A New Hope

“So in Cana of Galilee Jesus did his first miracle. There he showed his glory, and his followers believed in him.”

—John 2:11 (NCV)

Shortly after Jesus began His earthly ministry, He attended a wedding in Cana with His mother and His disciples. It was customary to offer wine at most festivities, especially weddings. As the event went on, the wine supply came to an end. Apparently, this was uncommon and would even cause the host embarrassment. 

Jesus’s mother came to Him to let Him know the wine was gone. Maybe Mary was a “fixer” and wanted to solve a problem, or maybe she was fully confident that her son would have a solution. He responded to her that His time “had not yet come.” But even though He said that, He still did something about the wine shortage. 

Jesus told the servants to fill the nearby jars full of water. There were six of them and each held 20 to 30 gallons. In the Jewish culture, these jars were used in a washing ceremony, and when they washed, they’d be cleansed spiritually. 

Once the jars were full, Jesus told the servants to give some water to the master of the ceremony. They scooped it out to take to the master, but instead of tasting water, he tasted wine. And not just any wine—really good wine. He was blown away by this gesture, as it was completely acceptable that the best wine was used at the beginning of the celebration, leaving the cheaper wine for later. This was the first miracle that Jesus performed. It showed His power and the glory of God, and many people came to believe in Him.

Today’s Takeaway: God’s Abundance

The amount of water that Jesus turned into wine was anywhere from 120 to 180 gallons, depending on the size of the jar. Today, that would equate to 590 to 880 regular bottles of wine. We don’t know how long into the celebration they were, but to make this much water into wine and for it to be such a high quality just shows the heart of our God. 

He’s an abundant God, providing more than we need. He lavishes us with His love, provision, and grace. What God gives to us can’t be measured. His resources are unlimited, His love is unconditional, and His grace is unbounded. 

Whatever it is we lean on to make us feel better about ourselves or use to “cleanse” our consciences is no longer necessary because of the unlimited, unconditional, and unbounded love of our good God. This incredible unleashing of grace and mercy from God is more than enough to cover our past, present, and future sins. May we always remember that with our God comes an abundance of everything we need.



*The Miracles of Jesus - YouVersion

We Believe In 2023!

Jesus answered ... "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God. Believe in me also." - John 13:38-14:1, NIRV

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Deadline extended! There's still time to join Pastor Jimmy McIlrath for 8 days in The Holy Land. Organized by Maranatha Tours, the trip will feature all the major sites: the Sea of Galilee, Mount of Olives, Jordan River, Bethlehem, Jerusalem and more.

For more information: click here.

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Youth Winter Ski Retreat, February 17-20, 2023 at Winterplace Ski Resort in West Virginia! 

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Blood Drive

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Sunday Night Youth

Sunday, January 15 – MLK Day (No Meeting)

Sunday, January 22 – 5:30-7:30pm at the Church Office

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Middle School Small Group

Sunday, January 15 – 10:50ish-11:30am in the Green Room

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Breakfast Devotion

Wednesday, January 18 – 6:50-7:30am at Bradley Park Chick-fil-A

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Questions? - Contact Nathan at 706-464-7548 or [email protected].

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