Well, I didn’t intend to be gone an extra week but then again no one expected a global pandemic 2 years ago. Having just gotten back from Disney World I feel quotes from one of my favorite movies to be in order. “10,000 years will give you such a crick in the neck…wow…does it feel good to get outta there.” (from Aladdin).
I write this weeks’ (overdue) letter to you from my office. If you read my previous letter and saw my sermon on Sunday, you’ll have known that Bekkah got COVID the day after we got back from our trip. The girls and I stayed away and have so far been spared from getting it. We have tested and are negative. We are so thankful for your thoughts and prayers and for all the support from everyone in this congregation as we navigated the previous week in a rather unanticipated and unique way.
It is at times like these when I realize how often we maybe don’t realize the power and importance of being a part of the body of Christ. When everything is working and going well, we just know that it works and don’t worry about it. Like a good AC unit in the middle of an AZ summer, or a car that gets you to and from all your daily activities. We don’t always say thank you HVAC unit because we expect it to work, and, unless we have an unreliable car, we don’t thank God every time it turns on when we turn the key because we just assume that it will do just that.
A faithful community of believers works the same way. It is always at motion, and it is always doing what it should be doing. Does that mean that it is perfect? Not at all. Just because my car has some scratches on the outside and some stains on the mats doesn’t mean that it’s a bad car, it just not in perfect condition. But it is at times when something out of the ordinary happens that we really realize just how incredible the community is and what it does for one another.
So, for the next week (or more, if you are willing) I want you to set aside all the imperfections that this community may and does have. No, I am not talking about the stains on the carpets or the chips in the paint. I’m not talking about the debris in the parking lot from the recent storms or anything like that. I want you to set aside all the things that you think may be imperfect about us and instead see only the good in each of us. See how this community comes together week after week, month after month, and year after year to make this place the warm and welcoming place that it is. I want you to think about all the ways that you are fed and nourished by one another to be a better and more faithful follower of Christ.
Sure the crack in the window in my car is annoying at times, but it pales in comparison to how often my car has both gotten me from destination to destination and has done it safely. Focus not on the negatives that may exist but all the good that comes from this wonderful and faithful community we call Bethlehem.
Philippians 4:8-9:
8 Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
Blessings,
Pastor Brian