The days are surely coming when… I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.
Jeremiah 31:33
Yesterday we spoke together of what it means to pray with perseverance and hope. It is about listening to God far more than speaking. It is about trusting that God is already present and working in our midst. And, most importantly, it is about living into our calling as children of God – those who answer the prayers of others.
Because prayer, though requiring us to be still at times, should usually push us to act in ways that mirror the God in whose image we are fearfully and wonderfully made. It will help us to fulfill the law of love that has been inscribed on our hearts.
There was something particularly poignant in the joys and concerns we shared before our prayer time this weekend. In one case, we celebrated with great joy that cancer has not spread. In another, we joined a family in sorrow due to the loss of their husband and father. And in still another case, we await with great expectation the newest member of our church family due to be born any day now.
The church is meant to be a place where we gather not only to worship God, but also to live out the daily offerings of our whole lives to God. That means that we walk with one another in joy and in sorrow. We surround one another with love. We comfort and encourage one another as we face the challenges life presents. And we serve one another just as Christ has so graciously served us.
As we continue on into Stewardship season this coming weekend, my encouragement for us all is to recognize the amazing family of faith we already are and then to strive to find ever more ways that we might live into our calling.
Blessings, Pastor Janie
First Welcoming All 