Hi there friends,

 

                Isn’t it fantastic that it is getting warmer out there? I love it. I saw somewhere that Canadians, when it gets to plus 3 after a cold winter, are perfectly happy in shorts and flipflops. I may not be quite there yet, but it’s getting close!

 

                I just read another thing about Jesus that grabbed me in a humorous and yet poignant way. In the book of John, Jesus has crossed over to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee and a great crowd of people followed Him because they saw the signs He had performed by healing the sick.

               

                Let me pick it up in John 6:5

 

 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

 

                Jesus already had in mind what He was going to do.

 

                He had a secret in His mind that He hadn’t let out yet. He was going to perform a spectacular miracle. He was going to feed 5000 people on whatever scraps He could pull together. How did He keep from smiling when He asked Philip what they should do?

 

                How many times do we find a situation before us that seems impossible?

 

• Maybe it’s a marriage that is struggling.
• Maybe it’s a child that has gone away from the Lord.
• Maybe it’s a concern with work or with finances or with health.

 

The question we hear knocking around loudly in our brains is, “HOW ARE WE EVER GOING TO DEAL WITH THIS PROBLEM?”

 

I wonder if that’s Jesus instigating that question. Often, I am exactly like Philip. I hear the question and then I either work like crazy to try and figure it out or I panic and give up knowing there is no way that it can be solved.

 

When, all along, Jesus knows what He is going to do.

 

Oh, for the grace to simply trust in Jesus. Trust that He has a plan. Trust that He will work His plan. And surrender myself to Him (myself and the situation) and allow Him to use me in any way that He wants to carry out His plan.

 

Jesus can do things we cannot do. Why are we so slow to trust Him?

 

What if instead of saying, “how am I going to deal with this impossible problem?” I asked, “Jesus, what do you have in mind to do regarding this impossible problem?”

 

I bet a lot of peace would settle on our souls.

 

This is my prayer for each of you as you face difficult situations in your lives. You are not alone. Jesus is there and Jesus can do pretty awesome stuff!

 

                This Sunday, Pastor Dallas will be concluding our series on “Missions Mindset” as he talks about the Call to mission work. I know that it will be a powerful and moving sermon and I hope you can be there, either in person or online. Some of you have been hearing that call, or the beginnings of that call, and I am super excited for you. It will enhance your faith wherever you are serving and working and living now.

 

                I hope you have a great weekend. We will see you on Sunday.

 

                I love being your pastor.

 

Pastor Tim