A Thrill of Hope

From the moment Eve took the first bite of forbidden fruit, creation has been groaning and mankind has been in need of a redeemer.

On that fateful day when sin entered the world, a Savior was graciously promised. A glorious King would come who would crush the head of the wicked, wily serpent and rule over the people of Israel.

“And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler while will shepherd my people Israel.”  (Matthew 2:6 quoting Micah 5:2)

Such a glorious, hope-filled promise given to God’s people!

But they would have to wait.

Centuries passed, and the world fell headlong into sin with all its devastating effects. Generation after generation would suffer from selfish ambition, power struggles, hate, loss, hunger, and every kind of injustice.

Those who knew of God’s promise and longed for its fulfillment waited eagerly for the Messiah. With each passing year, Israel would wonder, “Is now the time that He will come?”

But as they called out for deliverance, their only answer was death, disease, displacement, and darkness.

And then…

A THRILL OF HOPE!

At long last, God came to live with us. The long-ago Promised One pierced through time and space. The very Word of God was made into skin and bone, entering our world and breathing in our dust.

Wise Men rejoiced at His coming. They fell down in worship and brought gifts that reflected their joy and reverence:

1)     Gold - a precious metal signifying royalty, purity, and value. It was a gift fit for a king.

2)     Frankincense - a very expensive type of incense that was used in worship        ceremonies

3)     Myrrh - a sweet smelling resin that was used for embalming bodies after death

It would seem that the Wise Men somehow had a proper understanding of the life that this royal baby would lead. Even though He was King of kings and worthy of all worship, He humbly came as a poor, defenseless baby. He would live a life just like ours, yet without sin. He would fulfill every requirement needed to be right before God and then drink the cup of God’s wrath in the place of sinners.

“A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.”    (O Holy Night by Adolphe Adam)

Jesus came to live and die for us, but His perfect reign has not yet been fully realized. For those of us who live on this side of the manger, the waiting is not yet over.

One day He will come again to make all things right. All the sad things will become untrue, and death itself will die!

But we will have to wait.

As we celebrate the first advent of our Savior this Christmas, may we long for His second one that is yet to come.

-Becky Groppel

Wonder

And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. 

But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. — Luke 2:18-19

Wonder: A feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable.

Wonder.

Have you noticed as life ages, our childlike wonder dims? It doesn’t matter whether one is a person of the Christian faith or not; wonder fades and lingers in our youthful memories of past Christmases.

Last Sunday, in our Sunday morning small group, we discussed wonder. We listened to a Christmas song by Kenny Loggins. In his beautiful Christmas song “December,” Loggins longs to capture the childlike wonder he once had.  “Once upon a dream,” sings Loggins, “he knows with all his heart that wonder is coming,” where Loggins reflects on the wonder he once had as a young boy at Christmas. By the song’s ending, “And the Autumn’s ashes,” Loggins still believes in the message of Christmas.

I noticed my loss of wonder the last two holiday seasons watching my young granddaughters visit The Polar Express at Union Station, Santa, decorating our house and listening to them excitedly talk about their Christmas school plays. The wonder of the holiday season brimming in their eyes, minds, and their energy while I, like the boy in The Polar Express story, try to rediscover enchantment.

In his famous sermon “The Weight of Glory,” C.S. Lewis warns the faithful of the evil enchantment of worldliness grounded only in natural happiness and philosophies, which disenchant. Disenchantment separates the divine from our inherent wonder where we long for the beyond. Worldliness wants to convince us Earth is our only home.[1] Death is final.

Lewis felt we could be drawn into this “Negative Spirituality.” Meaning we intellectualize our faith and separate it from its beauty, joy, and vibrancy. Gary Shelby writes, “Lewis gives us a way of living out the faith that is joyful and full of vitality — as God intended it to be. [God] bids us wonder at what the nature of God must have been to create this [beauty and delight]. And He invites us to imagine what it might mean to live eternally in the presence of this God.”[2]

In Luke 2, God bids us wonder in Luke’s narrative of the Shepards and Mary’s stories. God invites us into the Nativity story overflowing with inherent wonder and enchantment and has faith lessons of waiting, listening, seeing, and acting.

The Shepards kept watch over their sheep in quiet solitude (v.8) while Mary later treasured it all within her heart and pondered what all of it meant. (v.19) These are quiet activities of solitude and introspection instead of our haste during the most commercial time of the year, where schedules overflow with activity. There is a centering of one’s soul when one waits and ponders.

Then in seeing and hearing the Angels praise the Glory of God (verse 10-14), the Shepards acted on this Good News, “Let us now go.” (v. 15) The Shepards shared the Good News to the people they encountered “who wondered at the things which were told them.” (v.18) In the act of wonder, the Shepards, and those who heard the message, spread the Good News. God came down to His creation enfleshed as a baby, as our Savior, which is Christ the Lord. So they listened, they saw, and they acted.

We, too, need to Wait. Listen. See. And, finally, Act.

This Advent season, please spend time in wonder and joy, immersed in the beauty of the season. With newness and vitality, embrace the wonder, mystery, and beauty of your faith, and then share the Good News to others, knowing that God’s heavenly wonders are the “secret signature of each soul.”[3]  Merry Christmas!

[1]C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory and Other Speeches (New York: HarperCollins, 1949), 31-32.

[2]Gary S. Shelby, Pursuing an Earthy Spirituality: C.S. Lewis and Incarnational Faith (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2019), 13.

[3] Ibid, 32.

God With Us

As we enter week two of Advent, we focus on Joseph and God’s promise of the virgin birth. We meet Joseph in an impossible situation, his bride-to-be Mary is with child. He could have her stoned, but Joseph is a righteous man who contemplates quietly divorcing her instead. However in Matthew 1 v20, we read as Joseph considered his options, God provides Joseph with a third choice, to marry Mary.

Joseph did not rush to a decision. He contemplated his choices, then listened and obeyed the angel’s instructions. This fulfilled the prophecy from Isaiah 7:14 “There the Lord himself will give you a sign:  The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Joseph’s obedience, humbleness, and trust in the Lord should not be understated.

I’m reminded of the contemporary Christmas song, “Better You Than Me, Joseph”, which the singer contemplates being in Joseph’s shoes:

“Is the touchstone forcing you to hide, Joseph?

Are the rumors eating you alive, Joseph?”

The song highlights the specialness of Joseph in the Christmas story and outros with “better you than me” sung repeatedly. It’s a light-hearted song but it calls to attention an important lesson. God’s providence is over time and space. Joseph was the exact right person to be Jesus’ earthly father and through his free will Joseph was obedient to God’s instructions despite what cultural norms and personal objections he faced. God has put us here in 2021 for a reason. We all have divine appointments, are we obedient and trusting enough to show up to them?

-Alex Pfister

The Eternal Wonder of Jesus

An astrological event occurred last weekend that was announced as a once in a lifetime event.  It was a lunar eclipse nicknamed a beaver moon.  Did you see it?  I was working with AFD when a co-worker at the firehouse across town sent me a text reminder to look for the eclipse on runs throughout the night.  It was amazing to see and a perfectly clear sky to view it in.  Quite honestly, if it wasn’t for emergency calls getting me out of bed, I probably wouldn’t have got up to see it even though it was promised to be rare and wonderful.  I thanked that co-worker the next morning for pointing my eyes to the stars.  Events like that can feel larger than life but there is an advent that outshines them all!

In our text for this week, we see Mary is visited by Gabriel.  Not only is Gabriel an angelic being, but Gabriel also has a supernatural message about the birth of Jesus as the promised Christ.  Imagine the awe and wonder of Mary in that moment.  Gabriel reported of Jesus’ Kingdom being one with no end.  The prophet Isaiah foretold the same as he described the birth of the Christ child as one whose reign would be forevermore. By these things, we are reminded that Jesus is ETERNAL and His Kingdom is an eternal one.

Isaiah goes on to list a bunch of names to attribute to the coming Messiah.  Jesus is too great for only one name so He will be called, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.  The angel Gabriel said Jesus will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  Jesus is described by both Isaiah and Gabriel as one who is too great for just one name.  By these things, we are reminded that Jesus is WONDERFUL and His Kingdom is amazing. 

This Sunday, we will begin to celebrate Advent.  As we reflect on that moment in history I hope each of us will be filled with awe and wonder as we remember the coming to earth of Jesus of Nazareth.  May we see Isaiah and Gabriel as ones that have pointed our eyes to THE Star of stars – Jesus, the bright Morningstar!  May we rejoice in the favor we have found in Him!  May the joy of our salvation resound in our hearts and overflow from our lips as we praise the Most High for the eternal wonder revealed in His Son!  Let us hope together in His return as our eternal King and wonderful Savior!

Grateful and hopeful in Christ, 

Jon

Prayer for Our Pastors

Paul deeply loved and cared for the people of Ephesus. He had invested in their lives so much, that he had to avoid sailing through their city. This was because in going there, they would be so overjoyed to see him that they would never let him get away in time to celebrate the Pentecost at Jerusalem! So, instead of visiting them personally, he invited the elders of Ephesus to meet him at Miletus where he gave a charge to them in how to care for the people whom Jesus had bought with His very own blood.

Paul encouraged his elders to serve with humility; to preach boldly, and not shrink from truth that is difficult; to be willing to experience hardship; to watch out for wolves who could harm Jesus’ flock; to keep oneself from covetousness; and to care for the people of God.

The Church matters to God. It was purchased at a very high price. Because of this, God ensured that His people have someone to care and watch out for them.

As I read this charge, I am struck by the weight and responsibility of being called to the role of elder or overseer. Such a task can only be done through the power of the Holy Spirit.

For those of us who call The Bridge our home, we have been given an incredible gift. God has given us godly men to serve as our elders and shepherd our souls. It is evident that they love God, His Word, and His people. I can personally attest that our family has been blessed by their care, and I’m sure that you all could say the same.

These men whom God has given us as pastors have the same responsibility as Paul and the Ephesian elders. Their job is a serious one that must not be taken lightly and has eternal ramifications. They serve us with tears, carry the weight of preaching the whole counsel of God, watch out for spiritual dangers, and willingly put themselves through hardship for our good. With such an important task ahead of them, they need to rely on the strength of the Holy Spirit and trust that he will equip them for the good works that He has prepared for them.

This month at The Bridge, we have set aside 21 Days of Prayer. I propose that we each take one of those days to pray fervently for our pastors. Will you pray that God will help them to continue to serve with humility, love, and joy? That God will give them strength, wisdom, boldness, and that they will not grow weary in doing good?

Let’s enter the throne room of grace together with thanksgiving to God for giving us the gift of our pastors.

-Becky Groppel

Opportunities Arise From Changed Plans

I was born and raised in Denver, which means one becomes a Denver Bronco fan for life at birth.  Last week, one of the most popular players in the franchise’s history and a Future Hall of Fame inductee, Von Miller, was traded to another team. The trade stunned him.  In a press conference, he said, “If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.”

Why do I mention Von Miller’s trade story? Because like Von Miller and what Paul found out in Acts 20:1-12, we too learn the plans we make, and God’s plan can be different.  Paul had plans regarding his ministry and travels, while God had other plans for him.  However, the Lord’s change in Paul’s agenda also most likely led to the creation of Luke’s Gospel and his book of Acts, and a miracle connecting the Old and New Testaments.[1]  All which helped spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ worldwide.

Because of Paul’s continued teaching in the synagogues and the conversion of synagogue leaders and many members, nonbelieving Jews were still upset with Paul and plotted to kill him.

Because of these evil intentions, Paul’s travel plans changed from his desire to go from Syria to Jerusalem for the Passover to backtracking through Macedonia and its region, including Philippi, where he met Luke. Luke joined him for the trip to Jerusalem (“we” in verse 6).  If he followed his original plans, Paul would not have bumped into Luke, which most likely means no Gospel by Luke and perhaps Acts. Luke would not have traveled to Jerusalem with Paul where he interviewed Peter, John, Mark, and other eyewitnesses, the sources for his writings.[2]

Paul eventually caught up with his companions listed earlier in these verses, and before Paul set sail, they broke bread, most likely sang songs, and had a meal. Paul gave a message late into the night, leading to a young man falling asleep (full stomach, low light, late night), falling out of a window, and dying. Here is where the miracle of Paul raising the young man back to life is linked to the Old Testament prophets Elijah and Elisha’s miracles of bringing two boys back to life. Luke’s description of Paul “fell on him” (v.10) indicated Paul used the same body movement as those two prophets in their miracles of raising a person back to life.

I noticed in this story of adapting that Paul's friends separated from him for a time, but eventually met up together where they “came together” (v.7) to break bread, sing, worship, and listen to Paul’s message.  Sound familiar?

Our church had plans the pandemic changed. In adapting to the times, friends and family separated for a time.  But here is a key to Paul’s story and our church story.  Once again, there was a coming together, a meeting up with each other to break bread, sing, worship, and to hear a message. 

As this pandemic’s impact slowly meanders down and plans are updated, the time has come for the church community to move from a pixelated world and screens to a personal coming together to meet, study, break bread, sing, worship, and listen to a message.

The church's future rests in a community of believers being where the world expects us to be on a Sunday morning (now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together v.7), worshiping together in honoring the Lord on the Sabbath.

-Dan Nickel

[1]Charles Swindoll, Living Insights: Acts (Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale, 2016), 397 - 400.

[2] Ibid.

Worthless Idols

What causes you the most anxiety? You know the kind - it wakes you in the middle of the night, and won’t let you fall back asleep. You toss and turn and fret about possible scenarios, wondering how you can gain control of the situation, until you wear yourself out from exhaustion and worry.

This almost always happens to me when I’m worried about money. I look at all of the things on the horizon that need extra cash and I panic. The water heater goes out unexpectedly. A friend needs help. Sometimes I simply think having something new or better will satisfy a craving in my heart.

Eve thought the same thing. The fruit in Eden was a delight to the eyes, but in the end what seemed irresistible to her and Adam led to death for all humanity.

Our souls have an enemy.

He comes to steal, kill and destroy, but he disguises himself as an angel of light.

He tells us that we aren’t wrong to make security our highest aim.

He whispers that we deserve to be happy, and we should get rid of anything, and anyone, who doesn’t contribute to that.

He tempts us with pleasure; with an insatiable desire for food, alcohol and sex.

He says the heart should have what the heart wants, and we bend our ear closer as he talks because that’s just what we want to hear.

There is also One who loves our soul, and he speaks a better, albeit harder, word: “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.”

“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

In Ephesus the name of the Lord Jesus was being glorified. As people turned away from idols and to the living God, livelihoods were threatened. Those whose self-worth and financial security came from the sale of silver trinkets, turned their anger upon Paul.

They wanted to kill Paul, but what they needed to put to death were the things that belonged to their earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. And so do we.

We can’t serve two masters. Whose voice are we listening to…and whose are we following?

The one who hates us tells us what we want to hear. His way seems right to us, but it ends in death.

The One who loves us tells we must take up our cross and follow him. In this world we will have trouble, but in Him we will find joy everlasting.

“Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them.”
By the power of his Spirit, may we be a church who casts aside our idols and turns fully toward Jesus.

Praying he satisfies us with his love,

-Natalie Runyon

The Holy Spirit Touch

"Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" (Acts 19:1)

"No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit." (Acts 19:2)

Have you ever been late to a movie - like 30 minutes late? Or you are watching your favorite TV show, but you miss a key episode? These "disciples" have obviously missed an "episode." They are disciples of John the Baptist, but they do not know Jesus and they definitely know nothing about Pentecost, but when Paul tells them about JESUS "immediately they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying." (Acts 19:5-6) These disciples were open and receptive and hungry for God's touch.

What did they experience when the Holy Spirit came upon them?

Martyn Lloyd Jones describes it this way:

He says it is like a child walking along holding his father’s hand. All is well. The child is happy. He feels secure. His father loves him. He believes that his father loves him but there is no unusual urge to talk about this or sing about it. It is true and it is pleasant.

Then suddenly the father startles the child by reaching down and sweeping him up into his arms and hugging him tightly and kissing him on the neck and whispering, “I love you so much!” And then holding the stunned child back so that he can look into his face and saying with all his heart, “I am so glad you are mine.” Then hugging him once more with unspeakable warmth and affection. Then he puts the child down and they continue their walk.

This, Lloyd-Jones says, is what happens when a person is baptized with the Holy Spirit. A pleasant and happy walk with God is swept up into an unspeakable new level of joy and love and assurance and reality that leaves the Christian so utterly certain of the immediate reality of Jesus that he is overflowing in praise and more free and bold in witness than he ever imagined he could be.

The child is simply stunned. He doesn’t know whether to cry or shout or fall down or run, he is so happy. The fuses of love are so overloaded they almost blow out. The subconscious doubts—that he wasn’t thinking about at the time, but that pop up every now and then—are gone! And in their place is utter and indestructible assurance, so that you know that you know that you know that God is real and that Jesus lives and that you are loved, and that to be saved is the greatest thing in the world. And as you walk on down the street you can scarcely contain yourself, and you want to cry out, “My father loves me! My father loves me! O, what a great father I have! What a father! What a father!”

This filling of the Holy Spirit is something I deeply desire and desperately need. Don't you?

Others who hear the message of Jesus "become stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way." (Acts 19:9) But God still pursues people. He heals those who are hurting. "And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirit came out of them." (Acts 19:11-12)

Did you notice who is doing the "extraordinary miracles?" It's God. It's always God. But notice it is "by the hands of Paul."

When God softens our heart and stirs our affection by filling us with the Holy Spirit the things we touch will point to God's healing and deliverance. We will extol the name of the Lord Jesus. (Acts 19:17) We will confess our sins and throw our idols into the fire. (Acts 19:18-19) We will watch "the word of the Lord continue to increase and prevail mightily." (Acts 19:20)

May we be those who pray for the continual filling of the Holy Spirit. May this kind of renewal and revival happen in us and in our community, country and world. Come Holy Spirit Come. Come Lord Jesus come.

See you Sunday,

Steven Helfrich

Always Stay A Student

This week’s scripture begins Paul's third missionary journey as he leaves Ephesus and sets out to Antioch. Something special about this portion of scripture is not what Paul goes and does but what he leaves behind in Ephesus.

Here we meet a man named Apollos, a “learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures.” He “spoke with great fervor”, “talked about Jesus accurately”, and “began to speak boldly in the synagogue.” If you were only going to have a few lines written about you, you could do much worse.

However, despite his knowledge and courage, Apollos was incomplete. He only knew about Jesus from what John the Baptist preached (focused on the repentance of sin). He was missing the story of Jesus’ life, crucifixion, and resurrection. And at this point, two beautiful things happen in our story.

First, we have Aquila and Priscilla take Apollos aside, inviting him into their home and explaining Jesus’ life and the points Apollos was missing. What gentle courage this must have taken.

Second, we have Apollos who could have been satisfied with what he had learned and continued to preach his incomplete story. That’s what pride, or having an ego, can do to us. “Too often, convinced of our own intelligence, we stay in a comfort zone that ensures that we never feel stupid… It (ego) obscures from view various weaknesses in our understanding… Like sirens on the rocks, ego sings a soothing, validating song” writes Ryan Holiday in the book Ego is the Enemy.

But Apollos wasn’t threatened by what he didn’t know, he kept learning and accepted Aquila and Priscilla’s teaching. Staying a student, and not assuming he knew it all, allowed Apollos to get the complete story of Jesus. He then used his natural skills and his newfound knowledge on his own missionary journey, with the endorsement of the Ephesus believers, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.

It’s never been easier than today to inform others of our own knowledge and opinions, let Apollos’ story remind and encourage us to stay the student, and don’t let our ego assume we’ve graduated from learning.

-Alex Pfister

Purpose in Disruption

”After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome.”

Acts 18:1-2

Have you ever experienced hardship outside of your control, at no fault of your own, and been left to wonder, “What now? Where do I go from here?”

Have you ever started a sentence with the phrase, “If only…”?

-“If only I hadn’t lost my job…”

-“If only my close family member were still alive…”

-“If only we hadn’t gotten in that accident…”

-“If only we lived in a different place…”

If the answer to either of these questions is “yes”, you are not alone. And the good news is that there is hope offered to your weary, anxious soul.

As we begin Acts 18, we see that Paul is traveling once again and arrives in the city of Corinth. It is there that we meet Aquilla and Priscilla (sometimes called Prisca), victims of religious persecution and displacement.

In AD 49, all Jews were forced to leave their homes in Rome and relocate, most likely due to unrest amongst Christians and Jews in the synagogue. Aquila and Priscilla, being from Italy, were among the throngs whose lives were forever changed as they had no other choice but to resettle in a new place. 

To the reader in 2021, this just looks like a few words on a page as an interlude to Paul’s ministry. But to Aquila and Priscilla, this meant a new country, language, and culture. It no doubt meant many tearful goodbyes as they lost contact with family and friends, probably forever. It meant the loss of hopes and dreams for their future. I can only imagine as they started their new lives, they were asking themselves, “What now?” and mulling over thoughts that began with “If only…”

But God had not forgotten this displaced couple. He had a purpose and plan for them that would impact His Kingdom for all eternity.

When Paul entered Corinth, he met Aquila and Priscilla, and there seems to have been an immediate bond. Having the same trade as tentmakers, the couple opened up their home to Paul, and a friendship and co-partnership in ministry was born. Their home became Paul’s home base in Corinth where he lived, worked, and was refreshed. 

We know that their friendship became an invaluable treasure to Paul. He mentions them 3 different times in his letters to believers and expresses his love and thanks for them as they had “risked their necks for [his] life” (Romans 16:3,4). What a special ministry this godly couple had!

I am reminded of Joseph in Genesis when he declared to his 11 brothers who sold him into slavery, “God sent me before you to preserve life…so it was not you who sent me here, but God” (Genesis 45:5,8).

Yes, the brothers had indeed done wickedly and sent Joseph to Egypt. But Joseph saw through supernatural lenses and knew that it was in actuality his sovereign God who had displaced him in order to save the lives of millions.

In the same way, Aquilla and Priscilla had been forced out of their home and country by a government who sought them unjust harm. But even in their mistreatment, God sovereignly used that trial to bring them to the very city where Paul would need lodging, encouragement, and friendship. 

Yes, they had been treated unfairly. But they were exactly where they needed to be to bring life to Paul and thereby bringing life to any person whom Paul would serve in the future.

What Claudius meant for evil, God meant for good.

God is still working in the same way in your life today. If you have found yourself the victim of hardship outside of your control, be encouraged by Aquilla and Priscilla’s story. Nothing can thwart God’s plan. He is so powerful that He can even use injustice and sin to use you in mighty ways, bring Himself glory, and preserve life. He has not left you without a purpose in the unexpected disruptions of life.

Who knows the lives that you will bless and refresh because of what you have gone through in the past as well as what you are experiencing right now?

And although we may never know on this side of eternity the reasons why we experience suffering, we can know this:

Jesus suffered for you so he could walk with you in the valley. And you are right where He wants you to be.

-Becky Groppel

Held in His Sovereign Hand

I was driving our new car home to Alton. The young man who sold us the car was riding along to pick up our trade in. I asked him where he was from. Atlanta. I’m always curious how people from other places end up here so I asked him. In time he asked where I was from and I confessed I was born and raised here and despite spending many years plotting to leave, it seemed this was the area where God had called our family to stay.

In my better moments, I’m able to view living here as a mission field; if I were in a foreign country I would not complain about taxes or being far from family. I would have it settled in my heart that this is where the Lord has ordained for me to serve Him.

The past week has not been one of my better moments. Multiple times I’ve fought back tears as I hear about my friends and the support they have from parents. I’m envious that my kids don’t have grandparents who are actively involved in their lives. I feel alone, and if I allow myself to dwell in that place very long I give the enemy a foothold which rapidly leads to bitterness and discontentment.

I am so thankful for the Word of God that reorients me to the truth. This week I needed to read (and re-read) Paul’s carefully reasoned sermon to the people of Athens.

“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us…”

Our Father is the Lord of heaven and earth. His sovereign control of all things extends to the very breath we breathe. Time and again it is this attribute of God that I cling to. Paul tells the Athenians that this God has even determined when in history and where in the world we would live. God ordained that I would live in Godfrey, IL in 2021. Sovereignly, he placed my family in the place where we live, with the neighbors we have and He has called and equipped us to share His love with them.

While we can rest in knowing that all things are under his control, God’s sovereignty is not only characterized by His control and authority, but also by his presence.

“He is actually not far from each of us…” The heart of the gospel is that God came near. In our rebellion we were unwilling, and in our sin we were unable to draw near to God. But He came to us! Because of Jesus there is no grief I bear alone, no tear I cry unseen, no circumstance beyond his control.

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” Psalm 139:7-10

In your job, in your home, in your trial, your joy or sorrow, He is Lord of all. In whatever circumstance you are in today, I pray you will find comfort knowing you are loved and held by our sovereign God.

-Natalie Runyon

These Who Have Turned the World Upside Down

When Jim Elliot was a junior at Wheaton College in 1948, he started writing personal journals. He wrote volumes of entries about his struggles as a college student, musings about faith, love, and his work preparing and eventually becoming a missionary. In Ecuador, Jim and four other missionaries set up camp in the dangerous and uncivilized territory of the Aucas Indian tribe. On January 8, 1956, all five missionaries were killed. Jim was 28 when he became a martyr.

Jim left behind an incredible legacy of writings about living the Christian faith. His journals became a book,The Journals of Jim Elliot. Why do I mention Elliot and his journals? Because like Paul, Elliot didn’t measure the cost of preaching the Gospel in unfamiliar surroundings and he too died fearless. And his journals contain timeless entries regarding the Christian faith.

Paul’s practice was to travel the Roman roads and go to the major cities to preach the Gospel. At the beginning of Acts 17, Paul and Silas pressed further into Roman territory regardless of their personal and physical cost. Paul and Silas traveled 100 miles to get to Thessalonica. Luke writes in Acts 17:2, “As was his custom,” Paul went to the synagogue to “reason” [converse or argue] to convince the Jewish faithful that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah foretold in the scriptures. Some who heard Paul’s arguments were persuaded and became believers, while unpersuaded Jews became jealous and provoked a riot against the followers of Christ.

Elliot wrote in his journal, “Let me not be a milepost on a single road, make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.”

The rioting mob described the Christ-followers as “These who have turned the world upside down.”  The early believers’ minds were always on preaching the Gospel and engaging the culture. They didn’t care about the personal costs including dying for their faith. Paul, Silas, and the other believers were not a milepost on a single road regarding their lives and faith but were a fork, Christ’s bold witnesses, who challenged the culture and people to make a life-changing decision regarding Jesus as his or her Savior. They transformed the world and societies.

The American Church has now become a milepost on a single road enveloped in comfort. We, as the church, must become a fork that Elliot described and willingly embrace the personal cost and ridicule to stand with Jesus Christ before this society, this culture, this world. We, too, must become“These who have turned the world upside down.”[1]

Jim Elliot also wrote,“Constant dwelling in the words of the Lord can dye a person’s soul.”

Acts 17:11 described those “more noble” in Berea readily received the word and searched the scriptures daily.  We, too, can learn the importance of pursuing, searching, and investigating the truth of God and His word revealed in the Scripture with great eagerness. With the understanding, the truth of God and His word has no end and is unfathomable.

Our daily responsibility can include devotions, group activities like small group bible studies, and attending the worship services.  This willing desire to constantly dwell in God’s words will dye one’s soul, which leads to noble pursuits and changed hearts to help turn the world upside down. A world that desperately needs to heal and be rescued by Jesus Christ, our Savior.

-Dan Nickel

[1] Lorenzo Albacete, “The Prophet is Always Someone Sent” an essay from his book The Relevance of the Stars

Life Changing Truth

This week in our church staff meeting, we played a game called two truths and a lie.  The main point of the game is to try and fool the others in the room and keep them from discovering which statement is a lie.  Some of us might’ve been a bit better at that game than others.  Just saying!  But seriously, telling a lie that people will believe is not easy for most of us.  Trying to live a lie and keep up a false narrative can be hard work.  And then there’s always a reckoning that will come one way or another when the truth will be made known in this life or the next.  Everybody that walks this earth can count on the fact that no matter how much we deny it, the truth will ultimately come crashing in on our world.

In the text this week, life changing events are happening all around Paul and Silas.  An evil spirit is sent out of a slave girl and it results in their beating and imprisonment.  A great earthquake hits their prison and breaks their chains. The prison doors broke free but not a single prisoner fled.  A private discharge was ordered for Paul and Silas from the prison but Paul demanded a personal escort out from his captors.  The local magistrates came and escorted them out of the prison with an apology too.  What we see here is an unshakeable God working through His people to reveal His power and authority.  A greater reality is being revealed through the Word of the Lord concerning the power of the Gospel to save everyone.  The truth of God has come crashing in on their world.  Neither local officials nor evil spirits held any great authority.  A prison and its jailer were no match.  All bow down at the power of God and His amazing grace. 

In the midst of all these things, we see Paul and Silas and the church in Philippi experience life-changing faith in Jesus Christ that grounds them in the truth of the gospel.  After all they’ve been through, that they’ve suffered and seen, their faith is unshakeable because of the One who holds them.  For those who trust in Christ Jesus, like Paul and Silas, the truth sets us free to preach the gospel to a world in need and to rejoice in the midst of that same world as it is shaking, breaking and striking out against us.  How can this be?  As followers of Christ Jesus, we walk with an awareness of the truth that Jesus always gets the last word and it is a true and better word that will dismantle any deceitful scheme of the enemy.  The cross of Christ and His resurrection give us confidence in that prevailing truth. 

May we rest in the fact that our faith is founded and perfected in the One who holds the whole world in His hands and that no power or dominion of this world will overthrow His amazing plan of eternal salvation for us.  As His church, let us rejoice together in the reality of the gospel truth about our great Deliverer and King Jesus!

Grateful and hopeful in Christ, 

Jon

A Letter to The Bridge Students

Hey Bridge Students,

In this week’s sermon, we are covering the beginning of Acts 16. What I read inspired me to write you this letter. I know it would be much easier to follow if I’d made a tik tok, but my kids haven’t taught me how yet, so you’ll have to settle for a letter. Stick with me though!

At the beginning of this chapter, Paul meets Timothy. Y’all have grown up in church and probably remember the verse “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity”. It was Paul who wrote that to Timothy. But Timothy had begun to set an example well before Paul wrote him those words.

See, in Acts 16, Paul had asked him to come along on his missionary journey, and he compelled Timothy to get circumcised so that he would have more opportunities to share the Gospel with people from a Jewish background. Crazy, right?! Paul knew Timothy would have more impact if he was identified with his Jewish mother, than his Greek father. Timothy was probably 21 at this time, only a few years older than you are now. Can you imagine doing something so painful and sacrificial just to be able to tell someone about Jesus?

My guess is this all seems very unrelatable to you for a couple of reasons. First, you are growing up in a culture that encourages you to find an identity that feels like your true self, so it’s hard to imagine doing something so extreme to change your identity for someone else.

The second reason you may have a hard time relating is because of us. And by us, I mean the church in America. You’ve probably noticed by now that we love our rights. It’s quite possible that you’ve seen us treat other people poorly in an effort to stand up for those rights. You hear the words we say in whispers, see the things we do in defiance, and read our posts on social media even though you never comment.

All of those things have shaped not only how you view US, but also how you view faith in God.

I’m so, so sorry.

We’ve blown it.

Will you forgive us?

If you can, will you read the rest of this letter from your (only slightly!) older sister, and allow me to share my heart?

You guys, following Jesus is worth sacrificing everything. Period. PERIOD.

Jesus told his followers in a parable that the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. A man found it, and upon realizing what he had stumbled upon, with joy he sold all he had so he could buy the field and possess the treasure it contained.

You’ve been given the field.

Parents, grandparents, friends who love you have brought you to church, taught you the Bible and tried to show you what an amazing gift you’ve been given.

You’re not here by chance. It is no accident that you are alive in this generation, with the gifts and talents you have, in the city you live in, at the school you attend.

You are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which he prepared in advance for you to walk in. You were created by the hand of God to fulfill his purpose in your generation.

While that is going to work itself out differently in each of your lives, your purpose is to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength- every fiber of your being- and to love your neighbor as yourself.

Your call is to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey all he has commanded, remembering He is with you, with US, to the end of the age.

You won’t be able to do this on your own. You need brothers and sisters. And while you may not be able to see it quite yet, you need the church. You need to gather with other believers, sit under the teaching of the word of God by a Pastor who knows and loves you. You need to keep serving, and we need to encourage one another to continue demonstrating love and stirring one another to good works, especially as we see the day of Christ’s return drawing near.

It’s possible you are skeptical and won’t settle for someone else telling you this. Good! I am like that myself. Right now we are offering Alpha- an opportunity for you to ask those questions yourself. Come, and ask the hard questions.

In Jeremiah 29:13-14 the Lord says “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart. I will be found by you,” he says. That’s a promise from God himself. I am praying that each of you will seek Truth, because I know the same God who showed himself to this rebel some 25 years ago, wants to be found by you too!

Many years after Acts 16, Paul wrote another letter to Timothy. He was imprisoned, awaiting death, but he told Timothy the suffering he was enduring was no cause for shame because Paul knew who he believed and he was utterly convinced that Jesus Christ was able to guard his soul, until the day he was with him face to face.

May you say the same as you fulfill His purpose in your generation. Jesus is worth it. He is the treasure.

With much love,

Natalie Runyon

Agree to Disagree

We all have had disagreements. We are likely in a disagreement with someone right now. But many of us would agree that we don’t like to be in a disagreement. Disagreements are natural, they come easier to some than to others and it’s easy to label any disagreement as bad, often because it produces anxiety, anger, or hurt feelings. But a disagreement in a pure form is an example of two people with different passionate convictions and when two people strive for a reconciliation or compromise to a disagreement with love and an open mind, it can often lead to a compounded positive effect.

I’ve yet to reach a level of maturity to consistently approach disagreements this way, but thankfully the Lord provides an example in our weekly scripture, Acts 15:36-41. After having spent the better part of several years together, Paul and Barnabas decide to set off on another missionary journey. Undoubtedly their hearts are filled with the Holy Spirit but how to begin this journey places them at a crossroads. We see them in “a sharp disagreement” over if they should take John Mark who left them during their first missionary journey.

On the first read of this passage, it can come across that they parted company on uneven terms, each not giving in to the other’s wishes. However, you can see God’s hand in the aftermath. From this disagreement, we now have two powerful missionary teams, Paul with Silas and Barnabus with John Mark, go on separate journeys but preaching the same Gospel. We also see a person in John Mark be given a second chance, one he seems to run with as he later authors the book of Mark and becomes vital to Paul’s ministry. We see the growth of Silas who is eventually jailed with Paul for preaching the Good News.

It would appear then that Paul and Barnabus may have agreed to disagree in their traveling companion, but they knew each other’s hearts. Perhaps a lesson can be to try to see through the cloud of conflicting opinion to the heart, often from there we can compromise and reach that positive effect God strives for us to make.

- Alex Pfister

Freed to Love

“For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled…”

Acts 15: 28-29

This passage has baffled me for years.

If Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Law, and God declared to Peter, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” (Acts 10:15), why are the first century believers again asked to refrain from certain eating habits?

If Paul said, “for freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1), how can it be that the Holy Spirit is now asking believers to add an extra burden?

As I wrestled with these two seemingly contradicting commands and searched through Scripture, I finally found the answer in 1 Corinthians 8:

“Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that ‘all of us possess knowledge.’ This ‘knowledge’ puffs up, but love builds up…However, not all of us possess this knowledge…Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.”

When we read Acts 15 through the lens of 1 Corinthians 8, it becomes clear that these new instructions are not really about the food, but about loving the people who will be eating the food.

In that first century church, both Gentiles and Jews would be sitting around the same table sharing a meal as a new family. By the blood of Jesus, all had been freed to eat whatever they liked, but not all would be comfortable with it.

So, the “stronger” believers had a choice:

They could choose to cling to the freedom that was their right, even at the expense of their new, “weaker” brothers and sisters.

 OR

They could lovingly, willingly lay down their rights in order to create unity, keep loved ones from sin, and build up the body.

I could be wrong, but I think it’s safe to say that at The Bridge, there is no one in our church family who struggles with eating food that has been offered up to idols! But this “The Law of Love” principle still very much applies to us today. We all, from varying degrees, have “weaker/stronger” issues of conscience:

clothing, beverage choices, health choices,

viewing entertainment, music, recreation, political opinions

All of these rights are ours, and through Christ we have been set free. We will not gain salvation by doing these things, nor will God smile on us more if we refrain. But let’s not cling to our freedoms so tightly that we forget to love our neighbor.

I read a quote recently that said, “Anything you can’t fast from you are a slave to.”

Ouch.

While we have the right to do (or not do) many things, are we willing to put others first and live without them for a time? We must not allow our freedoms to enslave us.

Yes, we have been freed to live. But better still, we have been freed to love.

-Becky Groppel

We Are Mirrors

“But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.” — Acts 15:11

The conflict over circumcision and the Jerusalem Council were some of the biggest events in church history and a turning point.  Out of this gathering came the great declaration from Peter on salvation by grace.

Scholars believe this council and conflict occurred twenty years after Christ’s ascension. It took this length of time preaching, teaching, trials, prison, and persecution to conclude that one’s salvation was not based on laws and rituals or merit through works but grace alone.  All people are saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The conflict that arose about admission into the early church was between converted Jews, circumcised as Old Testament believers, and the transition with the newer Gentile believers.  Many of the converted Jews felt circumcision was necessary — the OT Laws were at the heart of the argument — therefore, the works within the Law lead to forgiveness by God and salvation granted. Through the testimony of Peter and Paul, and Barnabas’ testimony too on God’s works of wonders they experienced, the council was reminded that it was Christ and Christ alone who saved the Gentiles, i.e., all of us.  All people are saved across all ethnic identities by the grace of Jesus Christ. James then supported Peter’s declaration of turning away from the burden of ritual and law as the means for salvation.

Peter’s timeless declaration in verse 11, ending with, “… we shall be saved in the same manner as they,” are the last words of Peter recorded in the book of Acts.  He left us with an eternal truth that we are saved through faith by grace alone. We are never outside Jesus Christ’s grace. Grace brings us back to Him when we fail. Grace is unmerited favor and without prejudice. It is never ending. Grace is greater than any sin we pursue. Grace is a gift. A gift Peter and Paul experienced.

Jesus Christ gave grace to these two men amid their wretchedness. They appeared unlovable at times in their lives. What comes to mind regarding Peter’s declaration of grace and Paul’s witness of God’s wonders is C.S. Lewis’s thoughts on grace and its life-changing transformation in his book The Four Loves.

Lewis thinks God gave each of us Divine Gift-love, which enables us to love what does not naturally attract us.  Lewis makes the brilliant point that God is hidden in these charitable acts to those who are not the object of our desires.  This unknowable hidden love is deliverance by grace.  Grace transforms us from those disparaging views that humanity is worthless and does not possess lovable virtues. The gift of grace gives us the ability to see our self-worth and attractiveness as human beings, and others who are not the object of our love or charity.  Lewis writes, "We are mirrors whose brightness, if we are bright, is wholly derived from the sun that shines on us."[1] Grace brings about joy in accepting not only who we are, but that there is also a need for Jesus Christ and His acts of grace in our lives.

-Dan Nickel

[1]C.S.Lewis, The Four Loves [New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,1960], 1

I Have Decided.

“Once I get baptized do you think I will stop having nightmares?” 

“I don’t know, but we can pray that even when you do have nightmares that you will know God is with you.”

“Do you think God will take Grandma’s cancer away?”

“I don’t know that either. We will keep praying for that because we know He can, but even if He doesn’t, we know He will comfort Grandma and be with her.”

Kids ask hard questions. 

Right now, the questions I’m asking the Lord are just as difficult. 

“How much more, Lord? How much more can the people of Haiti take? Why do you allow these natural disasters when they are already suffering so greatly?”

“Father, what about the women and children in Afghanistan? What about your church, God?! Why are you allowing this immense persecution?”

Acts 14:21-22 says “When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”

Through. Many. Tribulations. 

The last time Paul had been in Lystra, he was left for dead after being stoned. He knew tribulations. But he and Barnabas returned, to strengthen the souls of those who believed in the risen Christ, and to encourage them to persevere in the faith, even as the trials and tribulations came. 

When Jesus called you, did you realize He was calling you to walk through many tribulations to enter His kingdom? Would you still have followed Him if you had known?

In the middle of the 19th century, a man named Nokseng and his family who were from a tribe in Assam, India, heard and believed the gospel as a result of American missionary efforts. 

“This man’s faith proved contagious and many villagers began to accept Christianity.

Angry, the village chief summoned all the villagers. He then called the family who had first converted to renounce their faith in public or face execution.

Moved by the Holy Spirit, the man said: “I have decided to follow Jesus.”

Enraged at the refusal of the man, the chief ordered his archers to arrow down the two children. As both boys lay twitching on the floor, the chief asked, “Will you deny your faith? You have lost both your children. You will lose your wife too.”

But the man replied: “Though no one joins me, still I will follow.”

The chief was beside himself with fury and ordered his wife to be arrowed down. In a moment she joined her two children in death. Now he asked for the last time, “I will give you one more opportunity to deny your faith and live.”  

In the face of death the man said the final memorable lines: “The cross before me, the world behind me. No turning back.”

He was shot dead like the rest of his family. 

But with their deaths, a miracle took place. 

The chief who had ordered the killings was moved by the faith of the man. He wondered, “Why should this man, his wife and two children die for a Man who lived in a far-away land on another continent some 2,000 years ago? There must be some remarkable power behind the family’s faith, and I too want to taste that faith.”

In a spontaneous confession of faith, he declared, “I too belong to Jesus Christ!” When the crowd heard this from the mouth of their chief, the whole village accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour.”

I have decided to follow Jesus. 

No turning back. 

No turning back. 

Whose soul needs strengthened today? Who needs the encouragement to persevere? Who is enduring tribulation? May the God of all comfort bring His people comfort in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction… knowing as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

God give us the strength to follow you all our days.

Natalie 

The story of Nokseng taken from https://renewaljournal.com/2017/11/29/the-true-story-behind-the-song-i-have-decided-to-follow-jesus/

Help is on the Way

Now at Iconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. (Acts 14:1)

This is incredible! Revival in Iconium. But that's not the end of the story. It's not smooth sailing. Check out the very next verse:

But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. (Acts 14:2)

Ouch! The brothers share the good news that Jesus saves and people are against them. Not quite the "how to make friends and influence people" result some hope for today. Maybe it is time to "get out of dodge" - except they didn't.

So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. (Acts 14:3)

If they were hoping for approval and applause they would have left. If they were searching for comfort they would have stopped speaking about the Lord. These missionaries were motivated by something else or maybe Someone Else. What or WHO motivates you to do what you do? Are you tempted to "throw in the towel" when outward circumstances get difficult? What centers these missionaries?

Notice in verse three this phrase - the Lord, who bore witness to the word of HIS GRACE. The Lord witnesses all we go through and HE honors His WORD. He sees what others see and He sees what no one else can see. He is the only One who's vision and insight and understanding is 20/20. And His call wins the day for these missionaries. I am prone to wander and prone to forget HE sees me and HE is with me, for me and in me. Are you?

This isn't the end of the Story. It gets harder still. The unbelievers in town plan to stone them but the missionaries are able to flee to another town. As they flee they continued to preach the gospel. (Acts 14:7b)

And I would love to tell you it went much better in that next town, but it didn't. In Iconium, the Enemy seeks to discourage them by the disapproval of the crowd. In Lystra, the Enemy seeks to deceive them by craving an unhealthy approval. The people of Lystra try to deify Paul as Hermes and Barnabas as Zeus. And when Paul and Barnabas stop them, calling them to turn from these vain things to a living God, they along with unbelievers from Antioch and Iconium stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. (Acts 14:19)

It seems like speaking God's truth can get you killed. And...it can. Look at Jesus. But just like Jesus' death wasn't the end, it won't be the end for us. HELP is on the way. But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city, and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe. (Acts 14:20)

When the disciples gathered about him - the help comes in the form of the people of God - the church.

Sunday we will witness as brothers and sisters look to the Living God and gather around each other as we pray, sing, worship, hear and respond to the Word and witness baptisms. We will draw strength from the Living God and from each other.

See you Sunday,

Steven

Tracing His Hand to Trust His Heart

“Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.”

God is sovereign. I should know this. I’ve heard it my entire life. But in the ever shifting seasons of life in a not yet post pandemic world, it’s a struggle to live like I believe it.

I’m near sighted.

I look at what is in front of me and it becomes all that I can see. August. If I can only make it through August, then September will be easier. August clouds my vision. I’m holding it so close to my face that it’s all I can see and the weight of it threatens to crush me. I could use more rest but time doesn’t allow, so I settle for more food.

What I really need is perspective.

The gift of perspective is what Paul gave those in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. He traced God’s hand in history.

God chose. God made. God led. God endured. God overthrew. On and on Paul demonstrated to his listeners that God has been and continues to be the one who does the work. God brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. And what God has promised, he has fulfilled by raising up Jesus. Throughout history God has been the one who does the heavy lifting. He finally and fully removed the penalty of sin from those who belong to Him. What remains for us is forgiveness. Acceptance. Peace. Rest.

If I put August on the timeline of my life, and trace the ways the Lord has been faithful in my past, I can trust that He will continue to be faithful in my future. And how much more clearly will I see his hand and his heart as I read of how He has acted throughout history in the lives of those whom he has called according to his purpose!

Does today feel overwhelming? Does tomorrow seem like it might be worse? Let’s stop holding it so close that it clouds our vision. We can give it to the One who holds history in his hands.

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

By His Grace,
Natalie