I am excited about this coming Sunday, for it is the start of our summer sermon series, “Come as you are.” I’m excited because it means two things: First, we want you to come just as you are any other day of the week. There is no need for that special Sunday dress, or the adorning of your best jewelry. There is no need for a suit or tie. Instead, feel free to wear t-shirts, shorts, and sneakers, if that is what makes you most comfortable!
But, more importantly, these next several weeks will help us understand that God calls us just the way we are, not how it is that we think we should be, or the way we think others expect us to be. All too often we believe there is a certain level of expectation that accompanies becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ or a certain standard that must be met to enter into a relationship with God. Yet, as we will see over the next ten weeks, God has always called people just the way they were, in their current conditions, and used them in ways that they never thought possible. And the good news is this – it is still true today! God still calls us just the way we are. God, who designed us to be us, still calls us to be us in the midst of a world that expects us to be aligned with some other way of thinking or acting.
I invite you to join with me as we discover all this as revealed in the Bible. Stories of people who were both young and quite a bit more mature. Stories of people who were burdened, with dark histories, filled with doubts, and reluctant to hear anything God had to say, let alone what they were being asked to do. Yet, as we will find, no matter what we’ve done, God still calls us, and when we respond, we will find an abundance of blessings in our lives. Blessings that not only impact our individual lives, but the lives of those around us as well.
So, “Come as you are” this Sunday and be prepared for what the Spirit will do in our midst! Be prepared for the fact that you are who you are and that is all that is needed to start a relationship with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Pastor Steve
“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest.”
(Matt 11:28, NRSV)