EWE - 1/11/17

DEAR FAITHFUL CREW LIVING LIFE,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

…or because I hope the Lamb of God is walking near to you…

HAPPY EWE NEAR!

I don’t know what 2017 will bring, but I do know that in many ways for many of you, 2016 had it’s share of ups, downs, and waaaay downs. As a community of Christ, we cannot take the reality of the past year away from each other. But we can offer to walk alongside one another through this next year in a new way.

I am hoping that in 2017 we can be more than friends. Now, please don’t misunderstand me. What I mean is that for those that commit to be in a group together, friendships can be strengthened. But for those who are also seeking to grow in their relationship with God, they can be more than friends, they can be a church. A church is a light to the rest of the world. And the rest of the world will know who God is because of the way we treat one another. Let’s find ways to rescue each other from the grips of busyness, school pressure, and our identities that are shaped in things other than the image of God!

I am thrilled to share another year of life with a group that has already grown both in numbers and in depth, and one that is itching to get outside of the walls of this church together to be the hands and feet of Christ.

You may be in the position to be asking the question: What kind of a God is this? You are not alone. Abraham must have asked the same question (see Genesis 22) when God asked him to give up his only Son. Turns out he didn’t have to. But, how must he have felt? How must Isaac have felt? Fast forward to Jesus and we realize we can ask the same question about God who did not hold back from sacrificing his only Son for us. He became the lamb of God that died for us.

My prayer is that this Lamb, this sacrifice, reminds us to be thankful that God walks near to us even in the valleys when we are asking, “What kind of a God is this?”

Let’s walk together.

Peace alone in Christ,

Brett Shoe