Word and Witness

Don Sperling, Pastor – Volume 1.3 – 4-3-20

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The Lord Is A Strong Tower You Can Depend On

It has been difficult not to be able to gather together over the last few weeks on Sunday morning, and now we know that this will continue through at least April 30th. I have been keeping our Clarenceville Church family in my prayers and encourage you to do the same. I hope that getting Sunday messages on line each week has been a help. I will continue to do this throughout the time when we are not able to gather in person. I thank Jeff Cummings for doing the videotaping and all the technical work that needs to be done so that we can offer this to you. Unfortunately, for those who are not able to access the internet, we have not been able share in this way. That is why it is such a blessing if you are able to take the time to call people that you know need to have a contact. That is one way that we can continue to be His Church through these trying times.

This has been a time that we have never experienced in our lives. Businesses are closed across our state and country, our Michigan schools will not reopen for the rest of this school year, our churches have been closed for all activities including worship services, and so many are suffering financially. The question that I have been asked often has been, “When will we get back to the way things were?” My answer is that I believe we may never get back to exactly the way it was before COVID-19, either in this country or in the world.

This pandemic has truly shaken just about every place on the planet. All of us have been affected in ways that will take a long time to understand. The security we might have once had has evaporated as we have discovered just how fragile we are as human beings and how breakable our world is.

Not returning to exactly the way we were might not be a negative thing. I have come to know, more now than ever before, that I have to rely on God in my life for every second of every minute I draw a breath; that I am not so strong or so secure in my own self as I might once have thought. So, where do I go for that strength and security that I need? The author of the Book of Proverbs – Solomon, king of Israel and son of David and Bathsheba – writes a book that is full of short and pithy wisdom statements. In Chapter 18, verse 10 he says,

The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
    a righteous person rushes to it and is lifted up above the danger.

(ISV – International Standard Version)

That is what we need to know – when we go to the Lord, we are lifted up above all that is of this world. That is where I want to be – lifted up by my loving Lord God!

I believe that we are in a time that God is using to offer that strong tower of safety to all who will accept and rush to Him. It is also a time when His Church is being called to lead by example and commit our lives to serving our God and witnessing to the saving grace of Jesus Christ that is for all who would believe.

As we go forward, trust in God to take you through every challenge that you face. Know that we do not walk this time or any time alone.

Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV)

God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.

My prayer for you and your family is that God will keep raising you up above the dangers that we face – today and every day!

Word and Witness

Don Sperling, Pastor – Volume 1.2 – 3-18-20

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Learning to be The Church

Since we have been facing the health crisis of the spreading Novel Coronavirus CORVID-19 it has been a trying time for everyone in our community / country / and world. I believe that it is also a time when God can teach us some things that we need to learn about truly being His Church. Here are a few possible areas that God may touch us as Christian believers during this time:

1.   We might begin to understand, in this time when we cannot gather together for worship, just how important our church family is and how we are called to minister to each other;

2.   We might also take this time to reflect on how vulnerable we truly are in all things in this world and how much we need God’s grace and love in His Son Jesus in our lives at all times;

3.   We might take this time to turn to God in new and bold ways – asking Him to be the One we follow in our individual lives, the lives of our families, and the life of our church.

4.   We might be led back to pray in real ways - throughout our day - letting Jesus into everything that we face.

in Revelation 3:20 Jesus speaks so clearly about the kind of relationship that he wants with you and me:

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. (NIV)

So, during this time of the current health crisis, how can we continue to be His Church? Here are some suggestions that we can implement:

1.   Turn to God's Word and spend time reading what He has given us - begin a new Bible study – that Christian study book that has been sitting on your shelf gathering dust that you have always intended to read;

2.   If you normally take time to pray – spend a little longer at it; if you don't make prayer a regular part of your day, during this time of crisis in our nation and the world, begin to make is part of what you do and who you are – and be prepared to continue the practice after the crisis is ended;

3.   Use the phone, email, Facebook, and other social media outlets to keep in touch with people in the church family. Get out your church directory and spend a few minutes of your time each day calling some of those that God leads you to make contact with;

4.   Do the same with those that you know beyond the church – in your work associates if your work has closed, in your families, neighborhoods, and other friends that maybe you haven't connected with in a while;

5.   Look around you - in your neighborhood – in your church family – in your own families – and anywhere else – and see if there is anyone in need of help and then volunteer to assist them. It might be picking up groceries, looking for a needed item that is currently hard to locate on the local store shelves, taking them to a necessary doctor appointment etc. 

These are just a few ways that we can continue to be His Church even when we are not able to gather in the church building. In truth, these are some of the ways the church is always to be His Church, no matter what the circumstances are in our lives. Unfortunately, too often it takes a crisis for us to realize that we are called to be in the work of furthering God's Kingdom in bold ways always and at all times!

Finally, let me address the panic and fear that has taken over a great many people in our country at this time, both within and outside the church. We are told very clearly that we are not to live in fear, but rather in faith, trusting God to bring us through anything, including these present turbulent times. 

One Scripture that says this in a powerful way is also great advice to each of us and to our nation in this time when there is great fear in so many people:

Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

So do not fear, for I am with you;
    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

   Let's live without fear, trusting in our God for the strength and help that we need, and knowing that we are indeed being upheld, right now and through all that is happening, by His steady and righteous right hand. In this way you and I can serve as witnesses to those around us of the love and grace of our God in His Son Jesus Christ that is available to everyone who will believe in Him!

May God bless each and every one of you!