JANUARY NEWSLETTER
From the Pastor’s Desk
Happy New Year! If there is one thing that everyone can agree on, it’s for 2021 to be a better year than last! The kids and I discussed on Zoom today that our God is all about doing something new. We looked at a lot of verses from the Holy Scriptures related to that, in particular Isaiah 43:19, which is translated in the New Living Translation, “For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry waste land.” God has already been making a way for us as we travel through this pandemic. God has created rivers in the dry wasteland. Some of those rivers came in the form of stimulus checks and new vaccines. Some came as virtual worship and drive–through food distribution. Some came in the way of daily conference calls for prayer and sharing. Some came in cards, phone calls, emails, and text messages. God has made ways for us to stay connected; God has provided oases in the midst of the wasteland.
Our District Superintendent, Rev. David Christy, wrote a very eloquent note to the clergy regarding 2020, and I share parts of it here with you. He wrote: I think about Nathanael’s question to Philip in John 1:46, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” It is almost as if the world is asking us, “Can anything good come out of 2020?” Like Philip, we can say, “Come and see.” I thank God for Catawba Valley District and you all who serve so faithfully…because of you allowing God to work through you we can show the world that Jesus is alive, even in a pandemic and times of division!”
The District Superintendent continues: We can show the world creative ways churches have adapted to “online”; ways children have received school supplies; ways the hungry have been fed; ways the homeless have been cared for; ways we have continued to offer God’s Grace and proclaim a Risen Savior! The Church has been the Church in the midst of a pandemic. Emmanuel – God with us – indeed!
We have indeed learned to do things in new ways, but only with God’s grace, strength, and guidance. How exciting that God is already making a pathway for us through 2021. As we prepare to set goals for the church’s new year, please be in continued prayer for an end to the pandemic, wisdom for the new church leadership, safety for us all, and for God’s perfect will to be manifested in our planning, activities, and daily lives. Let us eagerly look forward to what God has already begun for 2021!
Grace and peace in the New Year,
Pastor April