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From The Pastor

January 3, 2020 by Rev. John Hartman

From the Pastor

As we end 2019, one question we find ourselves asking others is, “How was your year?” Now some of us might reply: “It was a tough year.” “I lost my dad.” “I lost my job.” “My health took a turn for the worse “ “It’s been hard living with all of the changes in my life.” To be honest, we might be feeling, “It was a really difficult year.” And yet, the Bible says that Christians are supposed to be thankful in all circumstances. All circumstances! This must mean that God has a different standard for measuring success than we have. And this is true, and I believe it is, then let me ask you, “By God’s standard, did you have a successful year?” In other words, are you closer to God today than you were a year ago? Does prayer play a more central role in your life than it did at the beginning of 2019? Have you grown deeper, stronger, and more faithful before God than you were at the beginning of the year? Are you a more compassionate, loving, and caring person than you were a year ago? You see, by those standards, you may have had a very, very successful year even though your year was filled with difficult and challenging circumstances.

My children are pretty fluent in Spanish, and there is an expression that I learned, “Las barras de la esperanza,” which means “the bars of hope.” When a Mexican family builds a home, they will set aside a certain amount of money to build their home, but they have other expenses like, food, clothing, raising their kids, etc. So, they build the home to the level that they can afford at that moment in time. Then they put in the Rebar that is sticking out of the roof to serve as a reminder to them and to everybody can see their house that they are not yet finished. So that when circumstances change their financial situation, then they will put on the second floor, and they will put on the roof. So, they have “barras de la esperanza” – bars of hope.

My friends, the beams of a cross on Calvary are our bars of hope. And as we turn the page to 2020, it is the cross that reminds us that God is not finished with us yet, and that in all things, God is working for the good of those who love him and who are called according to his purpose. Happy New Year!

Pastor John

Quote of the Week

“Being in Christ, it is safe to forget the past; it is possible to be sure of the future; it is possible to be diligent in the present.” Alexander MacLaren

Alexander Maclaren was an English non-conformist minister of Scottish origin.