Faithful pray-ers,
One of the highlights of this past week was our Thanksgiving celebration that we held last Thursday in our church hall. We had about forty people come, the majority being people from our community who don’t know the Lord. What an answer to prayer. As I looked around the room at each of their faces, I kept thinking about Jesus’ Parable of the Great Banquet in Luke 14:23…”Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.”
Chris asked me to do a little Thanksgiving devotional that night, and I got emotional when I stood up to speak because the room erupted in clapping, hands banging on tables, and shouts of “Claire!” And looking back at them I realized that I knew almost all of them and call many of them friends. Wow. The Lord has done mighty things this year. I can’t believe that I get to live among these people and get to share with them the hope of Christ.
A snippet from the Thanksgiving talk: “Out of all the things that I am thankful for tonight, I am the most thankful for Jesus because – even though I am a sinner and don’t deserve it – He loves me, He has forgiven me of my sin, and He has given me new life. Because of Jesus I have real hope. And the same hope is offered to you, too. Maybe you are hurting here tonight, maybe you are weary, maybe you are needy. I just want to invite you to hear these words from the Bible from Psalm 9:
‘I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
[Why?]
The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
…
And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.’
This Psalm tells us that a big reason we give thanks to God is because He is trustworthy, and He welcomes all who seek Him. ‘The Lord is a stronghold [a safe place] for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. … And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken [you don’t leave or turn away] those who seek you.‘ The Bible tells us that, no matter who we are and what we have done, ‘…if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.’ And I’m living proof here tonight that God forgives and God gives hope.
So to each of you here, know that there is real hope available for you. Jesus gives hope. And that is what I am most thankful for here tonight.”
I am also thankful for you, faithful pray-ers! As we enter this Christmas season, please pray that we will continue to take every opportunity to share of the great hope we have in Jesus. Please pray that we will remain steadfast and that the Lord will be pleased to use us as vessels to reflect His light in a community so in need of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus.
“We wait for You / This month of endless night / Prepare You room / For making all things right / We wait” – S. Groves
Maranatha,
Claire
Claire in Scotland 