Here’s Hope: “When the going gets tough and my strengths not enough, I see You showing up like never before. This battle for my heart You took on from the start, You are the peace when my mind’s at war.”
Song: “Fighting For Me” by Riley Clemmons
Bible Reading: Proverbs 17:17 “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”
Consider This: The very first “mission trip” I ever went on was in 1978, just about three months after I had become a Christian during the spring of my senior year of high school. The small, but growing congregation I attended was Wilson’s Mills Baptist Church. The enthusiastic, and dedicated pastor was a 27- year old seminary student who made ambitious plans for our small but thriving youth group to travel 650 plus miles to the Detroit, Michigan area, to help facilitate Vacation Bible School. That young pastor became a mentor for my life as a Christian disciple and I would call him one of my heroes of the faith. He taught, encouraged, and challenged me to realize God has a plan for my life and I believed him. Today, you know him as North Run’s former pastor, Tom Gaskins.
That summer, as we helped carry out VBS for the children of Frazier, Michigan, one of the crafts we worked on that week was a banner which spelled out the words of Proverbs 17:17, “A friend loves at all times and a brother is born for adversity.” I still have one of those craft banners in my possession and it is a keepsake I treasure because it is a truth about our brothers and sisters in the faith.
I believe that truth is seen today once again in our North Run family in the lives and actions of three of the ladies of our church. Perhaps you know about the contribution that Marilyn Hurt, Wende Hughson, and Judy Clark have been making to help protect people in the midst of the covid-19 crisis. All three of these ladies have been sewing face masks to donate to people like healthcare workers and ordinary folks like you and me. The compassionate aspect about their labor of love is that these caring ladies have been making these masks without charge for their materials and labor. It really has truly been a labor of love. That’s how the love of Christ manifests itself in our troubled world. These ladies are also those I would call, “heroes of the faith.” They have embodied what Proverbs 17:17 would teach us with one slight adjustment, “ a brother and sister are born for adversity.” Thank you to Marilyn, Wende, and Judy for your gift of providing protection and encouragement to our church and community. You are heroes of our Christian faith and we are indebted to you. May God bless you for your gifts of giving to so many.
Prayer: Dear God, we give You thanks for loving brothers and sisters who demonstrate Christ’s love in their everyday lives. Thank you for the contribution of these caring ladies from our church family. Please help us to care for others as they have cared for us. Amen.