Hello Grace Church Family and Friends,
I hope you’re enjoying your day! Lately I’ve been thinking about prayer and how important is to us as believers and to the life of our church family. The Scriptures give us a number of examples from which to learn. Most recently I have found myself focused on the OT example of Nehemiah. After his prayer in chapter one, we see him before King Artaxerxes at a crucial moment in his work for God. We read in Nehemiah 2:4, Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So, I prayed to the God of heaven. At Nehemiah’s point of need he whispers a prayer to his Heavenly Father. I’ve had to do this before and so have you! Is God ever unavailable? Absolutely not! Rejoice brothers and sisters; our God is sufficient for our every need. He’s more faithful than a brother!
MEMORIAL DAY weekend is coming up! Some will be traveling, while others of us will be gathering with family and friends for a time of eating and celebrating. Memorial Day is connected with our faith in many ways. Most significantly, on Memorial Day we celebrate our freedom due to the sacrifice of many. How important is that? Our Lord Jesus gave Himself to set us free from the tyranny of sin. The parallels are strong and meaningful. The word “sacrifice” gets our attention, as it should. Just as we are a free people due to the sacrifice of others, let us rejoice as children of God that we are free from the consequences of sin by the cross work of Jesus. That’s shouting ground!!! Galatians 6:14 says, But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. Sunday is going to be a wonderful day of praise and worship. Invite a family member or friend to join us. I’ll see you Sunday!
Let me take a moment to encourage you in a couple of areas. Be faithful in your attendance. If you aren’t in a Sunday School class, I encourage you to get involved in one. Classes begin at 9:45am. There is a class for everyone. Aside from studying God’s Word, there are friendships to be made and fellowship every time we meet. We reach out to all ages! One key area of our church ministry involves the teaching of our teens and children. Our teachers are committed, and they are great at what they do. We cannot replace the home, but our desire is to assist you in raising godly children that love the Lord. Also, be faithful in your giving. Faithfulness in this area is crucial to the overall ministry of our church. Thank you for giving to missions as well! Good overall stewardship financially is very important here at Grace Church. I’ll be saying more about this in the coming days. Your commitment to the Lord and to His church is very encouraging to me as your pastor. We’re serving the Lord together! AMEN!
Enjoy your day and this MEMORIAL DAY weekend. I love you and appreciate you! God bless you and God bless America!
Pastor Mike <><