Thank you for praying with us and for us through 2015! So many times this year I have experienced your commitment to the joy and challenge of the gospel.
Certainly I hear stories of struggle and frustration amid the demoralizing moral, spiritual and economic decline of our culture. Sometimes we as Christians are on the receiving end of community anxiety and disgruntlement. Inside the church, changes in the way we do things today fill many of us with an unsettling combination of excitement and worry. Few of us are fully comfortable with change.
Pastor Ray and Pastor Joseph teaching baptism class.
But in the midst of all of this what shines through is your willingness to be out there doing the ordinary things – being with people in celebration and sorrow, pointing to God’s presence in the midst of it all; praying for people around the world and preaching a word of comfort and challenge; exploring with them what it means to walk in the way of Jesus, loving God, neighbor, self, and the neighborhood. Just coping with all the mundane, nitty-gritty details that go along with the aspect of being a believer. Not easy, but rich in wonder and filled with moments of grace.
Thank you for saying “Yes!” For responding, “Here I am!” when you heard the question, “Whom shall I send?” You extended your prayers, love and support. Thank you for sticking with it, the ups and downs, the push and the pull. Thank you for your faithfulness and creativity as we walk by faith in what God is doing.
Sometimes we get so focused on the work piling up all around us that we forget to connect with one another as colleagues, friends, and neighbors, offering and receiving support, asking questions, and sharing insights. Let’s take some time this Christmas season to remember that we are part of the larger body of Christ, and when one of us hurts or rejoices, we all do. Let’s continue to pray for one another, in love and kindness, strengthened in the knowledge that others are praying for us, and giving glory to God, who by the power at work within us and among us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine.
Merry Christmas to you from our family and all the Saints in India!
Pastor Ben
