Weekly Update

This morning's Daily Office reading includes Psalm 130:5 which says, "I hope, Lord. My whole being hopes, and I wait for God’s promise." Sometimes hope is not easy. Despair can be easy. Hope is difficult. Hope can be particularly difficult in difficult seasons That is because hope is the result of difficult seasons. In Romans 5 Paul writes, "suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." It seems to me that often when we need hope is in the times of suffering. Paradoxically, we don't recieve hope, but rather it comes as a result of our character. Unfortunately most of us are stubborn and refuse to work on our character in easy times. Character is formed when we perseverse through difficult seasons. Building our capacity to hope is akin to being an athlete. By the time I was a collegiate soccer player, I didn't balk at the idea of wearing a 45lb weight vest for 3 hours of practice. I knew that my body could handle it. But that was only because I started playing soccer when I was 5. After 15 years of wall sits, washboards, wind springs, 5ks, weight lifting, injuries, etc I know that I could handle. I had persevered through years of suffering. Hope grows in us when we let God's character shape us. I pray that each of us will persevere in ways that build our character so that we can agree with the psalmist "my whole being hopes, and I wait for God's promise."

Community Dinner Tonight we're having grilled hotdogs! I hope youre able to join us for a meal and Bible study.

Sunday we will have the Sunday School Board meeting as well as the regular board meeting. Please be in prayer for both of these.