Consider it all joy?!?

         Recently I woke up saying, "I have a good life.  God is so good to me."  I lay and recounted all the ways God has blessed me.  I acknowledged some of the difficult things God has allowed to come my way, but affirmed how God has used those things to grow me.  Unfortunately I sometimes do not wake up praising God.  I wake up griping about how my body hurts and how people have let me down.

        Have my circumstances changed?  Not at all. The only things that have changed are my attitude and my viewpoint.  God has a lot to say to me and probably to you as well about what we should be thinking.

        I Thessalonians 5:18, In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

        Philippians 4:4  Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!

        Colossians 3:16-17  Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

        Ephesians 5:20 Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.

        These verses are all from the pen of the Apostle Paul and when you think of what his circumstances were, they are pretty amazing.  For example, the Philippians verses are written from the depths of a Roman jail, hardly a place to induce rejoicing.

        James goes further in his instructions. James 1:2-4 says, Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

        I saw in an old journal of mine that next to this verse in James I had written, "I can accept trials, but I have not yet gotten to where I can rejoice in them."  What kind of trials might you and I be facing?  Let's see.  The death of a friend or family member?  Financial hardships?  You can't pay your bills?  Could your house be repossessed? Alienation from a child?  A wandering child? Marital discord? Health issues, either chronic or acute?  Do you deal with pain on a daily basis? Questions or fears about the future?

        I have faced these things in the past and will face others in the future, I am sure.  You have your list as well.  Must I consider these things as cause for joy? I don't really think I have a choice if I am to please God.  These verses say, "in everything," "all things," "this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

        Do you have some heartaches that you cannot share?  Then count it all joy as you talk to Jesus. He already knows, but He wants you to acknowledge them, to trust Him with your pain.  He wants to see your triumph.

        This Thanksgiving as you are sharing what you are thankful for, don't forget the difficult things.  Can you count it all joy when you encounter those things?

                                                                            ~~Faith Himes Lamb

        

        

       

You Are Not Alone

 

Middle school is an awkward time of life no matter what, but it was a pretty hard time for me. When I was going into 7^th grade, we left a fairly legalistic church and came to Grace after visiting many local churches. I remember grappling with a new understanding of what living as a Christian looked like and being overwhelmed with the newness of the music. I was familiar with the hymns, but most of what we sang in youth group was completely new to me. Because I didn’t know those songs, I had to pay close attention to the words, and they spoke to my heart in a deeply meaningful way.

But I struggled with connecting with my peers. There were few girls my age who attended regularly, and most of the youth group saw each other at school during the week while I was homeschooled. While I was growing significantly in my spiritual life, I felt so alone.

I don’t remember which summer it was, but the youth group traveled up to Michigan for summer camp at Lake Ann. It was a fun week, but there was one slot on the schedule that I dreaded all week. On our last morning, two hours were set aside to be alone with God. Even though I was an avid reader, it seemed like such a long time with just my Bible and nothing else planned. I definitely had a bad attitude about it.

Our cabin went out to a grassy spot, and we all spread out. I sat down and began flipping through my Bible with no clue what to read and little hope that this wouldn’t be the most boring part of the week. I landed on Psalm 139, and my throat caught as I read the exact words I needed in that moment:

“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you” (Psalm 139:1-12 NIV).

In my loneliness, it was such a comfort to read that there was Someone who knew me deeply, including all the overwhelming and confusing emotions—to recognize that God is there and that I can lean into Him at any time. Though I still struggled with making connections through my middle and high school years, that moment was pivotal in my spiritual journey. I began to find comfort in turning to God instead of wallowing in self-pity.

Connection with other people is important. We were created as relational beings, and the church was designed to be a community of Jesus-followers who support one another. But we all experience times in our lives when we feel alone. We may be physically separated from others, but more often than not (at least for me), we feel alone because we withdraw from others when under stress. We may think that no one feels the same way we do, or we may think that we would be unnecessarily burdening others by reaching out. 

As a confused middle-schooler, I did not know how to reach out to others, and in that time of loneliness, God provided comfort by telling me that He knew me intimately. I eventually made connections with other people, and I am incredibly thankful for this church community. If you are feeling lonely, I encourage you to first recognize that there is Someone who knows every part of you and loves you deeply. No matter where you are physically, emotionally, or spiritually, God is there. But second of all, I encourage you to reach out. You are a relational being, and you need others. You might be surprised that many others do feel the same way and that people are ready and willing to be there for you.

 

--Concetta Swann

God Our Breakwater

 This past summer I had the privilege of spending four days with just my daughter exploring the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  We had taken her boys for a week of camp at Lake Anne Camp, as my son, Nathaniel, was co-preaching with Ken Rudolph that week.   While they were at camp, my daughter and I took off without an agenda.  We did plan ahead for hotels, but then we basically asked the locals what we needed to see.  We enjoyed eating cherries (Moomer's cherry ice cream was the best – straight from the cow), sailing through the locks at St. Sioux Marie, climbing sand dunes, finding rocks on the beach (yes, rocks, not shells), seeing historical sights, and--my favorite--visiting lighthouses. 

 

The last lighthouse we visited was at the end of a breakwater or jetty.  As I was having my devotions shortly afterward, I was reminded of this particular breakwater.  It was a windy day and, on the left, as we walked towards the lighthouse, the waves were thrashing against the huge boulders of rock, splashing us as we were walking.  On the right side of the breakwater, the water was perfectly calm.  There was a marina, and the boats docked there were very calmly floating on the water.  I thought about this picture and could associate it with our daily life.  Difficult storms come and go in life.  Times may be rough, like the waves, or times could be calm and peaceful.  But who is in control of those times?  God is.  He is the breakwater of our lives. 

 

Now I can’t stop here.  As we were walking on the breakwater, we noticed something else. It must have been a normal thing to do, as we saw several kids doing the same thing. Teenagers had brought out mini-trampolines and were using them to dive into the water from the breakwater.  Now if it were me, I’d be jumping into the calm water. But no, these kids were diving into the rough water thrashing against the rocks. This brought to my mind the verse in Psalms 18:2 – The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 

 

If I could create a correlation here, I see the breakwater as God. The rough seas represent life, and the calm seas represent the grace of God. Those kids (no matter how crazy I thought they were) represent us. You see, I asked one of them if they didn’t fear diving headfirst into the rocks or been thrashed against the rocks.  His answer was, “No, we know how far to jump to be safe.” Now that is confidence! 

 

The question I have to ask, and we all should ask, is this:  Is my faith strong enough to have the confidence that God will carry me through?  The confidence these kids had in their safety is the kind of confidence we need that no matter our circumstances, God is there with us. What a beautiful reminder God has given to us through His creation. 

 

--Bonnie King 

God's Sovereignty and My Story

 

“The sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which the saint rests his head.” I have found this quote by C.H. Spurgeon to be true in my own life. When I tend to worry about the future, I remember God’s sovereignty, His control over all things, and that gives me peace. God doesn’t simply know the future; He controls it. He ordains the things that happen to me and to those I love.

“My frame was not hidden from You, when I was being made in secret, […] Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in Your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them.” (Psalm 139: 15-16)

Recently I was in the middle of a fiction book that was occupying my thoughts even when I wasn’t reading it. In the midst of those thoughts, my mind returned to a real-life situation, and for a split second, I thought that in this real-life matter, like in a book, I could just look ahead or continue ‘reading’ to see how it played out. I immediately came back to my senses. This was life; it was not a book. The story of this situation was not yet written; I couldn’t know what would happen. Perhaps time would tell, but I would perhaps never know exactly how that situation played out or the why behind it.

Yet then God sweetly reminded me that this situation I was pondering, like a story, does have an Author, and that things don’t just happen haphazardly. Just as a writer of a well-written book carefully plots out his story and has a purpose for every scene in his book, so our Father uses every event in our lives to weave the story He is writing. This is what His sovereignty does for us.  I don’t know the future, and I can’t look ahead to see it. But God is sovereign; He is on the throne, and this truth challenges me not to live in worry and fear. Instead, I trust in the One who created this world and all living in it, who sustains everything by His power, and whose very word accomplishes His purposes.

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass. I have purposed, and I will do it.” (Isaiah 46:9-10)

I don’t know what lies ahead. But while I don’t know the details of the story that God is writing in my life, I do know the last page. If you’re like me, as long as I know a story ends well, I can keep reading the book despite hardships and tragedies the author may include. I just want to know everything comes out right in the end.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth […] And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’ And He who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’” (Revelation 21:1-5)

And this ending” is really only the beginning of a story in which, as C.S. Lewis describes it, every chapter is better than the one before.

-- Amy O’Rear

Promises to Pilgrims

 This week I was thinking about how the Bible is full of rich word pictures that illustrate truth so vividly and profoundly. From a candle wick to a sheep, here are a few that came to the forefront of my mind, especially as they relate to how God relates to us, and the promises He gives us. What a wonderful Lord He is!

- MaryBeth Hall

Promises to Pilgrims

"For all the promises of God in Him [Jesus] are Yes,

and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us." 2 Corinthians 1:20

To the dimly burning candle wick:

I will not extinguish you. (Is. 42:3)

I have made you the light of the world. (Matt. 5:14)

To the weary pilgrim:

I will renew your strength. (Is. 40:31)

I will bring you to dwell in My house forever. (Ps. 23:6)

To the weak:

My grace is sufficient for you. (2 Cor. 12:9)

I will help you. (Is. 41:10)

To the rejected:

I have made you to be accepted in My beloved Son. (Eph. 1:3-6)

I am with you always. (Mt. 28:20)

To the poor:

I, your Father, know your needs. (Matt. 6:31-32)

I never forsake the righteous. (Ps. 37:25)

To the discouraged:

I always cause you to triumph in Christ. (2 Cor. 2:14)

Through I Who love you, you are more than conqueror. (Rom. 8:37) 

To all:

My word is your very bread.(Mt. 4:4)

I do not change. (Mal. 3:6)

The hands that formed  Adam from dust

Reach out to those who in Him trust;

They touch the ones who at His feet

Find gratitude and mercy meet.

The wings of the Almighty hide

Closely those who seek His side;

The refuge of His strong embrace

Is ever their abiding place.

The face of Yahweh always is

Toward redeemed sinners who are His;

He shines as sunshine on their days,

Makes even nights a time to praise.

His Word – how can we say enough -

When life is easy or it's tough,

Leaning on His Book our staff,

We journey on the pilgrim path.

From morning time to evenfall,

Winter, spring, summer, fall:

God walks with us and hears each call

This Faithful One, then, love o'er all.

Honor Him by drinking deep;

 Living Water's blessings keep

Daily helping us His sheep,

His promises gemstones we reap.

   And when the pilgrim way is o'er

We'll see the glory of our Lord;

All He is we shall adore

Before His throne forevermore.

A Good Life

        Do you have six friends you could call with an emergency in the middle of the night and they would step up to the plate for you?

        According to Dr. Robert Waldinger, quoted by Ken Budd in a Saturday Evening Post article in the September/October 2024 issue, your answer to this question indicates whether you have a good life now and will predict if you will have a good and happy life as you age.  The article "What Makes a Good Life?" claims "Relationships are vital for us as humans. They are vital for good health, for happiness, for a long and fulfilling life."

        I won't go into the details here, but beginning in 1938 a study followed Harvard grads from affluent backgrounds and young men from some of the poorest and worst neighborhoods in Boston.The study followed these men and their wives and even children through questionnaires, interviews, medical records, and so on.  All of the information was to track their happiness and satisfaction with life.  The conclusion reached:  good relationships make us healthier and happier.  Our relationships--not our career achievements, not our possessions, not our bank accounts--provide satisfaction in life.  "The inner city guys were no less happy than the Harvard guys as they went through their lives," Waldinger says of the study.  In a study asking millennials what their life goals were, more than 80% 0f them wanted to be rich, while 50% wanted to be famous.  But of the 80 year olds in the Harvard study, not a one of them mentioned money.  Their greatest pride was about their relationships-they were a good dad, a good husband.  Their greatest regrets were that they had spent too much time working and not enough time with the people they loved.  

        If relationships are that important, how do we strengthen our friendships and even create new ones?   Ken Budd in this article suggests six friendship builders. 

1. Use the internet the right way, not in mindless scrolling, but in deliberately connecting with old and new friends.
2. Follow your passions.  Do something you care about.  You will find others who share your interests.
3. Reconnect with old friends through a text, an email, or a phone call.
4. Repair damaged relationships.  Remove that stress.
5. Connect with strangers.  Even a momentary connection will build satisfaction in our lives.
6. Cultivate relationships.  "How can we get together more?  How do we stay current with each other's lives?"

        I want to turn now to the greatest book of advice on friendship, the Bible.  When I looked up verses on friendship, I had far more suggested than I could use.  Many were from the book of Proverbs, 

• Proverbs 18:24,  "A man who has friends must himself be friendly."
• Proverbs 17:17, "A friend loves at all times."
• Hebrews 10:24, "Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works."
• Proverbs 12:26, "The righteous should choose his friends carefully."
• Romans 12:15, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep."
• Philippians, "Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others."

        Scripture is full of advice on how to build relationships (a good place to start a study), but let me end with this one.

        Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, "Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor.  For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion.  But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.  Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?  And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him.  A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart."

        Let's work to build those relationships!

                                                                            ~~Faith Himes Lamb

                                                                        

A Gospel Welcome

 

I enjoy watching survival shows. I have young children - it feels relatable. When I was watching one of these shows recently, I was struck by such a meaningful gospel moment. I wanted to share it with you.

          In the show Outlast*, the season was coming to an end and there were two teams left surviving in the wilderness of Alaska. Think freezing cold temperatures, surviving on clams and mushrooms and occasional squirrels for weeks on end. Bear country, frost-bite, grueling work, creating your own shelter, etc.

           There was one man, Joey, who had jumped to different teams throughout the show, never remaining faithful to one group, and having this mindset of “I’m playing only for myself.” Even though in order to win, you must remain a part of the team. Because of his sneakiness and betrayal, he wasn’t one of my favorite characters.

           The team he was on during this special scene was called Delta. On Delta was another man, named Joseph (I know, similar names). From the beginning, Joseph introduced himself as a “man of God,” and throughout the show you see him standing out in many areas: clean language, peaceful behavior, praying in front of and with his teammates. He made a stand that he never wanted to destroy or manipulate another team in order to win.

           As the season winds down and the prize is in sight, Joey sneaks off to see if he can join the other team, Bravo. Bravo says no, so Joey tries to sneak back to his original team. This “sneaking” involves crossing a river in a boat and team Delta sees him making the return voyage back to them.

           As expected, many of his current teammates are upset, feeling betrayed, not wanting to let him back in. Joey answers some questions with lies and evades others. And this leads to a one-on-one conversation with Joseph.

           Joey is at a breaking point, feeling guilty, but not wanting to lose. He still doesn’t care about the people on his team. He just wants to get away with this betrayal. So Joseph goes to him and begins asking him some pointed questions. Joey says, “I just want to get to the finish line; I still don’t feel that I’ve betrayed.”

           Quiet, calm Joseph takes it all in - the obvious lies, the nervous behavior and says, “...whatever story he was telling, I kind of didn’t even want to hear it ‘cause I know it’s not the whole truth… And I just asked, God, give me a sign. Give me something. So I just listened and I was being still.”

           Now, let me jump in here and say that I as the audience member thought that was it for Joey. Wise Joseph knows he’s lying. They’re going to vote him out and rightly so! I was caught off guard by what happened next.

           Joseph continues aloud to Joey, “Man, you got your wife and your kids. You know how good of an opportunity you have right now?” In his interview he says, “I’m not gonna lie, I was sad and disappointed, but being a man of God, I was trying not to judge and just give him the benefit of the doubt. Even though I don’t want to, I believe in forgiveness.”

           A few minutes later he continues talking with Joey, “One thing I won’t do is give up. On you, or all the people back at camp… So, Joey, you’ve got it.” You see Joey standing in stunned silence with tears in his eyes as he receives a hug from Joseph. Joey says, “honestly I was expecting something completely different. Joseph comes down, he really kinda leans in and says exactly what I needed to hear, and just asks me to stay…”

           At that moment another teammate who had been listening to that whole conversation, who had been angry and ready to send Joey away, walks down and tells him he’s good, he’s staying, and also offers him a hug. The ripple effect of that grace is seen immediately.

           Joey states, “...There’s a bit of shame, of going over and pitching myself and getting denied. And they just welcomed me back with open arms.”

           What a picture. The gospel in action. It was such a notable moment because it was so counter-cultural. And that counter-cultural welcome is what you and I have received. While I was sitting there rooting for Joey to be sent home, truly I was sitting there with a deceitful, sneaky heart of my own. One that without Christ is unrescuable. But God doesn’t leave me there broken, lost and hopeless. No, He offers the forgiveness that is not earned and the open arms that are full of grace, welcoming me back with the gospel.

           Pastor Kelly O’Rear mentioned this quote from You’re Not Crazy in his message the other day, “The finished work of Christ on the cross is not God’s way of saying to us, ‘You’re free to go now’ but ‘you’re free to come now.’ He’s not sending us off, but inviting us in.” May we know that undeserved but so-freely-given welcome in our own hearts, so that we too can offer it to others without pride, or entitlement. May we look for the opportunity to share that gospel love with someone in our own lives even today.

 

-Sandy Gromacki