Church Family,
The last two weeks have felt particularly helpful for us all. As we’ve been closely examining Jacob’s transition into being named Israel, we have seen much in his life that mirrors our own (Gen 32). We specifically saw Sunday Jacob wrestling with God (Gen 32:22-32). He is unsure about what Esau and his 400 men will do to him and his family. Jacob, in faith, is following God, which has brought him to a place of dealing with his past deception. He longs for God to be with him and bless him. So God comes to him and lets him wrestle. Jacob becomes aware of God’s grace and his weakness in doing so. After Jacob has shown tremendous tenacity in his faith, God touches his hip. God is not powerless in this wrestling, but in his infinite wisdom, He lets Jacob wrestle until the break of day. As day breaks, Jacob limps but has a new name. He goes to meet Esau with less physical ability but with greater confidence in God. It’s better to go at life limping with less trust in us and greater trust in God and His promises!
Prayer/Worship Gathering
Don’t forget tomorrow evening, Wednesday the 26th, at 6 pm we will gather to pray and sing God’s truth together. Childcare will be provided. We look forward to seeking the Lord together!
Church Get Together
This past Sunday, we asked you to mark your calendars for February 20 from 4 pm – 6:30 pm for a church-wide gathering. There will be many more details to come, but I just wanted to ask that you plan on attending to enjoy some time together as a church family. Childcare will be provided and an activity for the adults.
Life Groups
We announced several weeks back about Life Groups. A Life Group is our attempt to gather together outside of Sunday morning to discuss the message from Sunday, share a meal, and pray for one another. To be more specific, we believe the Lord does a lot on a Sunday morning, but we often leave that moment and never give it another thought. Life Group is an opportunity to discuss what the Lord did in your head, to move that to your heart. It’s an informal environment to be open and honest and make solid and thoughtful applications of God’s word to your life, to our church, and the world around us. If you are interested in more information, please stop by the welcome desk and sign-up. Signing up does not commit you to anything. We are gauging interest and will have an informational meeting soon.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Bryan