Dear Grace,
In keeping with the series we just started, I’ve been reading and re-reading Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae. Last April, I stood on the ruins of Laodicea overlooking the Lycus Valley, imagining the Roman road that would have taken me deeper into the mountains to Colossae. The memory reminds me of how fragile these churches were, fairly disconnected and entrusted to carry out the mission of the Gospel in their respective locales.
I can imagine Paul’s burden and concern as he writes to encourage the Colossian church to stay true and loyal to Jesus. It makes the upcoming passage in 1:15-23 so majestic, a hymn of Christ that exalts Jesus as the preeminent One, the One in whom ALL the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.
He is the One who knows us and walks among His churches (Rev 1). We are not forsaken.
I say this even as I pray for the federal workers among us who have been furloughed. This has been such a trying year for you. So unpredictable. So difficult. As the partisan finger-pointing goes back and forth, it’s not lost on me that these headlines affect you, and therefore us all, in very personal ways. The Scriptures tell us that when part of the body suffers, we all suffer. Know that you do not suffer alone. If this shutdown has caused you to be vulnerable, please reach out to the church so we can serve you in some way.
This coming weekend is our annual Fall Student Retreat. Let’s be in prayer for the hundreds of students and volunteer leaders who will head up to North Bay this weekend. Pray for safety. Pray for open and soft hearts. Pray for genuine community and connection. All of the speakers this weekend are in-house. Let’s pray that a powerful Word from God would go forth and that students would respond in faith and obedience.
Last year, I had the opportunity to swing by the North Laurel Community Center for the bi-annual clothing giveaway. I was not prepared for what I would experience. Hundreds of community residents were lined up to have a change to select much-needed clothes for the winter. Men’s jackets and outdoor work clothes were in highest demand. As I walked among the volunteers, I was blown away by the tangible good that our church was a part of. This year’s clothing giveaway happens on Saturday, 10/18, with lots of needs for sorting and organizing the clothes before that date. Click here to get involved.
Thank you for praying for me this past weekend in Texas. It was a sweet time of ministry with a beautiful, maturing congregation. Experiences like these help me see the wider variety of the kinds of kingdom work that is happening out there, and cause me to appreciate deeply the work that God is doing among us. Each time I travel to preach/speak, I am reminded that there is no place like home…with you…contending for the Gospel right here in our midst.
So often, the work that God is doing seems invisible and small, overwhelmed by the seemingly stronger cultural and ideological forces that come against us. Remember this – that the kingdom of God, though beyond our senses and often below the radar, can’t be thwarted. God’s rule and reign will ultimately last, and what we do now for that kingdom is never in vain.
Keep enduring. I can’t wait to come together to worship King Jesus this Sunday.