfolio_entries","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio_entries?post=26368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}