We can trust in God’s steadfast love for us

Last Sunday, in a sermon based on Romans 8:37-39, I emphasized the purpose of the Christ’s Church as being to proclaim God’s unshakable love for us. I opened with a story of a young woman seeking ordination in the Presbyterian Church who, when asked in an examination by the Detroit Presbytery’s Committee on Preparation for Ministry, “What difference does Jesus make in your life?”, burst into tears. So powerful was her experience of Christ’s love, she could not express it in words, only in tears of joy.

I closed the sermon by reminding us all that nothing "in all creation will be able to separate us form the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39). On a personal note, I described how my own spiritual life is being influenced by my approaching retirement. Among other things, for the first time in more than 40 years I will have to decide where to go to church with Lisa!

As I relinquish the role of active pastor (in the Presbyterian Church my official status will become Honorably Retired) I find myself keener to God’s will for me. And as I let go of 36 years serving as a pastor, I find my reliance on God to be with me every step of the way through this transition to have a certain fresh and new quality to it.

I also closed the sermon suggesting that this is your journey now, too. You who comprise the congregation of MBPPC are at the front end of a transition from my service among you to the launch of a new chapter with a new pastor. This is a time of both letting go and taking hold. It is a time of waiting, wondering, and anticipation. Simultaneously, it is a time to say farewell. It is a time to consider who you are as an expression of the body of Christ. Some things we have done well. Others have been times of falling short and, I hope, learning. Some ministries are up-and-running. Others have seen their time and need to be put to rest. Others still continue to find their footing after the interruption of the pandemic.

In all of these things, you all and I can trust in God’s presence and God’s steadfast love for us. During trainings with the ruling elders, I have tried to focus on one truth: MBPPC exists because God called it into being in Christ. God loves Christ’s Church, is present with us, and is powerful to keep the Church alive through all the changes in life, and in the life of the world.