“He does not retain his anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love!”— Micah 7:18
Greetings Sunnyside Community Church,
The above quotation is the text for this morning message. What a glorious reality that the God of heaven, the Maker of heaven and earth, the One who is our maker, the God with whom we have to do, is One who delights in steadfast love. He takes abundant pleasure (we would even say, perfect pleasure) in the exercise of his covenant faithfulness; in expressing His goodness, His kindness, His faithfulness, His willingness and readiness to save, to protect, to provide and to preserve, those who are weak, who are completely dependent, who have nothing, in and of themselves, that they can offer Him in exchange for this steadfast love, so that this exercise in which God delights is, wholly and completely, an exercise of His grace; of His gracious favor. And, what is more, not only are we weak, but we are, also, rebellious. God delightedly exercises his gracious steadfast love towards those who only deserve His wrath, which, of course, brings in the cross of Jesus Christ as the provision that God has made to occasion this delighted exercise of His steadfast love without compromising His righteousness. Jesus Christ is thus, the fullest portrayal of God’s delight in His steadfast love. With Micah we can only exclaim, “Who is a God like You?!” I trust that the message this morning will encourage you mind and heart in the glory of God.
We are entering week #8 of the stay-at-home order; the 8th week since we have met as a congregation. Needless to say, we are all anxious to be able to gather once again. There are some indications that we may have the opportunity within the month. Nothing official has come from the Governor’s office, but, a couple of weeks ago, she said that things could begin opening up by the middle of May and she included church gatherings in that. Now, I’m sure that there will be guidelines/ restrictions on such gatherings, but, once the door is officially open for us to meet, we will be looking to do that in any and every way we can. Stay tuned!
We thank the Lord for His goodness to meet each of us in our particular challenges during this time. We need to continue remember our singles, those who are home alone, during this time of required isolation. I’m sure that this time is especially difficult. Pray the Lord to undergird each of these ones with His gracious comfort so that they will be comforted in heart and not left feeling completely alone. The Lord is always present to us in the perfection of His being. We are never out of His sight. May that truth be particularly comforting at this time.
Pray the Lord to continue to give wisdom to our elected officials and the various health officials that are speaking into this situation and give direction. Pray the Lord, also, to move upon the minds and hearts of people gripped by uncertainty and fear and direct them to the one place where peace is found; the person and work of Jesus Christ. Pray the Lord to bless the many efforts of churches seeking to minister to the needs of their congregation and community through creative means such as ZOOM church services and on-line streaming of their Sunday worship services. Pray the Lord, also, to give wisdom to church leaders as they chart a path forward for their congregations in our post-covid19 world. In listening to some of the other Village Missions pastors they are wrestling with issues such as, how to do communion after Covid 19. Prayer for wisdom, discretion, and prudence in the steps that are taken.
Please also continue to pray for the on-going needs in our church family. Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer, and if there are any concerns that you would like the church family to be aware of you can pass those on to us and we will see to it that the word gets out.
Thank you for being faithful with your financial contributions. Thank you, also, to all who have stopped by the church to work on our Spring cleaning projects.
May the Lord strengthen and encourage you as you serve Him this week. In whatever your week involves, may your heart be rejoiced in the glorious truth that He delights in His steadfast love toward you and that He has perfected that steadfast love to you in Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the fullest portrayal of God’s delight in His steadfast love.
In the love of Christ,
Pastor Guy