A letter from Anthony...
“Be joyful always; pray continually;
give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ
Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
This is the last letter I will be
sending for 2020, and so I thought it might be helpful to reflect on the year
that we have had.
In my lifetime I have never
experienced a year with so much uncertainty.
Early in the year bushfires, and the dense smoke they created, caused
uncertainty as fires raged across three different states. Many feared for their homes and the safety of
loved ones in fire affected areas. While
those with respiratory conditions right across the country struggled to breathe
in what was – for at least a week or two – extremely poor air quality.
Then in March, the Covid 19 pandemic
changed the course of our year dramatically.
We faced a period of complete lockdown, as all but essential workers
were told to stay at home. Events right
across the nation were cancelled, state borders were closed, and Zoom church
services became our only avenue for meeting together to worship our Lord.
Since then, restrictions have eased
greatly, and we have been able to return to physical gatherings, with a Zoom
livestream now becoming a permanent feature of our services. However, life hasn’t completely gone back to
normal; our chairs are spaced out far more than normal (although a lot less
than earlier this year) and only recently we have, once again, been restricted
from singing as Covid 19 cases spike in some areas of Sydney.
And while all this was going on our
farmers, for the most part, have had a really good year – with many reporting
that this was the best harvest they have seen for a long time.
This year has provided us with many ups and downs, there have periods of anxiety where it felt like we were all waiting for the next thing to be taken away, but there have also been many reasons to rejoice.
The verses above are a part of Paul’s
final encouragement to the believers in his first letter to the Thessalonians. He is encouraging them to do something that
is hard – but worthwhile. He is
encouraging them…
…to be joyful in all
circumstances, by giving God the glory even when we don’t understand His plans
…to pray to Him
continually, in an ongoing conversation with our Lord
…and to give thanks in all
circumstances.
What about 2020 are you thankful for?
Tamara and I have been very thankful
for our church family during this season.
We are thankful for the technology that God has provided us with that
has kept us all connected. We have been
thankful that so many of you were willing to learn how to use the technology
and to engage with it so that we could keep connected. And we have been thankful that we have been
allowed to return to physical gatherings (albeit under some minor
restrictions).
Most of all, however, we are thankful
for the certain hope that we have in Christ Jesus. A hope that enables us to have joy, and to
give thanks in all circumstances because the blood of Christ has guaranteed our
eternal inheritance with Him – and no amount of Covid 19 can take that away.
What about 2020 are you thankful
for?
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/new-year-2020-numbers-clock-4427195/
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