Sunday's Update - June 27, 2010

It was a small group this week, but we had a wonderful time of singing, fellowship, prayer, and potluck!

Announcements:

• As most of you know, Christin is getting married! The lucky man is James Anderson, Christin's fellow airman who sounds like a thoroughly great guy. The wedding date is as yet unknown, but will probably be within the next two to three months!

Praise Reports:

• Levi survived a dreadful motorcycle accident last week that could easily have been fatal. Thank the Lord that he was spared!
• Joyce and Cameron had a safe, enjoyable trip to St. Louis.

Prayer Requests:

• Keep Roy and Julie in your prayers, that God would strengthen them and be their light.
• Pray for Levi as he recovers from some nasty gashes, scrapes, and punctures.
• May God bless Sean Hunt and his film crew as they work on bringing an inspirational story to the screen. May they be successful and glorify God in the doing. View the teaser trailer here: http://vimeo.com/6940692
• Pray for Mary, Byron, and Pam's health
• Remember to pray for our leaders and our country. Answer the call 2 fall on July 4: http://www.call2fall.com/

Sermon Notes:

We covered some of Hebrews 11 today. If faith is being sure of what we hope for, then does that mean that we will get anything we hope for? No! Faith is not a blank check. 

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

This is extremely important. Our life's goal of pleasing God cannot be accomplished except by having faith! Our faith is like a plant: if it is not growing then it is either diseased, infected, dead, or in the process of dying. 

Is your faith like this?

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.

So if we cannot get just anything by faith, what can we get? The answer is here:

People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own...Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

The hope of heaven is the foundation of our faith. The more comfortable we are in this temporary world, the weaker our faith is. We see life through different eyes when we look at death, poverty, joy, etc. through faith - the hope of something better. None of the problems of life or our own mistakes have to frighten or control us. There is a better place in store for God's children that we can base our faith in. We are pilgrims. It is the hope of a homeland that inspires the great acts of faith:

By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark... 

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went...

By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice...

We must actively live in our faith. Faith is the Christian worldview.