Joy and Pain....Sunshine and Rain

Joy

We have a treasure in clay jars.

Several of our neighbors just left and walked back to their homes after our small group meeting tonight. We spoke about brokenness. It was a tremendous delight for me to listen to different interactions during our study and to hear my new friends expressing in their own words their growing joy and confidence in Jesus. The gospel is at work in their lives, and in mine, and doing its work--making all things new.

It may seem silly to you, but the up-front seating that I have with several people right now has caused me to be freshly overwhelmed with the place that God gives his people in the story. We have been entrusted with God's message and means to turn the world upside down--or more truly to turn the world right side back again. God is redeeming his world and being part of the cast is a tremendous privilege.

City-Wide Redeemer has another community/small group that is starting up this Friday. Please pray that those God brings will quickly gel together, beginning to trust, learn from, and serve one another in due time.

Pain

We'll be moving from our rental house in early January into the house that we've purchased. We remain sure that God has opened this door, providing a great home in a central location at an astoundingly low price. On one hand it is a great sign of the end of transition. We've been moving since May. But we are experiencing sorrow at the prospect of leaving the neighborhood we've called home since early September. In just three months we have grown to sincerely love our neighbors.

To be frank, I feel pretty torn up inside. Our children will lose daily contact with yet another set of friends, and so will we. Of course, we plan on being in this neighborhood weekly to be a part of this growing community group, but we won't be privileged to the serendipitous encounters with our neighbors or their children. Please pray for God's will to be done, and that if we should stay that he would make that abundantly clear.

Joy and Pain...Sunshine and Rain