March 2020 – Jake Myers

Posted on Mar 19, 2020 in Uncategorized |

March Newsletter
Jake Myers
 
Currently in our youth group we are going through a study about women in the Bible. We first started going through the story of Naomi and Ruth, and while their stories might be familiar to us I think that one of the central messages they provide can be very useful given the current state of the world. I won’t go word-for-word into their story but both of them lost everything. Their husbands had passed away which meant they were widows, which meant they literally had nothing; no house, no job, no money for food, no sense of importance to the community. To say that they were struggling would be an understatement. Yet through all their struggles and all their hardships, God still blessed them and in the end they were able to get back what they had lost. God used their greatest struggles to lead them to their greatest impact, there was purpose to their struggle. Often we don’t see the bigger picture and that’s mostly because we get caught up in the present, and also we’re not God. We can’t see all of God’s plan for us, we don’t know what He has planned for us to go through — good and bad.

            So as we continue on in this year, in this very strange, difficult, scary year let’s try to remember that our struggles are part of God’s plan. I think that if we have all of this in our minds and our hearts, we can become examples in this trying time in our world. Our communities need a source of peace amidst this chaotic time, and we can be that source. Pastor Mike says this all the time but we can be a light in this dark world, and I believe this is a perfect chance for us. There are a bunch of verses I could quote about being calm but John 14:27 really stands out to me:

 

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

 

This is Jesus speaking to the disciples, and I believe these words ring true especially today.

            My prayer for not only this church but also the Church across the globe is that we can be the peace that our neighbors and communities need and when we are struggling we can remind ourselves that there is a purpose to our struggling. The last part of my prayer is that when this storm passes, we continue to be there for our communities. Not just in time of great distress but also in relative peace and quiet. We can get through this hectic and disparaging time, it won’t be a cake walk but we can get it done. We have each other and we also serve the Lord Almighty!

Leave a Reply