worship preview

Dear Saints: We keep hearing that a fundamental problem in our economy is that we have a crisis of faith in our economy. So many of us no longer believe that the markets are trustworthy that we are standing on the sidelines waiting for things to get better. Approximately 2700 years ago, a different kind of faith crisis struck the people of God. They had suffered through an economic upheaval that makes ours look completely trivial. Their entire economy was destroyed as they were carted off to the land of their enemies. Once they arrived, they refused to buy and sell land, start businesses, or conduct the normal events of life. Their hope was that their displacement would be short lived and they would be heading home soon. However, in Jeremiah 29:4-11, they hear that their hopes and dreams aren't going to happen. Their exile will last much longer than they had thought. And while this exile takes place, they are told to invest their money, time, and energy in their new land. God calls them to practice their faith not by waiting for some future event to arrive, but to live in the present and invest themselves in what is happening now. He also lets them know that He will be with them in all that they do. This Sunday we will reflect deeply on this experience of the Hebews as a way to listen for God's word of hope and challenge to us. Please read this passage in Jeremiah as well as Romans 8:18-25. As you read these passages, I would encourage you to reflect on the nature of this hope we have been given through Christ. How would you characterize hope? On what is it based? Can can hope impact and enhance how we live now? I look forward to worshiping with you on Sunday. In Christ, Bryan