The Pastor’s Piece – Pastor Kevin Cernek, FCFI Chaplain

FCFI

December 21, 2025

“More Than Resolutions”

I remember when I was kid – probably about 10 years old – when my brothers and I received Walkie-Talkies for Christmas. It was new and amazing back in the late 60’s to be able to keep in contact with someone who was out of sight. We would take those mammoth pieces of rectangular electronic magic, put D batteries in them, extend the telescoping antennas, and one of us would go out to the haymow while the other went upstairs to a bedroom. There was probably a couple hundred yards separating us. Without being tethered to the wall by a telephone cord and completely out of sight, we could talk back and forth through all the static and dropped words. It was amazing – to say the least. A typical conversation went something like this:

“Where are you?… Over.”

“I’m out here in the haymow… Over.”

“What are you doing? … Over.”

“Nothing … Over.”

“Mom says it’s time to come in for supper … Over”

 “Roger … Be right there… Over”

 “Roger … Over and out.”

 “Roger that … Over and out.”

Today, the ability to keep in constant communication with someone is nothing new. In fact, it’s ordinary. Those little hand-held devices we carry with us everywhere we go keeps the entire world at our fingertips with nothing more than a swipe. But God has always had a means for us to stay in constant communication with Him – it’s Jesus. It’s been His plan from the very beginning. We can talk to Him about anything at any time.

In Luke, chapter 8, Jesus tells the story about a widow and a judge. The passage begins with these words: “Jesus told His disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not faint.” In this teaching on prayer, Jesus uses the metaphor of contrast. It’s a form of comparison – of likening one thing to another. For instance, you may hear someone say: “He is as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs,” Or, “he is as helpless as a trombone player in a telephone booth.” (That one is a little dated since phone booths are a thing of the past). When I was a kid we had a neighbor who was six foot five and weighed 450 pounds. His nickname was “Tiny.”

Contrast is an effective way to emphasize truth and bring it into clear focus. Jesus used contrast when He spoke to His disciples about prayer. He told them to pray and not faint. In doing so, He set before them two distinct choices and contrasted their outcomes. Either we learn to speak with an unseen Father who is always present with us, or we lose heart and faint. When we lose heart, all that remains is a weary attempt to press on through life – without fire, without strength, and without hope. It is one or the other. There are no other alternatives.

We all know someone who is trying to find meaning and purpose in life, but apart from God, it cannot be found. The continual search for amusement and pleasure is only an anesthetic that dulls the ache of an empty heart. Our leisure activities, our hobbies, the things we derive pleasure from are really escapes from life. Jesus is right when He says there are only two alternatives: either we pray or we faint. As we step into a new year, we are reminded that fresh calendars and new resolutions cannot fill the heart. Only a renewed dependence on God can do that. This year, may we choose prayer over exhaustion, faith over distraction, and a life anchored in Christ rather than fleeting pleasures.

(Kevin Cernek is Lead Pastor of Martintown Community Church in Martintown, Wisconsin)