May 7, 2025

Viewing all things through the lens of the True and the beautiful!

The True

Convincing the Skeptical of the Impossible

“I have seen the Lord.”

The powerful exclamation is made even more impactful by its directness and simplicity, and it was uttered by Mary Magdalene in John 20:18 after Jesus rose from the dead.

We celebrated Resurrection Sunday a couple weeks ago, but this short phrase from that transcendent story has been reverberating in my spirit ever since. Mary, fresh off discovering the empty tomb and now confronted with the jarring reality of interacting with the risen Jesus face to face, is assigned the job of delivering the news about Jesus to the disciples.

What must Mary have been thinking? How in the world do you convincingly convey that the impossible has in fact happened? How could she possibly communicate this history-altering news in a way that is received and believed? How can she avoid being dismissed and disregarded as a lunatic?

To be candid, they are questions not entirely different from the ones you ask about your assignment in the current time. How can you possibly make a sane and lucid argument on behalf of the transcendent and seemingly impossible?

Consider today if the answer for you might be the same as it was for Mary, who simply testified to what she had seen:

“I have seen the Lord.”

No caveats. No qualifications or justifications. Not even an explanation or an interpretation. Just simply a statement of fact about what she has personally seen.

The text says Mary then told the disciples the rest of what Jesus had said, a fact that suggests the disciples must have taken her word as true and been open to hearing her out. Consider if you would today a cue from Mary’s approach.

What is it that you have seen in your life? Where and how has Jesus made himself real to you? What is the substance and the evidence you are personally familiar with?

Go and tell of those things to your friends and family!

You and I are richly blessed to have the life of Jesus recorded for us. It is a blessing that Old Testament believers did not have, and one that even those who walked with Jesus were without. These truths about Jesus that you and I read were either prophecies or experienced in real time by the believers who walked with Jesus. It is blessing of immense proportion, and you and I should be deeply grateful for it.

Even so, there may be a temptation to rest only on the academic head knowledge of what you have read about Jesus. I challenge you to boldly and honestly consider today: What is it that Jesus has done for you? What have you seen? To what can you personally testify?

There is nothing like a personal story to convince a skeptical audience of an otherwise unbelievable truth. So, like Mary, go and tell the world your story. Go and proclaim, “I have seen the Lord!”

World

Minerals and Reconstruction

The United States and Ukraine have signed a long-anticipated deal that paves the way for continued U.S. investment in Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s ongoing invasion while guaranteeing the United States a share of both Ukraine’s rare earth minerals and the resulting profit from extracting those minerals. The deal, which was delayed for more than two months after a frosty February meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, was signed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.

Specifically, the deal establishes a joint investment fund into which the U.S. will make contributions for the purpose of Ukraine’s national defense, and Ukraine will deposit profits from its mining of rare earth minerals. The two countries will share revenues from the investment fund, and the U.S. will have preferential access to the resulting minerals, which are used in electronics and other products, and are mostly mined in China.

Analysis and eternal perspective: Your view on the merits of this deal will almost certainly be significantly shaped by your underlying view of U.S. involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war. Decisionmakers in Washington are sharply divided on both the war and the deal, with some saying U.S. military aid to Ukraine is vital to stopping Russian President Vladimir Putin and this deal provides the U.S. a critical asset (rare earth minerals) in its national and economic security plan, while others say the war and the deal further entangle the U.S. in foreign affairs at great expense.

There are valid components of each argument, and our mission here at The Equipped is not one of fully adjudicating the dispute, but rather of considering the facts with a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7) and applying the lens of the True and the beautiful.

On the facts, there can be no mistaking that the ongoing war is one of aggression, invasion, and territorial lust on the part of President Putin. He has a long history of similar actions, and there is every likelihood his reign will continue to be marked by an appetite to add land to the Russian domain. It is also true that the U.S. has already provided significantly more aid to Ukraine than any other nation in the world. Finally, access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals is a legitimate incentive for the U.S. as it tries to blunt China’s economic and security advantage that stems from controlling such a large share of the minerals.

Each component of this story is important and worth careful consideration. We are to be pursuers of peace (Ps. 34:14). We are also to be a voice for the oppressed and for justice (Is. 1:17). Finally, every authority has a sacred duty to safeguard those within their charge and will be held to account for their actions (Heb. 13:17). These instructions are not always easy to pursue together, and this is a story on which your brother or sister in Christ is very likely to have a strongly held opinion that differs from yours. It is a chance for us to mutually exercise our muscle of interacting around sincerely held differences with grace and love.

U.S.

Wrongly Raided

Federal agents obtained a warrant and used it to raid a house in Oklahoma, seizing possessions in an effort to secure evidence for a human smuggling case. Residents of the home claim there was one major problem with the raid—it was carried out on the wrong individuals. The residents of the home claim they had only recently moved in, are U.S. citizens, and are not alleged to be connected in any way to the crime that justified the warrant. The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement that the warrant authorized a search of the property and was not contingent on specific individuals being present at the time of the search.

Analysis and eternal perspective: It is a harrowing thing to have your home invaded by law enforcement without your consent. It is the precise reason the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution requires a warrant based on probable cause before a “search or seizure” can occur. Law enforcement must take its evidence of a crime to a court, and the court must find probably cause before the warrant is issued. This process is intended to protect innocent people against intrusion and invasion of privacy while affording law enforcement appropriate avenues for completing a dangerous but necessary job.

A free society is a delicate balance—especially in a day and age that is impatient with nuance. This story is a prime example of why and how The Equipped community is needed. There are two truths stemming from this story, and while they appear in conflict at first, they are actually both necessary for the other to prevail. They stand or they fall together, and we would do well to plainly acknowledge them both:

1) Law enforcement plays a critical (and dangerous) role in protecting the innocent, and must be afforded ways to seek justice and defend the oppressed (Is. 1:17).

2) Every care must be taken to avoid using the harrowing power of the law against uninvolved people (Pr. 17:15).

The latter principle sometimes restrains and frustrates the first principle, but the truth is that law enforcement without safeguards and privacy without accountability both lead to chaos. We must choose both of these biblically inspired governing principles or we will be left with neither.

U.S.

All the Jobs

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is acquiring more responsibility, as U.S. President Donald Trump has named him interim national security advisor in addition to his current role leading the State Department. The announcement comes alongside news that outgoing national security advisor Mike Waltz has been nominated to be ambassador to the United Nations—a post for which Rep. Elise Stefanik was originally nominated before the president withdrew her nomination.

Analysis and eternal perspective: This cabinet level shakeup comes shortly after Waltz made headlines by inadvertently adding a journalist to a Signal chat that disclosed sensitive military operations and deliberations. The White House says the personnel move does not stem from that series of events and that it still has confidence in Waltz, thus the nomination as ambassador to the United Nations. Meanwhile, a permanent national security advisor is expected to be nominated soon, but the post requires Senate confirmation, so it is likely Sec. Rubio will have double duty for some time.

It is an awesome responsibility to be tasked with a cabinet level position (much less two). We as Jesus followers should be praying for every cabinet member in every administration (1 Tim 2:1-2). The decisions made by these senior officials often have sweeping impact all around the world.

At the same time, we should resist the urge to get overly swept up by the palace intrigue and personnel drama that so frequently consumes Washington. It is vitally important that morally upright people be called upon to serve in places of authority (Pr. 29:2). But no person is entitled to an earthly position of authority, and each of us has a role in promoting flourishing in our society by praying for those who accept the mantle of leadership.

“When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan” (Pr. 29:2).

The Beautiful

Prepare, Adorn, Speak

Jesus is, right now as you read, preparing an eternal place for you (Jn. 14:3). He has left the Holy Spirit behind to help you be a vessel of His Gospel story in his stead (Jn. 14:26). As you work to emulate Jesus and carry out that charge, you are in a very real sense preparing places for those around you to encounter the Good News. Your efforts to present Truth with beauty and grace are a holy work! Be encouraged this week to stick with it! Prepare a place, adorn it with beauty, and speak Truth into it that others might know your Savior!

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