Church Update and Encouragement

encouragement

Dear Church Family,

I hope you all had a safe and blessed Christmas! As we enter the final days of 2020, I have mixed emotions. I have great hope in the Lord for 2021 and lament over the many losses this year.

The mixture of grief and hope is not a stranger to the Christian. The Apostle Paul wrote:

"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

Paul wrote we could grieve and have hope (in Jesus). He also wrote:

"Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep." Romans 12:15

Paul reminds us that we won’t always be rejoicing, and there will be times of sorrow. And we are to share our joy and pain with others.

Our culture does not favor lamenting or grief. Yet, it is God’s path to healing from loss. I don’t think I must enumerate the many different kinds of losses we have experienced in 2020. But I believe it is healthy to make time to lament with God and with others before entering the new year.

Simultaneously, we always have hope because Jesus conquered the most significant cause of grief—death. He died but was resurrected (1 Thess. 4:14), and we have the hope he is alive and therefore with us presently. We also have hope that we, too, will be resurrected with him forever. His resurrection also gives us hope that someday, Jesus is returning to restore this broken world as God originally made it. Jesus is our hope; he is the who “who is and who was and who is to come” (Revelation 1:4)!

This link is to a song shared in Sunday’s worship service along the lines of the above thoughts of hope and grief. I pray it will encourage you as we enter 2021 as it has me.

Love in Christ,
Pastor Steve

Please feel free to contact the church for any questions or prayer requests through info@bacbc.org.