A Word From the Pastor - November 2010

I know I'm a little late. 

November means one thing: another excuse to overeat and watch football!  Thanksgiving is a great holiday full of history and meaning.  As Christians, especially, we have much to be thankful for beyond the birth and history of our nation, friendship, peace, and family.  As Christians, we must always be thankful for the fact that the holy God we have been exploring stooped down from Heaven, in the person of the Son, became one of us and died in our place.  Thankfulness ought to be naturally a characteristic of the Christian that must go beyond turkey and sports once a year.  Thanksgiving itself opens the door to other spiritual truths like humility, joy, contentment, peace, love, goodness, and prayer.  How can we who deserve nothing and yet have been righteousness and have been adopted by our Heavenly Father not be grateful?  Only when we have a right view of ourselves – filthy, sinful, in constant rebellion who seek to oust our Creator – and a right view of God – righteous, holy, sovereign, and just – can we truly be thankful.  John Newton, the author of the hymn Amazing Grace and a former slave trader prior to his conversion, summed it up perhaps the best:  “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things, that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior.”  Amazing Grace that saved a wretch like me . . . and for that we ought to be more than grateful; we ought to be in constant worship.