STAY ENCOURAGED
It is a simple saying we started back at the beginning of Covid-19. It is easy to say but much harder to do. Stay encouraged has been somewhat difficult for myself during this pandemic. I felt and continue to feel a calling to ministry and this community— and have been blessed to fulfill that calling by way of the Family Life Center at First Baptist Maryville. I didn’t know what a call to ministry entirely meant for me and my family when God began to tug at my heart. I thought it would be fun and interactive. I would organize events and programs like cooking classes and fly-fishing classes to draw outsiders into our community. I would organize kickball leagues in order to bring kids from the community into our building in hopes of sharing the gospel of Jesus with them. Then the shutdown happened.
As this pandemic went on, I was discouraged because events and opportunities for us to reach the community weren’t possible. I had moments that I accepted that. I knew my ministry would be different for a time. Then I would get calls from parents of children that participated in our kickball league last year. They were excited and ready to do it again this year, but we couldn’t…
At those moments I lost the target of stay encouraged. The simple phrase wasn’t so simple. I would think about Romans 8:28,
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
All things?! So what is the good in this thing? What is the good in Covid-19? What is the good in a global shutdown? I reflect on these questions and think as I sit writing. I am actually taking a break from preparing for my third sermon. My THIRD SERMON! Wow! I would have never guessed a year and a half ago that I would be preparing a sermon, let alone three sermons!
I was wrong about our opportunities to reach the community. They are possible! They just looked different than kickball or fly-fishing. They look different than how I originally pictured and I grateful for that! God’s plan is greater than mine. God’s plan is greater than any event or league that I could possibly put on at First Baptist Maryville. I just have to remain open to what God has for me in this time. That is where I find my encouragement. Is it hard? Yes! But realizing that God is working all things for His good, it is nice to stop to see the good that is around. I ‘encourage’ you: remain open to God and quick to follow where He leads.
Stay Encouraged.
