MIDWEEK MESSAGE #45
Hello and welcome to midweek message #45! I’m so glad you are taking the time to read this short note from me. I know some of you wait with bated breath each week for this and can hardly contain your excitement when you see it in your email. No? I’ll pray for you then! 🙂 Seriously, I do feel honored you would take the time out of your busy day to read these few words. Thank you.
WOW! Winter sure has hit hasn’t it? Like I said in last week’s MM, after a lull that had us thinking, “Maybe…just maybe…we will get away with not much snow this winter” old man winter sure has hit with a vengeance. When it started snowing Monday evening when the elders started our meeting at 5:00 and I didn’t think it was going to offer much. How wrong I was! By the 6:15 ending time the snow had really started coming down and accumulating. Park hill was fun. It would have been a great place to have had a sled, except for the guard rail, the bridge and the drop off into the White River at the other end. But other than that it would be a great ride!
It sure was pretty though. Watching new fallen snow always gives me chills, I mean, always reminds me of spiritual truth. Isaiah 1:18 says, “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” (NLT) (Highlight mine) And please notice the promise from God, our Father. Walk out your door after a newly fallen snow and see its purity and pristine beauty. That is exactly what Isaiah is picturing for us in that verse. So take heart! While you are grumbling about having to shovel snow, remember God is giving you a vivid picture, a one-on-one illustration of His gracious and generous love. It is a love which takes our sin and all that ugliness and makes us white as snow.
Okay, off my preacher box. 🙂 What do you expect though, right?
OVCF has a great opportunity this month to help provide for a very much needed and worthwhile local mission. New Beginnings Pregnancy Resource Center (NB) is having their annual diaper drive this month. We have chosen to partner with them because we believe in what they do. NB has been in Spencer for a long time, a lot longer than I have been here (15 years). I was privileged to have served on the board at one time but had to step aside after my cycling accident. I had to find some respite and being involved in so many things needed to change. Anyway, I believe in the mission of NB, as do the leaders and many of the people. I hate to say it because it will sound political, but after Monday’s decision about not offering medical care to babies who live through an abortion, their mission becomes even more critical. How can you help? Obviously, they will take financial help. But during this month you can help provide some much needed supplies. Their most needed supplies are diapers-size 4 & up; Pull-ups-all sizes; and baby wipes. To help you out because NB has had to adopt some modified hours due to the pandemic, you may bring your gifts to OVCF during the week (we are always here in the morning) or on Sunday. I would love to see NB flooded with the needed supplies.
I know you may think I am a broken record but I cannot stop talking about the elders of OVCF. I mentioned in MM#44 (the last one) that they have committed to praying for the church family. Last night I had us all switch names so each one of us will be praying for a different group of people this month. But let me also give you a brief rundown of some thoughts from last night’s meeting. Last month I had given them various articles I have recently read about the church in 2020 and now in 2021. Last night we discussed 5 Big Attitude Differences that Separate Growing Churches from Declining Churches. We not only had a good discussion, it also bled into next month’s article on 8 Disruptive Church Trends that Will Rule 2021. We all agreed that today’s church is not like yesterday’s church in many ways. One is a big one: the majority of attenders may no longer be in the room. With the advent of live streaming the Sunday morning service, many will stay home. We acknowledge that and rather than fight it, we want to go with it. We will be talking about that more next month, but here is something you can help us with. We know many of you are watching online but choose not to (for various reasons) sign in and let us know you are there. Would you mind helping us with that? All you need to do is comment and say, “Bill and Jo are here.” (Please don’t). Or “the so-and-so family is here” with the number. We are trying to get a more accurate count on those who are tuning into the live stream. And no, we won’t be sending Big Brother after you. Thanks for doing that for us.
And did you know we have two new additions to families this past week? Congrats to Rob and Cassie Hoene (Stella) and to Matt and Mary Beckwith (Kayliana). I pray God will bless their socks off as they raise these two young ladies.
I love you guys and pray that you all stay safe and healthy.
Pastor Bill
