February 4, 2023  —  “In Christ, There is Always Hope”

 “I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.” Ephesians 1:15-19

“six amazing things being prayed for in one prayer over just a few short verses:

1. A deeper faith in Jesus.
2. A greater love for others.
3. A greater measure of the Spirit, so as to know God better.
4. Knowing the hope to which God calls us.
5. Knowing the riches of the inheritance He gives us.
6. Knowing His power available to us who believe.

Those are great things to be praying for each day. Why not pray this prayer over yourself each morning, and see what God does in response?”  (onerockinternational.com)

I am sure you have heard someone say “All hope is lost”. People make such a statement when it appears the odds against them are so great there is nothing that will change the course of their journey. I once saw this quote: “When you have lost hope, you have lost everything. And when you think all is lost, when all is dire and bleak, there is always hope. (Pittacus Lore).

There is nothing more insidious than despair – than the loss of hope. I often think of the three women who had been kidnapped by Ariel Castro in Cleveland between 2002 and 2004. In 2013 they were rescued when one of the women escaped the home they were being held captive and contacted the police. Two of the women wrote a book about their ordeal titled “Hope: A Memoir of Survival in Cleveland.”  To believe that these women survived this ordeal is possible when we consider that they never lost hope that one day, someone would find them. It is a reminder to us all that this world can take so much away from us, but it can never take away our hope that comes through Jesus Christ. After all, without hope, what do we have left?

When it comes to Jesus Christ, we should never, never utter the words “All hope is lost.” As we hear in Philippians 3:8: “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

Let us pray: Dear G-d, you are my hope, my rock and my everything. Help me to live into that hope every day. Amen.

Pastor Dave

February 3, 2023 — “When God Waits, There is Always a Good Reason”

“Wait for the Lord, and keep to his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on the destruction of the wicked. I have seen the wicked oppressing, and towering like a cedar of Lebanon.Again I passed by, and they were no more; though I sought them, they could not be found.Mark the blameless, and behold the upright, for there is posterity for the peaceable. But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off. The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their refuge in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them, because they take refuge in him.” Psalm 37:34-40

“Wait on the Lord, and keep his way. This is the true mode of

waiting on God which the Scripture recommends; keeping God’s way– using all his ordinances, and living in the spirit of obedience.” (Adam Clarke Commentary)

We all can work, we all can focus for a time, we all can handle more than one thing at a time. But can we all wait patiently? I am someone who struggles with waiting patiently. If I am standing in a line to order a coffee and the people in front of me are thinking and talking instead of ordering, it upsets me. “I have places to be”, I think to myself. “Don’t they realize I am in a hurry?”, I mumble under my breath. Too much of society is in a rush to get nowhere – and they are waiting to trample over whomever might get in their way.

“Wait for the Lord, and keep His way”, the Psalmist says. The people in Egypt possibly wondered why the Lord waited so long before rescuing them from their burdens under Pharaoh. They most likely wondered why – and determined that there must be some good reason for the Lord to seemingly forget their plight. When G-d waits, there is always a good reason. Moses needed time to develop his character to be a good leader. Pharaoh needed to wait for his heart to harden enough to push the Lord to act.

Let us pray: Dear G-d, help me to learn to have patience, and allow you to act, in your time. When I do I know I will reap the benefit of your patience. Amen

Pastor Dave