Catastrophe and the Sovereignty of God

Praise Reports:

This was certainly a week of Thanksgiving!

• Jamie could come to church, and she has a new niece named Grace. She's looking forward to Christmas break and being halfway through college.
• Shirley's nephew Sean was able to attend church.
• We had an awesome Harbor House Thanksgiving with over 50 people!
• The cross is lit on David's hill! It was an amazing accomplishment.
• Bill was very blessed by his time here. 
• The Augustins had a great time with Brandon's friend, Ben
• Byron was thankful for all of the people who have been helping him so much.
• Vanessa made it back from her vacation safely.
• Warren and Mary had a great time with their grandson.
• Vivian felt blessed by all the friends she has around her.
• Mary Williams made it to church!
• Pam will be moving back home soon!
• Dwayne was so glad that Paul, Ruby, and Bill could come visit.
• Gavin slept six hours straight one night! That's a praise for Hannah.
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Prayer Requests:

• Joyce's father had a small stroke and is doing well, but needs your prayers.
• Vanessa has been sick for a very long time. Please pray for her quick healing.
• Julie has a patient who is actively dying and it is very hard on his family. Please remember them in your prayers.
• Richard's brother, Lou, is in the hospital, pray for his recovery.
• Jamie has a friend from college who recently lost her father. Please pray for her.
• Keep the leaders of America in your prayers. May God's will be done for our country.
• Pray encouragement for Audrey Harrell. 
• Remember Vanessa's sister, Dixie. 
• Pray for Rebecca.
• Elaine's mother needs our prayers.
• Keep our service personnel in mind, especially those serving overseas.
• Christin's mother-in-law is suffering greatly from cancer. 
• Nellie's father needs prayer.
• Pray that Paul and Ruby will have a safe trip home to Oregon, and strength
• Pray for our pastor's body, mind, soul, and spirit.

Sermon Notes:

The church of today has a nasty habit of seeing suffering and trying to find a sin behind it. The truth is that God is not very active in personal judgement! He has established the law that "what you sow is what you reap" and that takes care of most judgement on this earth.  Remember, Jesus did not come to condemn the world, because it was already condemned.

What we see (suffering as a result of wrongdoing) ain't necessarily so. So don't judge!

Job 9:1-20

This is a great description of the fear of God.  Read this passage over; drink it deep. How powerful is our God--to do all He does without even being seen! 

Job 9:19 

Job wants to bring charges against God, but knows that it would be impossible. God is so holy that even the blameless cannot stand before him!

Job 9:21-24

Innocent people die every day. Who is responsible for it? We believe that God is Lord over all the earth; it would be limiting His sovereignty to suggest that the suffering of the innocent is somehow out of His control. Bad things happen to good people. It's a fact of life, and has little or no bearing on how righteous the victims are (Luke 13:1-5). God is ultimately responsible for all of it.

Whenever you face suffering, you can know that God could have prevented it if He had wanted. OK. Now that your heart is in the right place you can move on.

Job 9:27-28

Job's friends told him to just "grin and bear it". But suffering is real, and putting on a smile is no kind of answer to give a sufferer. When you confront someone who is suffering, don't try to "fix" them. Just listen. Just be there.

Job 9:32-35

This is an amazing passage of the Old Testament, foreshadowing the coming of Christ. Here Job says that if he is blameless and yet severely punished, what hope is there for anyone? He speaks of his longing for a mediator between him and God so that Job could speak to God without fear of reprisal. 1 Timothy 2:5 described the Christ as just that kind of mediator.

Job 10:8-12

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. When the world is crumbling around your ears, remember that you were created by God for a purpose.

Job 10:13-18

It isn't all about curses for wrongs and blessings for goodness. Good and bad are in the world; the law of reaping is in place. There's a lot more behind our everyday misfortunes than we might at first think.

Romans 11:32

If we are all "committed unto disobedience", how righteous do you think we're going to get in this lifetime?We need to step back and rest in God and our mediator, Jesus Christ. He said in Matthew 11:28 that he would give us that rest.