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Dear friends:
Some of us are old enough to remember the big, thick Christmas catalogs that would arrive in the mail just after Halloween. My siblings and I pored over it, hoping for a Red Ryder BB gun or an Easy Bake Oven, both of which actually showed up one magical Christmas. It was almost enough to make me believe in God!
Unfortunately, faith is often like that. When life is good, things come our way, and prosperity reigns, faith comes easy. Some even take it further, suggesting that if we just have faith -- enough of it and the right kind -- we'll land the job, the promotion, the deal; the test results will improve; the Panthers will finally return to the Super Bowl.
But it doesn't take long for reality to strike. Children get sick, the treatment doesn't work, relationships crumble no matter how hard we try, and when those times come it's hard to know what to do with this week's scripture passage, "Faith is the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things unseen." (Hebrews 11:1-3)
Is this simple naivet� or a word by which we can live?
We'll explore it in depth this weekend. The children's choir will sing at the 11:00 Sanctuary service, baptisms will be celebrated at a few services, and communion will be served at the 9:30 Chapel service where Joan Watson will also be preaching. It promises to be a great morning.
Come, and bring a friend.
Bob Henderson, senior minister
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