We’re now going into the third month of the New Year. Over the past month we held our Church Annual Meeting that was well attended. We look forward to what God has planned for our church this year. Our Outreach Ministry Team is reorganizing and will be discussing ways to draw others into our congregation as well as holding more events for children, young people and adults this year. We are also forming a Welcoming Committee that will be developing and implementing a visitor packet to give out when a new person attends our church. If you are interested in serving on the Outreach Ministry Team or Welcoming Committee, please contact me. Our Prayer Warriors continue to draw names each month and pray for families attending our church. We’ve had many answers to prayers and know God will continue to answer our prayers in His time.
On March 6, Ash Wednesday, we’ll begin our journey through the 40 days of the Lenten season. Lent is often seen as a season to be introspective, a time to check in on our relationship with God. Have we been praying and keeping in touch? Have we given thanks as much as we’ve asked for help? If we think God has been ignoring us, Lent is a great time to be honest about how often we’ve ignored God. We need a time of Lent to shift gears, to turn around (repent) and take stock in our relationship with Jesus Christ, the Giver of All Life. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in our daily agendas and forget that God loves us unconditionally, truly desires to be in relationship with us.
During Lent we’re reminded what God has done for us, and the lengths to which God was willing, and is willing to show us that love. There’s nothing we can do to destroy God’s love for us. Our God is like a father who keeps vigil until his prodigal son or daughter comes home. If we’ve been absent, can we see Lent as a turn back to God?
Lent is what we make it; we can ignore it; or we can embrace it. Lent has also been described as a wilderness time. Our quest for God can feel like a journey in the wilderness; perhaps a little scary, or even dangerous. But in the end, it’s a journey inward; a road of twists and turns that ultimately finds its home in our hearts. In the Gospel of Matthew 4:1-11, and Luke 4:1-13, we find Jesus was driven into the wilderness right after his baptism. The wording sounds a little harsh, yet Jesus would return to the wilderness again and again to be in prayer with God, to reconnect, rest, and be strengthened for whatever was coming. Can we do the same? The wilderness can be a scary place, and so can the journey inward when we come face to face with the wild beasts that live inside of us: the beasts of anger, fear, grief, anxiety, guilt, and shame. Who wants to go there?
As we journey through Lent this year, it’s my prayer that we’ll be surprised by God, and discover how profoundly loved we are. God seeks; God knocks; God wants to be close. God only desires our joy, and our joy is a sign of God’s presence.
Keep Praying, Reading God’s Word, and inviting others to attend church with you.
In His Service
Pastor Doug