“His compassions never fail. They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.”
– Lamentations 3:22-23
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!
My father loved flax flowers. That seems like an odd flower to love, but he had a specific reason for it. Flax flowers only last one day. They bloom in the morning and fall off in the evening. But the next day, new flowers fill the same field. We had a patch of flax flowers at our house, and Dad would tell us they reminded him of Jeremiah’s words in Lamentations, the promise that God’s love for us is new every morning. No matter how badly we messed up, God’s love and grace was renewed each day.
Sometimes it feels like we are in that moment when all the flowers have fallen off. Night has come, and what was once full of beauty is now stripped bare. Jeremiah finds himself in just that moment, that long season, as he writes the book of Lamentations. He is writing about the fall of Jerusalem, when the bright flower that was the crown jewel of God’s chosen people has been destroyed and trampled underfoot. “How deserted lies the city, once so full of people!” Jeremiah cries at the beginning of the book, “She who was queen among provinces has now become a slave.”
Even as he weeps for his people, we see Jeremiah clinging to hope. He grabs onto the promise of God’s new-every-morning love. “You heard my plea,” he says to the Lord, “You came near when I called you, and you said, ‘Do not fear.’ O Lord, you took up my case; you redeemed my life” (Lam 3:57-58).
The most interesting thing about Lamentations is hard to see in the English translation. It is almost entirely made up of acrostic poems – each verse in chapters 1, 2, and 4 start with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Chapter 3 is also an acrostic, with a new letter for every three verses. This tells us that Jeremiah wrote these laments very intentionally, and he wanted people to be able to remember them. He did not want the Jewish people to erase the history of this horrific time. He wanted them to recite it, to reflect back on it, and to learn from it.
Why? The biggest clue comes in Lam 3:40-42: “Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord. Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven, and say, ‘We have sinned and rebelled.’” Jeremiah wants the people to consider what has brought them to this point, and he wants them to remember that their hope is in God alone.
How will you remember the last 12 months? Most of us want to forget it all, to put it behind us. We don’t want to remember our laments. But sometimes, remembering our laments helps us cherish the hope that God gives us. Lamentations is not the end of the story. Lord redeemed Israel, first by letting them return to the land after the Babylonians were conquered, and then by sending His own son to die for their sins. Our struggles are not the end of the story either. The same God who redeemed Israel is at work in our midst. The God who raised Jesus from the dead will redeem this time. It is in Him that we are bold to place our hope, knowing that His love is indeed new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
Many blessings,
Pastor Carolyn
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Prospective Member Small Group:
The Kingdom Growth team is looking to offer a four-week new member small group through Zoom for those interested in membership at Mlepc. The four week group will be the only prerequisite for membership besides a brief conversation with the church leadership on the meaning of membership and sharing your Christian faith story. Please join us! Whether you decide to go through with membership or not, it will be a great small group experience to get to know others who are part of the church community, and learn about our common calling in Christ. If you are interested, please email Pastor Steve at saguzzi@mlepc.org.
Sunday School:
We are continuing online for Sunday School. Pastor Steve and the Lamplighter class will continue with their offering for any adults who are interested. This is the link to log in at 11:30 - https://duq.zoom.us/j/97403542430 If you would like to be on the email list for the adult class, please let us know at info@mlepc.org.The Youth and Children’s classes will remain online as well, so email us if you would like information about how to connect with those groups.
Small Groups:
In addition to these Sunday School offerings, we have several small groups meeting online almost every day of the week, and we have groups for Tweeners, Middle School and High School, Young Adults, Women, Men, and coed groups. If you are interested in becoming part of one of these groups, please contact us at 412-531-3387 or info@mlepc.org.
Prayer Requests:
If you have a prayer concern, please fill out one of the yellow cards in the pew racks and place it in the collection boxes at the exits. As our prayer warriors gather tonight for the "Sunday Hour of Prayer" they will be honored to pray for you and include your concern in their prayers.
Sunday Hour of Prayer:
A group of us gather on Zoom every Sunday at 7pm to pray together, and we would love to have you join us! Please use this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/92561964416?pwd=NmZoNDV3dDNqSVFubW82TEx0bll0Zz09 (for a computer, tablet, or mobile phone). You can also call in from a regular phone – dial 1-646-558-8656 and enter the Meeting ID - 925 6196 4416 and the password is 798565. For more info, contact Pat Gaudio at t4two98@hotmail.com.
For more information go to www.MLEPC.org and click on “Current Information”And as always, please let us know if there is any way we can support you or connect with you during this season. You can email us at info@mlepc.org, with any needs, prayer requests, or just updates on how you are doing. And you are always welcome to call us at 412-531-3387.
PLEASE JOIN US! ~ On Site or Online ~
Sunday, January 24 ~ 10:00 a.m.
Pastor Carolyn Poteet ~ "Hope in Hard Places"
Scripture Verses ~ Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-26 and John 11:32-37
