Why does God allow pain and suffering? It’s one of the most frequently asked questions about God and one that keeps many from choosing to follow Him. Unfortunately, the Bible doesn’t offer clear and concise answers to every question we have about suffering. Suffering is unpredictable, messy, and deeply personal. The good news is that Scripture offers us stories of real people who live through suffering and still draw near to God despite not having all their questions answered.

Acts 27 is one of those stories. After years of trials and suffering , Paul finds himself in the middle of a violent storm as he sails to Rome. Through Paul’s experience and example, we uncover some profound truths that will help us to live well in the midst of suffering in our own lives.

What do we do when we are overcome with the brokenness in the world around us? Often, Christians respond in one of two ways: we separate or we assimilate. We remove ourselves from the culture so that we are not affected by the brokenness; or we assimilate so that we are not bothered by it. Both of these responses prevent us from being able to have any meaningful impact on the world around us. Instead, Jesus offers a third way: We call this contextualization.

In Acts 17, Paul is overwhelmed by the brokenness that he sees in the city of Athens. But instead of isolating or conforming, he contextually engages the culture. As a result, the people of Athens hear the message of Jesus in their own language and are compelled to consider if Jesus is truly God and King of the world.

In this episode with have a conversation with Larry McCrary, missionary and founder of The Upstream Collective. Larry and the Upstream team train marketplace missionaries to go abroad and engage their context through their vocation. They partner with churches to send well and support people during their time overseas.

Larry shares a helpful tool for assessing the unique rhythms of your neighborhood or missional context and identifying the best times to build relationships and connect with people on a deeper level.

If you want to learn more about The Upstream Collective, visit https://www.theupstreamcollective.org/.