Pastor's Page for December 2004: A Time to Celbrate

To every Thing, there is a season, the Bible says.

A time to heal, a time to learn, a time to reflect and celebrate, and this is our day to celebrate being a church for 28 years.

Advent United Church of Christ has come a long way. When I came here, it was rumored that this church was not going to make it. In fact, I was advised not to come here, because it was going to close …

But we didn’t close, and in spite of some major struggles, a lot of tears and confusing experiences, we have prevailed. Lots of churches don’t make it through the vicissitudes of life. We have made it thus far, and we need to celebrate.

We haven’t made it because of who we are; we have made it because of Whose we are! God has hovered over us all these years. Trust me when I tell you that. He has not only hovered over us, but He has had His arms wrapped around us. He has kept us in His care, and under His watch. He has been our shepherd, personally watching us and caring for us. What an awesome God He is!!

Because God has kept us, I know He expects great things from us. We have shown that we are tenacious, that we are determined and that we love the Lord. We have fallen down more than once, only to reach up to God and have Him pick us up. I think we’ve been in training for the next phase of our lives and growth. I know God didn’t bring us this far to leave us, nor does He expect us to wallow in attitudes of complacency and self-centeredness. He wants us to share His power, His greatness, compassion and mercy with a lot of people.

People used to say all the time, when they’d come here, ‘Eyes hath not seen what you shall become.” Then, as we went through some tremendous valley experiences, people stopped saying it. Guess what? They’re saying it again, but this time, I hope we’ll believe the prophecy and work to bring it to pass.

Happy anniversary, Advent!

Love,

Pastor Smith