Hi Church!

Oh how I missed you on Sunday!  I am very thankful that we did not get the level of ice they called for and no one lost power.  But I sure missed gathering on Sunday!  I did post a short devotion on our Facebook page, so if you have social media, you can check it out. And this is a good time to remind you that if we have any changes to the services or if there is a question if the offices will be open - please check the website and/or social media.  We will post things there. 

This Sunday we will continue our study on Back to the Basics - and below are a few reminders and upcoming dates to keep in mind:

Sunday, February 8th 

Scout Sunday 

Reception for Janice Deal

Wednesday, February 18th

Ash Wednesday Service at Noon

We are continuing to search for a new worship leader who will help blend our styles musically, but a special thanks to Ben for leading us during this interim time.  And thank you Brandy for continuing to sing and help with the planning!  As you know we are looking for both a worship leader as well as someone who can play the drums or other instruments to support the band.  If you know of anyone who might be interested please let us know. 

Blessings to you all, and stay warm!

Pastor Marcy

Devotion:

Expectations vs. Reality

This past weekend, for a week the local meteorologists were warning us of the upcoming doom and gloom with ice from the freezing rain and sleet.  They warned us of widespread power outages that could last a week or more.  And because of those expectations, people cleaned out the stores of bread, milk, toilet paper, generators, candles, tarps, and salt. 

I personally bought a whole bunch of food that didn’t need cooking - sandwiches and salads and breads.  Ran up to the church even and grabbed some of the pillar candles from the closet and a lighter!

Then…the worst of it never happened.  All our expectations were not fulfilled.  And people were mad! They weren’t mad about not getting the ice and having electricity go out - they were mad because what they expected, what they planned for, what they assumed would happen just didn’t. 

But here is the thing. 

If you look back at all the posts and announcements from these meteorologists, you will see they never said we will definitely get 3 inches of ice.  Or that the electric will definitely be out for days.  They never said “definitely” at all.  We turned it into: they lied, they were so wrong, they are incompetent, they are alarmists, etc. 

This is exactly what we do with God.  We have a lot of expectations about God.  We expect things to go well if we are Christian.  We expect we will not have bad times.  We expect things to go a certain way.  But then our expectations are not fulfilled. 

And yet if you read Scripture, God never says once you become a Christian life will be perfect.  That was our expectation, not God’s words. 

Here are the actual words of Jesus: 

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

In this world, there will be trouble.  Even for Christians. 

But when you put your trust in Jesus - He brings you peace.  And that is one expectation that is definite!