Learning to Grow Together

As we prepare for a second pandemic Christmas, it is easy to be discouraged. There have been difficulties, losses, anxiety, and lots of fear. It has been hard. And let's be honest, sometimes when we face hard things, it doesn't always bring out the best in us.

But sometimes, dare I say often, it does!

We have learned so much, individually and as a Church Family, over the last (almost) two years.

We have learned that we are stronger than we knew we were. We have learned that we really, REALLY need each other - family, friends, and community. We have learned that corporate worship IS extremely valuable and that it is important to get up on Sabbath morning and physically come to church. And we have learned to be grateful that we have the opportunity to do so! We have grown and we have learned.

We have learned that navigating difficult and challenging relationships is (most of the time) worth the effort. We have learned the art of compromise. We have learned that not every topic needs to be discussed . . . or even broached. We have even learned that we don't have to agree on everything to be in good, meaningful, mutually respectful relationships. We have grown and we have learned.

And most importantly, we are learning to trust our God more. Everyday, all day, in everything. Exodus 14:14 clearly states that God's got this! He's got us! I love these various translations:

"The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." (KJV)

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (NIV)

"The Lord will fight for you, and you won’t need to lift a finger!" (TLB)

"God will fight the battle for you. And you? You keep your mouths shut!” (MSG) (This is my favorite!)

We have learned to face hard things and yes, we've learned to allow those hard things to absolutely bring out the best in us!

I am so, so grateful for each of you! I am grateful for all the leadership, kindness, consistency, and support that you have given our church, our community, and . . . me. I have learned and grown so much.

Merry Christmas, dear Church Family!

—Karen Mallory

Learning and Growing - Together!

As we prepare for a second pandemic Christmas, it is easy to be discouraged. There have been difficulties, losses, anxiety, and lots of fear. It has been hard. And let's be honest, sometimes when we face hard things, it doesn't always bring out the best in us.

But sometimes, dare I say often, it does!

We have learned so much, individually and as a Church Family, over the last (almost) two years.

We have learned that we are stronger than we knew we were. We have learned that we really, REALLY need each other - family, friends, and community. We have learned that corporate worship IS extremely valuable and that it is important to get up on Sabbath morning and physically come to church. And we have learned to be grateful that we have the opportunity to do so! We have grown and we have learned.

We have learned that navigating difficult and challenging relationships is (most of the time) worth the effort. We have learned the art of compromise. We have learned that not every topic needs to be discussed . . . or even broached. We have even learned that we don't have to agree on everything to be in good, meaningful, mutually respectful relationships. We have grown and we have learned.

And most importantly, we are learning to trust our God more. Everyday, all day, in everything. Exodus 14:14 clearly states that God's got this! He's got us! I love these various translations:

"The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." (KJV)

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (NIV)

"The Lord will fight for you, and you won’t need to lift a finger!" (TLB)

"God will fight the battle for you. And you? You keep your mouths shut!” (MSG) (This is my favorite!)

We have learned to face hard things and yes, we've learned to allow those hard things to absolutely bring out the best in us!

I am so, so grateful for each of you! I am grateful for all the leadership, kindness, consistency, and support that you have given our church, our community, and . . . me. I have learned and grown so much.

Merry Christmas, dear Church Family!

—Karen Mallory

A Great Light

When I began preparing for this past Sabbath sermon, I knew I wanted to preach Psalm 46 and Isaiah 9. The question was: how do I communicate the heart of these passages? I translated them from Hebrew, wrote translation notes, and dug into commentaries. But as I tried to put the meaning of the passages into words, I felt like I was cheapening them. In the same way that explaining a joke takes the humor away from a joke, I felt that explaining the passages took away their power.  

Then it occurred to me: no one had to explain these passages for the original hearers for them to understand why they were so powerful. The power of the passages is the lived experience of the hearer. Upon realizing this, I decided to tell a story. A fictional story that generally captured the lived experience of thousands of Israelite's who were exiled in Babylon. My goal was for all of us to hear Psalm 46 and Isaiah 9 from the perspective of exiles.

Personally, as I wrote the sermon, often I had to take a breather for the ache I felt in my heart. And when I wrote the words of Isaiah 9 I felt an overwhelmed sense of divine presence and comfort that brought me to tears.

Although we are not exiles in Babylon, we are exiles on this earth waiting for the return of Christ. And we have all felt, at one point or another, the feelings of Korah, Ephraim, and Zeera. We have felt anger, disappointment, confusion, loss of words, doubt, and resentment. But we have also felt hope. The experience of our spiritual ancestors is also our own. 

So the truth of Isaiah 9 and Psalm 46 still applies to us: You will not have peace until you make peace with God. In our disappointment, we become angry at God, and that is understandable. But we will not find peace until we can make peace with God. In Christ, God has made peace with us, but we are the ones still at war with Him. Christ is the light that shines in the darkness, our Prince of Peace, and He invites us to make peace with Him that we may finally rest.

For it is written that Christ has made “peace through His blood, shed on the cross.” My friend, I invite you to make peace with God.

—Pastor Alex

How Long?

I have asked this question to God many times in my life. Not because I lack patience, but because, sometimes, the wait is difficult and it makes no sense. Why does God make us wait for important things like healing, freedom from addiction, mental clarity, and other related things? The sorrows of life are not like long grocery lines, traffic, or delayed shipping; they are significantly more urgent! The sorrows of life seem like something God would not, and should not, delay in.

However, making us wait appears to be how God works. Abraham waited for a son. Joseph waited in an Egyptian prison. Moses, Caleb, and Joshua waited in the wilderness for forty years. Job waited through suffering. David waited to become king. Daniel waited in a lion's den. Jesus waited 30 years to begin His ministry.

Waiting is nothing new for the people of God. In fact, it is the church’s modus operandi (Revelations 14:12). Why? Because it is good for us to wait. Only people who have endured long seasons of waiting know how rich the harvest is for those who endure (Psalm 27:14). God is faithful and true to His promise to those who wait in faith:

The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,

    to the soul who seeks Him.

It is good that one should wait quietly

    for the salvation of the Lord. (Lamentations 3:25-26)

Waiting is good for us because it teaches us to trust God. Trust is not something that can be forced on us, rather, it is something that must be created and nourished within us. It is something that requires testing and dependence. In the same way that our trust for people grows the more we depend on them, so does our trust for God grow as we wait on Him.

Read Psalm 13 and notice how the psalmist ends his poem. His/her waiting is not hopeless, but expectant. I cannot tell you how God will reward your waiting, but at least one reward is certain: trust. Trusting God is the greatest reward we can receive. For it makes the troubles of life bearable, and the future God’s storehouse of hope.

—Pastor Alex

The Blessing of Rituals

Here I am starting a short spiritual essay by mentioning baseball players. But you will see my point shortly. Each batter you watch displays unique actions as they get ready to hit. These twitches and stretches are so essential to the player that they become serious athletic rituals. All with the purpose of helping the player excel and play his best.

From Genesis to Revelation, the Word of God is filled with the story of God and humanity which is full of age-old rituals. So many in fact, that many secular thinkers criticize religion for its seemingly meaningless and endless rituals. 

But when you think about it, all of us have rituals, whether they are faith based or secular. So my note of encouragement today is to think through the little and big things we do everyday and dedicate them as rituals to enhance our daily walk with Christ. Rituals with deep meaning are able to provide our lives with blessed memories of being with the people we love, the friendships we have, and a Church Family with whom we worship. 

Dedicate a special chair to read the Bible; use a special song to bring in the Sabbath each week; schedule a time to pray on the phone with a friend each week; if there is a corner you turn on every morning on the way to work, call it your “Amen Corner” and say a prayer (eyes open, of course). Just think of the possibilities to add meaning and richness to your life.

—Dr. Bill Pritchard

The Teacher in the Student

Next to preaching, one of my favorite parts of my job is teaching others how to preach. We have seen Youth Ignite speakers, again and again, do amazing Biblical sermons! And my heart is full of pride every time I see my students do an amazing job. This past Sabbath, however, was particularly special for me. Several people came up to me after Kyle’s sermon and said, “he is definitely your student.” While Kyle was unique in his own powerful way, people could see the teacher in the student.

And this reminded me of Jesus' relationship to His own disciples. When Jesus invited Peter to follow Him and promised to make him a “fisher of men,” what was Jesus hoping to accomplish in Peter? In his book Meet the Rabbis, Brad Young (an expert in second temple Judaism) explains that a teacher would have brought his students into every aspect of his life in order that his students may become like their teacher in word and thought. Just as we distinguish accents, people could distinguish a student’s teacher by the way they lived their lives. In other words, the goal was for people to see the teacher in the student.

We like to call ourselves disciples of Jesus, but can people see the Teacher in us? Having faith and believing is one thing but following is another. I can believe a storm is coming but not move. I can believe Jesus is the Son of God but not follow. The invitation that Christ has extended to all of us is one of life-altering proportions. If you want to truly follow Jesus so that people may see the teacher in you, here is a short list of things you can do:

• Wake up early and pray (Mk 1:35)

• Side with the brokenhearted and disenfranchised (Matt 5:1-12, 25:31-46)

• Comfort the afflicted (Psalm 34:18)

• Read the Gospels and put listen to Jesus' words.

• Read the Gospels and observe Jesus' actions.

• Live out Jesus' teachings and copy His actions.

• Be gentle, meek, and kind (Matt 11:29).

Yes, this takes work. But you need to remember that you are a disciple. And what is a disciple? A student. The best students are the ones who do their homework. Let us learn from our Teacher that the world may see Him in us.

Fight the Good Fight

In 1 Timothy 6:12, the apostle Paul says to his student, Timothy, 

“Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

Many people characterize fighting the good fight as a spiritual struggle whereby we stand firm in the truth of God's word and battle against the world--standing up for what is right - to stand up for freedom and liberty, to war against the flesh, the devil, and our own self-will.  We often think that fighting the good fight of faith is not so much hostile combat against an enemy, but rising to the challenges of living a Christian life, living a good life. This is the message I believed for much of my life until during a Bible study, a friend turned my world upside down. As we were studying a passage in Romans he shared that the fight we are engaged in is, “… not against flesh and blood….” (Ephesians 6:10), it is to stay tethered to the vine.  We are called to fight the good fight to be connected to Him!

There are important issues in our world that must be addressed, and at times, there are issues that we must take sides in. HOWEVER (and I would put HOWEVER in capital letters!)– it is important to understand – and this is just how human nature is – these fights which may be important can cause us to forget the one good fight of faith that is critical.  I have seen it so many times – where people get involved in important stuff – but that stuff distracts them from the one fight that matters most – the fight of faith--to be tethered to the vine.  If you have ever read CS Lewis’ Screwtape Letters – the enemy’s goal is not to get you to do bad things – but to distract you from the Best Thing – even with good things. His goal is to get their minds off the gospel with seemingly important stuff.

John 15 is one of my favorite power scriptures that I love reading over and over again.  Jesus says beginning in verse 4, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me." 5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” 

Our daily, moment by moment battle, is to be connected to the Vine. What does it mean to be connected to the Vine?  It is meaningful time with Him every day.  Turning to Him when we face challenges or anxiety.  Trusting in Him and being willing to stand still in Him.  We cannot trust or stand still unless we are connected.  We cannot be connected unless we spend time with Him.  

Our world is facing much disruption! All around us from war to politics to natural disasters to _____ (you fill in the blank). There is so much out of our control and that we don’t have answers for. I am reminded of what is within my sphere of influence—my thoughts, my actions, my words, my attitude, and even my faith. But even more importantly in these uncertain times we can rest in knowing that we have a Creator God who is all powerful and all knowing and all present. A Creator God who walks before us. A Creator God who walks beside us. A Creator God who fights our battles. We can trust that God is going before us, and friends—He wins. We can let go of all anxiety and face our daily battles with more courage and strength because we know that whatever the outcome—based on His promise in Romans 8:28: "God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”  The very best possible fighting positions that a believer could possibly take is in God’s word and on our knees.  

Maranatha!

—Ric Peinaado