Faith Greater than Our Challenges: What the Apostle Paul and Viktor Frankl Can Teach Us about Difficult Times

By Tom Edmondson and Alexandros Pattakos

The year 2020 brought about a totally unprecedented experience for humanity: a worldwide pandemic. Life as we knew it changed almost instantly. We found ourselves quarantining at home, wearing masks in public, and using large amounts of hand sanitizer and disinfectant. As the months dragged on and the search for a COVID-19 vaccine continued, social distancing began to feel like solitary confinement, the rising death toll from the virus made the future feel very uncertain, and the US Presidential campaign made us feel more divided than ever. Was there hope to be found?
In Faith Greater Than Our Challenges, Rev. Tom Edmondson offers a message of hope based on the apostle Paul's letter to the Philippians and the writings of Viktor Frankl. Though separated by nearly two thousand years, both faced certain death--Paul in prison, Frankl in concentration camps. Despite such dire circumstances, each one in his own way affirmed that life--even under the most extreme difficulties--has meaning. More than this, both Viktor Frankl's and Paul the apostle's words of encouragement have the power to inspire hope and patience to us during this time of pandemic.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Release date: Nov 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9781666721829

Tom Edmondson

Tom has served a number of churches as youth minister, associate minister, English minister (Korean churches), and most recently, senior pastor. He also spent 20 years as a bi-vocational pastor and full-time high school teacher. While teaching school, and especially now as a full time senior pastor, Tom is seeing the importance of mental health as it affects individuals, families, and the congregation as a whole. He believes that good pastoral care is possibly more important than good preaching. He also believes that worship should have a therapeutic effect on the worshiper. Tom and wife Ann celebrate over 32 years of marriage. They have two sons, a daughter-in-law, and two granddaughters. Tom holds a BA from Atlanta Christian College, a Master of Theological Studies from Candler School of Theology, and the MA in Jewish Studies from Emory University. He is also a certified instructor in Mental Health First Aid. Tom's hobbies include playing guitar and reading. He loves silent films, Dracula movies, and Star Trek. Reading interests include: Medieval Philosophy, Maimonides; Psychology, especially Viktor Frankl, Carl Jung, and Jacques Lacan; existentialism (and maybe phenomenology); Abraham Joshua Heshel, Paul Tillich, H. Richard Niebuhr, C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton. Also, Tom writes reviews for the American Academy of Religion's "Reading Religion" page.

Book preview

Principle 1

Exercise the Freedom to Choose Your Attitude

Scripture selection: Phil 1:15–26

Some proclaim Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. These proclaim Christ out of love, knowing that I have been put here for the defense of the gospel; the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment. What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true; and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance. It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

January 24, 2021

This is the first of nine messages that draw from Paul’s Letter to the Philippians and the psychology of Viktor Frankl. I chose Paul’s letter to the Philippians because he wrote it from prison. In it he states that he did not know whether he would be released or executed. He also wrote about opponents and critics who were adding to his burden. But while facing opposition and certain death, Paul penned this hopeful little letter to encourage the Philippian congregation to keep the faith. Paul’s steadfast courage and sense of conviction despite his circumstances have been inspiring to many Christians throughout the last twenty