The storms of life can leave you feeling exhausted and weak. We need help when we feel stuck in our faith journey to realize our inner strength to navigate life’s challenges. Pastor Justin Kendrick is on the show chatting about his book How to Quiet a Hurricane. Join us to develop a spiritual resilience that propels you past your weariness and anxiety and into lasting peace. You will discover:
- Why weakness is the starting point for spiritual strength
- How lasting endurance comes from understanding the love of God
- Ways to apply God’s promises to your daily life
- A freeing perspective on what it means to be secure
- Why faith rooted in Jesus can bring you through any trial
When your heart tells you that God is far away, remember that he is the God who enters in. He is the God who uses suffering to conquer suffering. He is the God who empowers you to move beyond survival and into a life of victory.
Summary
Justin Kendrick, lead pastor of Vox Church, shares his journey of founding a church in New England and his devotion to Jesus. He discusses the importance of understanding the good news and the depth of God’s love. Kendrick also talks about his book ‘Barrier Ordinary’ and the seven habits that help reshape our hearts to love God more. He addresses the issue of people leaving their faith and offers insights on enduring and remaining steadfast amid trials. Kendrick emphasizes the need to prepare ourselves for storms and lean into God’s love.
Takeaways
- Founding a church requires a deep devotion to Jesus and a desire for spiritual awakening and renewal in the community.
- Understanding the good news involves recognizing our brokenness, our need for a savior, and receiving God’s grace and forgiveness.
- Preparing for trials and challenges involves building an internal faith infrastructure through habits and a radical affection for God.
- In the midst of storms, it is important to lean into God’s love, understand His promises, and surround ourselves with a supportive community.
- Christian maturity is measured by our growth in love, which enables us to endure and overcome trials.
Chapters
00:00 Founding Vox Church: A Journey of Devotion to Jesus
01:15 Understanding the Good News: Embracing Brokenness and God’s Grace
04:20 Preparing for Storms: Building an Internal Infrastructure of Faith
09:39 Enduring Trials: Leaning into the Love of God
19:23 Christian Maturity: Growing in Love to Overcome
Transcript
Rachael Adams (00:01.56)
Well, hello, Justin, and welcome to the Love Offering Podcast. I’m so happy to have you.
Justin Kendrick (00:05.846)
Rachel, thanks for having me. What an honor.
Rachael Adams (00:08.73)
You’re the lead pastor of Vox Church, which you founded in 2011 with a small group of friends on the doorstep of Yale University. Tell us about the beginning of this church that has since grown to multiple locations across New England, which you lead with your wife, Chrissy, and four children.
Justin Kendrick (00:25.582)
Yeah, we do. It’s an adventure, and I am so thankful and honored to serve people in pastoral ministry. What a gift it is. But New England’s a unique place. You know, a lot of people are not interested in church, not interested in Jesus. And so we started this church, just nine of us, with a dream of seeing this region experience spiritual awakening and renewal. That was 13 years ago. And we’ve watched miracle after miracle after miracle, just launching our 12th location this fall. It’s been a wild ride, but I learned a lot, and I’m more in love with Jesus today than the day we started. So thankful for all that he’s doing in our lives,
Rachael Adams (01:05.05)
Well, that’s a really good segue to my next question because you’re the host of The Devoted Life podcast. So, when did you first devote your life to Jesus?
Justin Kendrick (01:16.152)
great question. Yeah. So, I grew up in a home where Jesus was not the priority, to be honest. I mean, my parents were divorced when I was six. We didn’t have a real spiritual focus. We were Catholics, but we were kind of distant and disconnected. And for me, you know, faith in Jesus, a relationship with God, this was not something I thought about as a young kid. It wasn’t until I was a teenager that my dad started a faith journey.
We must go deeper and understand who God is and what role God plays in our lives. And it was through him that he just started dragging me to church as a teenage kid. And for the first time, I heard a clear presentation of the gospel as a 13-year-old. My life was forever changed that day, and I was stunned. I had never heard of the cross, the resurrection, or our need to receive Jesus. The basics of the gospel transformed my life that day. And
It was, know, Rachel, everybody’s different, but for me, it was a dramatic and immediate transformation. I was still a mess inside and an average kid in every way, but a spiritual seed went right into my heart, and everything started to change for me. And I can remember my priorities shifting, you know, and my friends saying, you know, what happened to you? And maybe not even able to put words around it saying, I don’t know. I know that God needs to be the very first priority of my life. And that’s where everything started for me from there.
Rachael Adams (02:47.93)
So, what does a devoted life look like for you today? Like, it’s hard, you know, it’s one thing to say and one thing to live. So, I’d love to hear what that looks like.
Justin Kendrick (02:52.35)
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Justin Kendrick (02:57.548)
Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, you know, I think it starts with an understanding of the good news. I think many Christians don’t see the good news as good. You know, it’s like, hey, do your best, hope for the best, and pray that God blesses you and that Jesus loves you. And all of that is true and great. But the good news is that first I’m far more broken than I think. Second, God is far more loving than I realized. And so, coming to terms with my brokenness and my need for a savior and coming to a place of dependence on him and submission to him and then receiving affection, love, and forgiveness that I do not deserve. The Bible calls it grace, right? And when grace gets in me, and, I realize that God has fully and forever forgiven me of my sin, accepted me, and welcomed me into his family, and, that becomes the foundation of my identity, my worth, my value, my future.
Now, devotion doesn’t come from obligation or duty alone. Devotion comes from affection and love for God. And so the devoted life is a life that says, I seek first the kingdom in everything, not out of a sense of, you know, moral constraint, but out of a sense of radical affection for one who truly loves me. And so, yeah, that’s the devoted life.
And so it’s not asceticism. It’s not like, hey, you know, have to fast this many days or read many Bible verses to be holy. No, no, no, no. We’ve actually bestowed our righteousness through Christ. And then, through that radical gift of his love, we give our whole lives to become more like him. And that’s the idea behind the podcast and my entire ministry.
Rachael Adams (04:43.588)
Yeah, okay, so everybody, you’re listening to the love offering, but go and listen to the devoted life. I know I will be after this. you for that. And that’s what we want to do with our lives for sure. So you’re actually on this show today to talk about your most recent book. But before we get to that, I said to you earlier, I’m like, I want to talk about your other books too. There’s one specifically that just really intrigued me. I was intrigued by the title. It is Bury Your Ordinary. And because I’m a small-town Kentucky girl, I’m a stay-at-home mom.
Justin Kendrick (04:48.622)
Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (05:01.602)
Yeah, sure.
Justin Kendrick (05:11.82)
Yes.
Rachael Adams (05:12.706)
And so often, so much of our lives and so many women listening right now, it’s like, okay, my day looks pretty ordinary. It looks pretty mundane and routine. Does any of this really matter? And so I think that’s why I was so interested in that title. I’d love to hear more about
Justin Kendrick (05:20.29)
Mm -hmm. Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (05:27.598)
Yeah, Bury Your Ordinary came out of really 20 years of asking the question, how do we grow as followers of Jesus? You know, like a lot of people have some notion of Christian growth, but what I found is that the deeper you dig, the more confused we are. Like, hey, I’m supposed to go to church. I’m supposed to read the Bible. I’m supposed to pray. What else does a life of real following Christ look like? And so Bury Your Ordinary is a book that came out a few years ago. I outlined seven habits, seven habits that, you know, the old church father, St. Augustine, he talks about the fact that the root problem of the human experience is that our loves are disordered. It’s not that it’s wrong to love pizza or it’s wrong to love your spouse or it’s wrong to love your kids. It’s right to love those things. The problem is the order of our loves, that we tend to love smaller things more and bigger things less.
And so God has to reorder our loves. And what I’ve found, and I think what church history shows and what the scripture shows is that we change what we love through habits. That when we practice certain habits, our loves over time shift and we find ourselves. It’s like working out, right? Anybody that’s tried to work out, I know for me, for the first two years that I was consistently exercising, I hated every minute of it. You know, like, I don’t know, maybe other people aren’t like that for me. It was like, I tried running, I tried biking. I hated it all.
And then I remember the day, it was like three years in, when I was looking forward to working out. And I was like, what happened? And you know, now years in, I actually really enjoy exercise, but the habit took time to change my love, to change what I loved. And so that book’s about seven habits that help you reshape your heart so that you actually love God more.
Rachael Adams (07:19.266)
sure, you’ve heard this, but one of the things that just speaks to me on that topic, as well as just like all of the spiritual disciplines, it starts with a discipline but then for me, it moves into a desire, and then it becomes your delight, and I think that’s you’re talking about with earlier about the devoted like it’s an affection, but it does often many things start with just the discipline just to do it, but it’ll grow.
Justin Kendrick (07:27.202)
Yes.
Justin Kendrick (07:31.928)
that’s so good.
Justin Kendrick (07:41.058)
So good. That’s gold. Was the value of the podcast right there. Yeah.
Rachael Adams (07:45.242)
Well good. Well okay, so you’re here to talk about How To Quiet a Hurricane, which is your latest release so were you actually in kind of a hurricane season of your own when you
Justin Kendrick (07:51.426)
Yeah. Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (07:58.006)
Yeah, yeah, you know, it was actually I feel like for me a lot of, you know, leaders and preachers grew up in Christian homes and grew up in really stable environments. And that’s beautiful. I want that for my kids. And I think that’s a beautiful gift from God. Mine was much more tumultuous. In my early years, I found myself as a young follower of Jesus trying to figure out how to get out of a hurricane and really trying to say, OK, my life feels like it’s spinning. I’m grasping for stable things. Is there a way to live with peace even when it’s chaotic in life? And then, you know, we’ve all gone through the chaos of COVID and the challenges that came with it together across the country and across the world. I think it exposed for most Christians, especially how inwardly fragile we are and how unprepared so many of us were for trials and difficulties, and challenges. And you know, as a pastor, I get to be with people in their best moments and their absolute worst moments. And it’s interesting to me how many people are shocked by the trials. Like I thought if God loved me.
I wouldn’t lose my baby. I thought if God loved me, I wouldn’t go through a divorce. I thought if God loved me, I wouldn’t wrestle so much with my value and my worth. So, why do I find myself in this storm? And I think the uniform witness of scripture is coming. Like it’s coming. it hasn’t already hit, it’s coming. And so, rather than putting our heads in the sand and hoping for the best, what if we prepared? What if we actually prepared ourselves for trials and troubles?
Because there is a way to live victoriously and overcome, but it takes an internal infrastructure of faith that has to be built kind of brick by brick. And if we’re not building that, we’re going to get blown over. So that’s kind of the idea of the book is how do we build that? How do we build an internal infrastructure that can actually thrive through anything?
Rachael Adams (10:01.636)
Yeah, when we become Christians, we think that all of a sudden, we’re going to be trouble-free. But you look at the life of Jesus, and He even suffered. And so if He was one to suffer, we know that it’s just part of our human existence until we meet Him one day. So, in your book, you mentioned the increasing number of both church leaders and members walking away from their faith. And this is actually happening in our community.
Justin Kendrick (10:07.629)
Really?
Justin Kendrick (10:24.814)
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Rachael Adams (10:29.398)
As we speak, many of the listeners are in my home community. And so we’re kind of walking through that some of the leadership has made some decisions that have just really been a hurricane of our own in our community. And so, what do you believe are the main reasons behind so many people leaving, and how can individuals develop the strength to endure and remain steadfast in their faith anyway?
Justin Kendrick (10:40.045)
Yes.
Justin Kendrick (10:51.342)
Yeah, I think that’s so good. You know, I think that we have, we’ve built a world in America especially, I think it’s all over the world, but I think especially in America, we’ve built a world where we do elevate gifting and charisma and those are great things. Those are gifts from God, but we have disproportionately ignored the inner life and I think that because of that, because of the success and the fruitfulness, I mean, we forget that in America, you know, if you’re making, if you’re making $35,000 a year, you’re in the top 90 % income earners of the planet. You know, and so we just live in a bubble, right? And so if you have a garage or a car, like these are things that 70, 80, 90 % of planet earth does not have. And those are good things. Those are gifts from God, but they cause us to build a framework around our lives that says everything’s going to be good and I’m not going to have problems and struggles. And so, what ends up happening is when trials do come, people look for escapes, whether that’s, you know, cheating on your spouse or whether that’s, you know, going gambling at the casino, whether that’s getting drunk on the weekend or whatever it might be. We look for escapes. And the reason we look for those escapes is because we haven’t taken the time to build a foundation that can handle those hits. You the book, it’s a weird title, right? How to Quiet a Hurricane emerges from Mark chapter four, where Jesus is in this boat with his disciples. We all know the story, but the strange thing that we often skip about the story is that when it’s all said and done and Jesus quiets the storm, he turns and looks at them and goes, guys, come on, where’s your faith? In other words, like Jesus actually expected them to handle it.
He expected them not to have to wake him up. He expected them to be able to have a plan for the storm, and they didn’t. And I feel like that’s us, right? Like that’s our world. Like we’re just hoping that God makes everything: flowers and rainbows. And then when it’s not, it’s like we’re shocked, you know? And so I think that kind of misunderstanding about what life is. Know, Jesus, John 17, in this life, you will have trouble. It’s like, boy, that’s pretty clear, right? That’s pretty clear, except we don’t think of things that way, so we don’t prepare. And so I think a lot of the crash and burn that we’re seeing today is a reckoning. It’s sort of a reckoning for, like, it’s a reality check for pretty well-off Westerners to say, hey, life will not be perfect. So will you actually prepare yourself for the journey of life?
Rachael Adams (13:42.874)
So, let’s talk about that preparation piece. What are some ways we can prepare? For example, what practical ways can we maybe apply some of God’s promises to our daily lives?
Justin Kendrick (13:44.598)
Yeah.
Yes.
Justin Kendrick (13:53.304)
So good, yeah. You know, I think, and I get into this in the book, but I think a lot of Christians, you know, we’re missing a very important theological gap, and not to get too theological here, but we do have to renew our minds. We gotta think about things differently. And throughout the Old Testament, you see this story plays out, right? Where God picks a couple, Abraham and Sarah, says he’s gonna bless them. They become a nation. The nation becomes a powerful Israel, everything, eventually leading to the coming of the Messiah.
We find in the New Testament that this story continues, and we’re told that Jesus is the fulfillment of everything God promised Abraham. So you go back and say, OK, what did God promise Abraham? He promised him a blessing. He said I’m going to favor you. I’m going to bless you. I’m going to bless everybody through you. And so Jesus is the fulfillment of that blessing. In First Corinthians, Chapter Two, Paul says something strange: I think we often kind of zip past as Christians, and he says that in Christ, every promise is yes.
Right? And so it’s like, well, what does that mean? And then he says, and we’re supposed to say amen to God for his glory. And there’s a whole section of the book about this. What he’s trying to get us to understand is every single promise in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, the answer to Jesus is yes. Right. So Jesus asked for blessing. Yes. Jesus asked for peace. Yes. Jesus asked for hope. Yes. Why? Because he’s righteous because he’s worthy. Now we’re not worthy. And when we come to God through the gospel, we receive Christ’s righteousness, which now puts us in a position where every promise in the Bible for you, Rachel, for me, is yes. And so when I read that the peace that surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus, it’s not just a whimsical idea. It is an ironclad promise purchased for you through the blood of Jesus. And so when I understand that, my heart needs to take hold of it. And how do we take hold of promises? Well, we allow them to speak a better word than what our circumstances speak. And so I’ve got my circumstances. I’m going through an issue with my spouse. I can’t pay my bills, whatever those circumstances might be. But then I take hold of a promise that belongs to Jesus, not really me, but because I’m in Jesus, it now belongs to me. And that’s where a lot of Christians stumble over. go, well, that’s not for me. God would never do that for me. God wouldn’t help me like that. I’m not worthy. But we have to realize it’s not about whether you’re worthy. It’s about whether Christ is worthy.
Justin Kendrick (16:19.276)
Right? And so when we talk about claiming promises, what we’re saying is first, understanding that they belong to you because of Jesus. And then second, actually learning them and allowing them to become for you a stronger reality than the world you’re actually living in. And it sounds strange to say that because you go, well, this is real. But what I would say is, well, God’s word is more real. It was here before you. It’s going to be here long after you. And it’s never going to fail. And so I know that sounds fluffy, but when you’re in the trenches and you grab hold of it and you find that it’s true, that changes everything.
Rachael Adams (16:58.874)
Do you have a favorite promise that you have come to that you would be willing to share with us?
Justin Kendrick (17:02.382)
Yeah, that’s. Yeah, for sure. I would say for me, you know, I think Bible memorization a lot of times is kind of like an old thing. People don’t do it as much anymore. And I think that’s a tragic thing because we got to get the truth deep down inside of us. For me, Isaiah 40 is such a 41 is such a killer, like all purpose promise where God says, fear not for I am with you. Be not dismayed. I am your God.
I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” And when you follow that verse, it hits everything, right? It’s like, don’t be afraid, why? Because he’s there. He’s with me. So that’s the first kind of thing I anchor. God, it doesn’t feel like you’re here right now. It feels like you forgot, but I believe you’re with me. And you’re my God. That’s covenant language. He’s not just the God, he’s my God.
And then he says, I will strengthen you. And we get into that a lot in the book, this idea that the very strength of Jesus is available to me and I’m going to help you. But my favorite part of the whole verse is I’ll uphold you with my righteous right hand. Now, a lot of times we kind of blow past that. We’re like, OK, I don’t know what that is. Well, the Bible is full of pictures and and and and types. And in the book, I talk a lot about these because they’re important to understand. God speaks to us through pictures. One of the most consistent pictures is of the right hand.
And the right hand is Jesus. He is the right hand. And that’s why it says he’s seated at the Father’s right hand. And so what he’s saying is it’s a prophecy. He’s saying I will hold you up, not based on how good you are, but on how good my right hand is, based on how good Jesus is. And so that’s what holds me up. Right. We see this same idea that Moses says in the Old Testament. He says the Lord your God is with you and underneath are the everlasting arms.
It’s like, hey, whatever I’m going through, that right hand is going to hold me. And so when I disconnect my value from my performance and see that my value is simply one loved by God, my performance changes. So I obey not to earn acceptance; I obey because I am accepted in Christ. And that’s the great transformation that the gospel can bring.
Rachael Adams (19:23.438)
Yeah, I’m never going to read that scripture the same. Thank you; I needed that today personally. So, how can we implement the practices of growing our faith in everyday situations? I know everybody’s thinking, and you just gave a great example of memorizing scripture and really personalizing it. So, are there any other ways that you would recommend for us?
Justin Kendrick (19:26.574)
In life. Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (19:42.37)
Yep. Yep.
Yeah, for sure. Absolutely. Yeah. So one thing I think is a big struggle for Christians today is, what do I do when I’m doubting? Right. So like I’m going through something difficult and I’m doubting God. I’m doubting he’s with me. I’m doubting he’s real. I’m doubting I should be a part of the church. Right. And unfortunately, in Christian culture today, there’s this thing that’s just like, hey, don’t doubt. Right. Like, don’t doubt. And if you do, don’t tell anybody because it’s like you shouldn’t doubt and don’t tell anybody.
So that’s the church’s pitch, which is not working. People are just giving up. And then you have on the other side, you have like the world’s pitch, which is like doubting everything. Don’t trust anyone, don’t do anything, don’t. And I love it, this is practical. I love the example of Thomas, and there’s a section of the book on this, just what Thomas does when he doubts, right? So, Thomas is not there when Jesus comes and appears to the disciples. Everybody knows a doubting Thomas, right?
And everybody gives him such a hard time because he’s like, hey, unless I put my hand in Jesus’s scars, I’m not going to believe. But it’s so important to notice what he does do. He stays in the community and remains a follower of Christ; even though he’s doubting, even though he’s struggling, he doesn’t isolate himself. He doesn’t leave the church. He doesn’t go and kind of do his own thing, which is so natural for us to do when we doubt. And unfortunately, the church often supports this narrative. They’re like, hey, you’re a doubter. Get out of here. You can’t be a doubter.
Instead, what does Thomas do? He just hangs out. And I think it’s eight days later, Jesus shows up again, confirms and heals all of Thomas’s worries, and finds peace with Jesus. And I love that picture because a practical thing you can do, this is so simple. When you are in a hurricane, don’t go it alone. Find two, three, or four people. Find the church, the people of God in all of its various expressions and say, I need you right now. Would you? And sometimes, it’s the ministry of truth, right? When you think of the story, you’re talking to a preacher, I’m sorry, but you think of the story in John 11, and everybody knows the story where Lazarus has risen from the dead, and you’ve got Martha and Mary. But some people don’t notice that they ask Jesus, they say the same phrase. If you had been here, my brother would have lived, right? And Jesus kind of reads Martha, the riot act. He’s like, Martha, I’m the resurrection and the life. He hits her with all this truth.
And then, when he gets to Mary, he doesn’t say a word. He just weeps with her. And so when we’re going through a really practical time, sometimes you need the ministry of truth, and sometimes you just need the ministry of presence. As a believer and friend, sometimes I need to bring the ministry of truth, and sometimes I just need to shut up and bring the ministry of presence. And so one of the most important things you can do when you’re in the hurricane is get around the right people. Get around the right people.
Sometimes it’s just to sit there and watch a movie, and sometimes it’s to really talk through what God’s Word says and how does it apply to my life, you know? And so I think that’s for, especially in the day and age we live in where everybody’s so isolated and individualized, don’t give up on community. It is hard, it’s sloppy, and it’s worth it.
Rachael Adams (23:01.988)
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. You know, there’s a part of me that sometimes we don’t understand what God’s doing because often we can be in storms because of our choices, other people’s choices, but God may have maybe put us into the storm to refine us and build resilience in our character. I mean, would you agree with that assertion?
Justin Kendrick (23:13.293)
next
Justin Kendrick (23:24.108)
Yeah, you know, everybody wants to know why, right? Everybody wants to know why. And like you think of Job and so, you know, his friends come to him, not the best friends, but his friends come to him and they’re like, hey, you probably broke one of God’s rules and you’re paying for it. And so that’s sort of like the Proverbs way of why bad things happen to people, right? They happen because you did something dumb. And sometimes that’s true, right? Like, let’s be real, it’s like sometimes we just cause our own problems.
But in Job’s case, that wasn’t true. He hadn’t done anything wrong. so, you know, sometimes I love how Job and Proverbs are right near each other in the Bible because the Bible is giving us a complex answer for suffering. It’s telling us that sometimes it’s your fault, right? And then other times it’s not. And you don’t know why God has allowed it. In the book, I talk about a theology of suffering. And for me, it’s probably the most important chapter.
Because this is where a lot of Christians struggle because they just don’t have a grid for what to do with suffering. And for me, an easy way to remember a good way to think about suffering is the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and Daniel 3. And we learned as little kids, they won’t go into the fiery furnace, the whole deal, and then God meets them in the furnace. Everybody knows this story. We write songs about it. We sing about it. But the thing I think we often miss that confused me for a long time was their response to the king. They say our God’s going to save us. And he’s willing to, he’s able to and he’s willing to. And then they go, but even if he doesn’t, we won’t bow down. And I remember years I read that and I thought, well, that’s kind of a backtrack, right? Like, hey, I’m, you know, like kind of bailing themselves out. But what I’ve found is that there are actually three layers to a theology of suffering. First is that God is able, so he’s powerful.
I believe in a God who’s powerful. He can stop anything. He can change anything. Second, he’s willing. He’s a good God. But then the third layer, which a lot of people don’t add, is that he’s wise. And that means I don’t know what he will always do. And I don’t know how he’s going to do it. And if Jesus and the death on the cross teaches us anything, it teaches us that God is not going to save us the way we expect. Right? And so he’s able, he’s willing, he’s wise. And if I take those three things together,
Justin Kendrick (25:48.566)
Now, I can get through anything.
Rachael Adams (25:50.944)
That’s so good. I’m just mindful of the woman or man maybe listening today that’s like, I’m in a hurricane season right now. I’m like, I’m spinning, everything’s out of control. Everything feels chaotic. I don’t know where God is. How would you encourage them today?
Justin Kendrick (26:08.462)
Yeah, for sure. Second Thessalonians 3, there’s a little prayer that Paul prays for the church. And I think it’s one of those prayers that 99 % of Christians don’t remember, you know? And he says, the Lord directs your heart to the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. Such a powerful prayer. There’s one theologian who talks about how that prayer is actually the picture of a house. That’s how the original language is structured: a house, an outer room, and an inner room. And so Paul says, may the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God. That’s the outer room of the house. So in other words, if you’re in a storm right now, you need to know that there’s a God who loves you, that he hasn’t forgotten you, and the great evidence that he loves you is his son. And if he loved you so much to give the life of his son, then according to Romans chapter eight, he’s going to give you everything. He’s going to give you everything, not in your timing or way, but he loves you. So, the Lord needs to direct your heart to the love of God. That’s the outer room. But then there’s this inner room, and you can only get to it through the love of God. And that inner room is the steadfastness of Christ. And what that means is that the very strength that Jesus had to endure on the cross, you can have. So God wants to give you not just the inspiration of Jesus’ story but the power of Jesus’ life, and you get there through the love of God. And so, you know, I’ve been through lots of hurricanes. I’m sure, Rachel, you have too. And the first and most important thing is to lean into God’s love and the truth of his love. We can do this through scripture. We can do this through prayer. We can do this through friends. We can do this through the church. There are so many ways to do this, but do I believe that he loves me? And if I don’t, then let’s process those doubts like Thomas. And if I do, then let’s remind myself again and again and again.
I believe you love me, God. I believe I don’t understand this, but I think you love me. And then, as you get into that room, the Lord will open up a second room, and it’s the steadfastness of Christ. He’s going to give you the endurance of Jesus himself. And that gives you the strength to get through. So that’s my encouragement. These days, we all feel like we’re not enough, and that’s okay. That’s okay. You’re going to make it.
Rachael Adams (28:34.158)
Yeah, because he’s enough, right? Yeah. Well, you’ve done such a great job speaking to the concept of love, which is the heart of this podcast. But is there another biblical concept of love that you feel applies to this topic? In your book, you talk about how understanding God’s love contributes to lasting endurance, which is what you just mentioned.
Justin Kendrick (28:36.936)
Yeah, yeah, it’s real.
Justin Kendrick (28:57.442)
That’s right. Yeah, you know, I love Paul, the prayers that Paul prays, you know, especially in Ephesians where he says that you may know the breadth and length and height and depth. We’ve all heard it before of the love of Christ. And I think that a lot of people are confused about what it means to be a mature Christian because what it means to be a mature Christian is not memorizing Bible verses, although that’s good. It’s not attending church or giving X amount of dollars. No, no, no, no. A mature Christian is someone mature in love. That’s it. And so I can’t love others in ways that I’ve not been loved. So, the believer’s first priority is to lean into the love of God, study it, memorize it, and receive it so that its breadth, length, height, and depth can grow in me. As it grows in me, I find the capacity to give it to others beyond what I could ever do in my own strength. And so, ultimately, Christian maturity is growth in love. And as we grow in love, we grow in endurance.
Rachael Adams (30:09.454)
This is a slightly less spiritual question, but I guess you could make it spiritual if you wanted to. What’s something you’re loving right now? There are no rules to it.
Justin Kendrick (30:12.706)
Yeah, man.
Justin Kendrick (30:17.582)
good. Yeah, my wife. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, really. So we’re 20 years married, and when we started dating, we were 16. And yeah, her birthday is coming up, and I’m taking her to see it. So we live. I live about an hour from New York City. And so she’s been asking for five years to see the Broadway show Hamilton. So we will be together in a couple of weeks, and I’m excited about it. It’ll be super fun. And, yeah, she’s my best friend, my partner in ministry. And I love her more every day. It’s true. And that’s what I would say is something on top of my mind right now.
Rachael Adams (31:06.262)
Everybody needs to go over to your Instagram because I’ve been scrolling and trying to get familiar with you to prepare, and she’s on your page quite a bit. And so I even went over and kind of stalked her a little bit, too, and she seems like an incredible woman. Everybody go and search out Chrissy, too, while you’re at it. Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (31:18.263)
Yes.
Justin Kendrick (31:22.4)
Everybody likes you more than me. Yeah.
Justin Kendrick (31:27.864)
Whatever is that? Yeah, she’s the best. Whenever we’re in a group, I make sure she’s there because people like me more when she’s around. So yeah, it is for sure.
Rachael Adams (31:33.786)
Yeah, the better half. Well, would you pray for us as we close?
Justin Kendrick (31:42.71)
Yeah, it’s my privilege. Jesus, we thank you for the opportunity to have this conversation today. Thank you to Rachel and to everybody who’s listening today. God, I pray especially for the person who is in the storm. I pray for the person who might be discouraged right now or is realizing even in this test that they’re a little more fragile than they thought. And I pray that instead of pretending like they’re not or instead of running from that truth, they would lean into it.
And Lord, I pray that you would give them strength as they’re listening to this, as they’re working out, driving in their car, whatever they’re doing, as they’re listening to this. Jesus, would you give them strength by the power of the Holy Spirit? Remind them that God loves them. Lord, I pray that your strength will fill your people today in Jesus’ amen.
Rachael Adams (32:32.342)
Amen. Well, Justin, I know that after this episode, everybody’s going to buy your book, listen to your podcast, and even listen to your online episodes at your church. So please tell us how we can stay connected with you.
Justin Kendrick (32:44.462)
Yeah, for sure. The name of the church is Vox, V -O -X. So just voxchurch.org is an easy way to find stuff. JustinKendrick .com also has stuff about the book. The book is called How to Quiet a Hurricane. You get it anywhere books are sold, Amazon, Barnes & whatever’s easiest for people. But yeah, the whole idea behind it is hopefully to really be a blessing. I think it’s a message people need right now, so I’m excited to share it.
Rachael Adams (33:11.61)
Well, thank you for sharing it with us today. It was an honor to have you on the show.
Justin Kendrick (33:15.948)
It is an honor to be here. Thanks for having me.
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