At a conference in the U.K., Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, spoke. After he finished speaking, Welby was asked what he believed to be the greatest challenge we face as Christ followers. Without a moment’s hesitation, the archbishop said, “Every Christian I meet ... cannot quite believe that they are loved by God.”

 

What about you? Do you believe — deep down, in the core of who you are — that you are loved by God? Do you believe that the God of this whole universe has a special place in his heart for you? Well, he does. 1 John 3:1 says, “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”

 

I’ve discovered that when we doubt the great love God has for us, it’s often because we’ve begun listening to other voices instead of to God. We listen to the voice of fear or insecurity or sin or the enemy, and the longer we listen and engage those voices, the more we believe them. The more we listen to them, the harder it is to believe, really believe, the promises of God — and the harder it is to believe that God truly loves us.

 

When I struggle with whether God truly loves me, I look back to the cross. I look back at the price he paid. A sacrifice like that isn’t made because God kind of loves you and me. It isn’t made because God likes us on some days (depending on how good we’ve been). No. God loves us. Period. When I look at the cross, I’m reminded of how very much God truly loves us! And if you believe that — well, that changes everything.

 

If you believe you are loved by God, then you have nothing to prove.

If you believe you are loved by God, then live a bold life of faith and adventure.

If you believe you are loved by God, then what others say about you loses its power.

If you believe you are loved by God, then your life has great meaning and purpose.

If you believe you are loved by God, then that’s enough.

 

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” -Ephesians 3:17b-19

 

Believing I am loved with you,

Pastor Kenneth

Mark Batterson, Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (New York: Multnomah, 2017), 187.

This Sunday, April 14, is our Blood Drive with Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. It's not too late to sign up - you can even do so on Sunday! The Donor Coach will be parked in front of the church building. You won't be able to miss it! Questions? Contact Frankie at (832) 603-2588.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like in ancient Greece? Now's your chance! Join us in ancient Athens, where we'll explore what life was like for the Apostle Paul on his dangerous journey to share the truth. Kids will create cool projects in the Marketplace, laugh as they play Bible-times games, visit with Paul, and eat some interesting new food. Plus, they'll meet lots of fun friends!

Vacation Bible School is a week your kids won't want to miss. Registration for kids (age 4 through exiting 5th grade) and volunteers at parkgate.church/vbs .

VBS isn't possible without generous donations from folks like you! Click the buttons below to sign up to purchase items needed for this important week.

Ladies, you're invited to join us for a day-long outing to Tomball on Thursday, April 25. We'll enjoy shopping and antiquing, then eat lunch together at a tea room. We will meet at the church at 8:30 a.m. and return around 2:30 p.m. Questions? Contact Sandy McHone at sandymchone48@gmail.com.

Property Care

Looking for a place to serve with your family? We are looking for a few good people to commit for two weeks to either water or weed our four flowerbeds off the new parking lot. Each task is guaranteed to take less than one hour. If you would like to sign up, please contact Becky for more information. Thanks for your help!

Nursery Workers Needed

We are looking for someone to join our Nursery Team, serving the third Sunday of the month at 10:45 a.m. Contact Irene if you're willing to serve.

Click here to view the latest newsletter from Daniel & Christy Kihm, our Faith Promise partners and missionaries to The Netherlands.

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