Going My Own Way

Nearly every day I do things that I don’t want to do. From eating healthy foods (I’d rather have a stack of cookies) to making a difficult phone call to wearing a mask to staying mostly isolated to … I’m sure you can fill in the blanks.

Why do we do things we don’t want to do? I think we’re willing to do hard or challenging things because we love and care about others. We care about our own health and well-being. We care about our community and even our world.

But sometimes I resist doing what benefits me and others. I fail to listen to God’s direction and go my own way. In Scripture or sometimes through others, God says, “Do this. Go this way. Learn this. Serve me this way.” And I go the other way because I want to, or it is easier or I’m simply resistant. That’s how Jonah was in the book of Jonah in the Bible. God told him to go one way, and he went the other and found there were some big consequences to that. This Sunday, Feb. 7, we continue in worship with “Grounded in Love” and talk about Jonah.

The season of Lent begins on Feb. 17. During that time, we have a chance to take a serious look at our lives and think about the ways God is inviting us to change and grow. I’d like to encourage you to begin thinking now: What are the ways I might be resisting what God wants me to learn or do? This can guide you in what you might give up or take on for the season of Lent.

Our family welcomes your prayers for two things. Our son, David, and his spouse, Michelle, and their son Helios are expecting a new baby boy around Feb. 15. Our daughter, Julie, has completed her scheduled chemotherapy treatments for breast cancer and is planning for surgery around March 4. Thanks for your prayers!

See you in worship.

Blessings,

Sharon