Anticipating Grace by Looking Back
Yesterday, when Kathy brought to me my third quarter giving statement, I got to thinking about how much of a help these quarterly reminders can be, for in this one-page document it's easy to see progress throughout the year. Sometimes, doing the day-to-day or month-to-month in any field can be very wearying as it is easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Through regularly taking time to look back, it is comforting to see that while things may seem small or insignificant at the time, when it's all added up it makes quite a difference.
I wonder sometimes if we shouldn't take more time occasionally to catch our breath and see how much progress has been made in our journey with God. Sure, many of us have those special days or seasons wherein we have felt ourselves more fully participating in the joy of the kingdom of God; however, I suspect that many times we may just find ourselves 'going through the motions' without much reflection on the foundational work being done through our acts of obedience.
Many of you will receive your third quarter giving statements in the mail this week. In each envelope will not only be a summary of your giving up to this point, but (among other things) also a brochure talking more about this season of life we are now in - Daring to Dream: A Season of Worship, Celebration, and Commitment.This brochure is more a recap of some of what God has done in our midst over the past year, and I invite you to take time to read it completely. While many of you participated in many of these activities, it's only when we take time to look back on the last twelve months as a whole that we get a deeper appreciation of just how gracious God has been to all of us through the life of this great church.
Week to week and month to month, it's perfectly understandable to wonder and question how much progress is being made, individually and as a community. As we take time soon to review the past year, let us be diligent in committing to making the next twelve months even better than the last twelve by continually trusting God to take us places we cannot always see because we are caught up in the here and now.
One of the truly funny things about putting together this brochure, which is a modified form of the pastor's report I submitted at our charge conference, is that people with whom I have shared this document have all mentioned things I forgot to list. It's one of the reasons why we are not called to live in solitude, but in community - when we experience and share God's grace together, we have one another to remind us of how gracious God has been in and through our lives.
Dare to dream, my friends. Dare to dream about what God's going to do next, by taking time to celebrate what God has already done. Whether you realize it or not, God is, even at this moment, working in ways to lead you and guide you to destinations unknown - ours is simply to accept his offer of grace and reconciliation, and put our trust in the one who knew us before he created us, the one who gives us life, now and forever.
See You Sunday!
Lamar