CONTAGIOUS
Happy Palm Sunday!
I miss worshipping together and seeing all of you!
This is not how any of us anticipated celebrating Holy Week, but I am praying for you that you and your families are physically well, staying spiritually encouraged and emotionally healthy.
We are working on some ideas to better connect with weekend worship and the message starting Easter Sunday, so keep checking Praise City's Facebook and look for Constant Contact emails as well!
As I listen to the news and have interactions with friends, family and colleagues, I would argue that perhaps the only thing that's more contagious than this COVID-19 virus is the
fear of
the virus. And truthfully, there are lots of legitimate reasons for people to be afraid right now. The stock market, schools are closing, businesses shutting down, social distancing and isolation, diminished incomes. A shortage of toilet paper, Clorox wipes and disinfectants among a few other things. Grocery stores can't keep shelves stocked. Older people and those with a compromised immune system have a fear of
catching
the virus. For everyone else - there’s a fear that we are a
carrier
of the virus. It’s so highly contagious and can spread so rapidly - it’s a threat we can’t even see. And that’s alarming. The future is not clear.
But the believers in Thessalonica were in a situation that might be a little similar to ours today. Their future was also uncertain. They were being persecuted, facing all sorts of unbelievable trials, they had no control over what would happen next and I’m sure they were very afraid. There was no guarantee of what tomorrow might bring.
In
1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 TPT
Paul said, “We are grateful to God for your lives and we always pray for you.
3
For we remember before our God and Father
how you put your
faith
into practice
,
how your
love
motivates you to serve others
, and
how unrelenting is your
hope-filled patience
in our Lord Jesus Christ
.”
They feared for their lives, so how could they still be filled with faith, love and hope-filled patience? Not because of their situation, but because they put their trust in the
Lord
over
their situation
.
I Thessalonians 1:5
“For our gospel came to you not merely in the form of words but
in mighty power
infused with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.”
Fear can be powerful but the good news of the gospel is wrapped in the blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit and trumps over fear.
Why? Because the good news is simply that nothing we are or do can make us right with God. Jesus already did
everything
that needed to be done. He left nothing up to us. He willingly gave His life on a cross, He died in our place as the perfect sacrifice, and God raised Him to life again after 3 days. So that
anyone
who believes in Him, can be forgiven, can be changed from the inside out, and God's grace and mercy can be poured out on their life. They can have the hope of eternity with Him forever. Being reconciled to God doesn’t depend the tiniest bit on me. That’s
the
best news ever!
And who qualifies? Did He do that for perfect people? Good people? Religious people? Well, no. Scripture tell us he hung out with prostitutes, lepers, people that others had rejected. People who’s lives were messy, people with wavering faith, sinners, people who had hurt others, and made mistakes. So more good news…I’m not disqualified from receiving salvation and forgiveness and eternal life! I fit in
all
those categories!
Going to church, giving your money, trying really hard to stop doing bad things, or trying really hard to do good things can’t make you right with God… we're made right with God simply by believing in Jesus and what He’s already done for us. Believing that He is the Son of God, crucified, buried and resurrected… and that he is the only way back to God. That’s the message of the Gospel. Even when it seems grim, even in dark times and when we are afraid, our hope is found in Jesus.
I Thessalonians 1:8
“
8
The message of the Lord has sounded out from you not only in Greece, but
its echo has been heard in every place
where people are hearing about your strong faith."
Why was the Good News Contagious in Thessalonica?
- The believers were faithful in their work,
- they were full of loving deeds, and
- they had an enduring hope.
In this uncertain time around the entire globe…I pray you would remain faithful to the work of the Lord, that you would search for opportunities to love people, and that your heart would be full of enduring hope. That makes you contagious in the best way possible.
Let the echo from your life in Christ be:
We can trust in the goodness of God in difficult times. Anchor your hope in the cross and the resurrection and a God that said He will never leave you or forsake you.
You can be a carrier of faith and love and hope to all who come in contact with you. Whether it’s in the same building, or in a text or on social media. Hope will be heard. Faith will be caught. Love will spread.
You can be a carrier of fear and anxiety and doom…or you can be like the believers in 1 Thessalonians.
You can be a carrier of faith and hope and love.
So what are we to do now?
Well…the church is not a building. The church is not what happens on a Sunday. We know, we embrace, and we believe that we don't
go
to church, but that
we are the church.
In a time when the early church was being persecuted…when the world thought they had crucified and killed the leader of the Christian faith once and for all… Jesus didn't tell his disciples, "They'll come after you too now. So go in to your houses and hide for the rest of your life. Snuff out your light for now and you can turn it back on when things get better."
Nope. He said, "Go into all the world and let your light shine.”
So, if we can't go and gather in person, then we will go and gather online and in family devotions and in google hangouts and zoom small groups and chat rooms.
Share this message or other messages of faith and hope. Share your faith by email and by text and on social media and by phone (if you actually talk to people that way anymore :D ) Share it from wherever you are and in whatever way you can.
Pray. Encourage. Share what you have with someone in need.
Jesus didn’t say, "They're gonna know you're my disciples by the way you hoard bottled water and toilet paper.” He didn't say, “They're gonna know you're my disciples by the way you fight over the last bottle of bleach at Fry’s!"
No. He said, "They will know you're my disciples
by the way you love one another."
By the way you care for people. By the way you empathize and pray with others, and give generously and encourage others and comfort others.
Remember that we have a hope within us that no virus can kill.
For those who can’t wait ‘til things go back to normal.”, I would say normal was
no bueno
. Normal was comfortable. Normal was selfish. Normal was spiritually safe. Normal was complacent and lethargic and wimpy.
We have an opportunity now to renew and re-energize our faith! Ask the Lord to awaken your heart, open your eyes and open your ears to what He is doing right now. Ask Him what how He wants to use you in all of this. Let personal prayer and family bible study become the heart of our homes again. Let me ask you, “What does being a follower of Christ look like in your home now that you can’t be anywhere else BUT your home?”
I Thessalonians 1:8-10 (VOICE)
“…
but everywhere we go, your faith in God is talked about so we don’t even have to say a thing! 9
…how you turned toward God and realigned your life to serve the one true living God—leaving your idols to crumble in the dust—
10
and how you now await the return from heaven of His Son, whom He raised from the dead—namely, Jesus—our rescuer from the wrath to come.
My prayer is that we would follow the example of these believers. Now, more than ever: turn to God, seek Him and serve Him with everything you have, so that the Good News of the Gospel will echo out from our lives and be a witness to the goodness of God and a lifeline to His plan salvation and redemption to everyone around us.
Believers, you have the resurrection power of the living God at work in your life. You are a carrier of faith, hope and love to a world that needs it now more than ever before.
Trust in the Sovereignty of God.
Surrender to His will and plan.
Be faithful, be loving and filled with hope!
Go! Turn Your Light On. Turn Your Light Up!
BE the CHURCH,
BE CONTAGIOUS!
———————————————-
This week:
Stay connected to fellow believers by:
- Praying for Praise City in your daily prayers
- Reaching out on facebook/text/email/phone to check in and
encourage each other.
- Login to our Wednesday night Zoom at 6:30pm. It’s an opportunity to see familiar faces that we miss, pray for needs and be encouraged in the Word together.
Join via Zoom by clicking on this link!
Meeting ID: 556 932 838
- Watch the Praise City Facebook / Constant Contact emails / website for updates and posts to keep you connected to your church family and keep you encouraged you in your faith.
May God bless you and keep you,
Pastor Laurie
Love God, Love People, Love Life
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