I Thank the Lord For YOU!
Philippians 1:3-6 "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" .
We all know people who are a blessing to us. Whether it's a familymember, your lifelong best friend, a coworker, or an old friend you can always pick right back up with no matter how many months it's been, each of us has people in our lives that we are so thankful for.
We get so caught up in day-to-day busyness sometimes that we forget to thank God for all the things He has blessed us with. Instead of focusing on the goodness the Lord has shown us, we complain about the minor thing that goes wrong. Instead of being grateful for the multitude of people who encourage us and make us smile, we get so hung up on the one person who did us wrong that it sours our whole outlook. I'll be the first to admit I'm guilty of this all too often - especially when it comes to taking for granted all the wonderful people who have impacted my life.
Here at the beginning of his letter to the church at Philippi, Paul presents a great example for us to follow when it comes to the people in our lives who are special to us. "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you," Paul begins. He goes on to tell the recipients of his letter how he prays for them, and then gives an encouraging word about God's work in them. How often do we take the time to tell people how much they mean to us - especially fellow Christians with whom we share, as Paul says, "fellowship in the gospel"? I know I don't do that nearly as often as I should. As Paul models here, we should let the people we thank God for know that we do. And what better way to do that than by telling you today?
As the end of my term comes to an end, as serving as your Community Lay Director, I can honestly say I am humbled that God would use me in such an awesome ministry, and that you have walked beside me in this position. I cannot thank you enough for the encouragement you have showered me with and for your response to my repeatedly wooing you to stay connected with the Llano Emmaus Community. Together we make this Community relationship grow.
Chad Oglesby will be assuming the Community Lay Director position as of April 1st and I will be there 100% to support him in his efforts to continue to grow this love relationship, as I know you will be as well. Chad is a man after God's own Heart and if anyone can bring the love of a community together, he can! I ask that you support Chad, and the entire Board of Directors, with your full desire of service. When you are called upon, think of it as God's calling, not human calling, and raise your hand to say "Send me Lord".
I have enjoyed my time with you all, and once again I thank you for your support through your prayers, your presence, and your service of this entire Llano Emmaus Board and Community. I fully intend to stay connected by attending the weekend events and I look forward to the fellowship at the Community gatherings WITH YOU! Please make every effort to come to the Community Gathering on March 7th at Aldersgate UMC at 7:00 pm to fellowship with one another, sing to the Lord, hear God's message and to partake in Communion together as God had intended us to do.
I ran across these words from Max Lucado which I though was a model of how we look at Worshiping together:
"Thank the LORD because He is good. His love continues forever."
Psalm 106:1 (NCV)
Worship is when you're aware that what you've been given is far greater than what you can give.
Worship is the awareness that were it not for his touch, you'd still be hobbling and hurting, bitter and broken.
Worship is the half-glazed expression on the parched face of a desert pilgrim as he discovers that the oasis is not a mirage.
Worship is the "thank you" that refuses to be silenced.
Worship is a voluntary act of gratitude offered by the saved to the Savior, by the healed to the Healer, and by the delivered to the Deliverer.
I think this describes Worshiping together to the utmost!
I'll be at Aldersgate UMC for Community on March 7th - I hope to see you there!
Christ is counting on me, and I am counting on Christ.
DeColores,
Terri Flores