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Remember the Deeds of the Lord - From Anne & Brock RobyPsalm 77:2, 10-11
2 In the day of my trouble, I seek the Lord;
in the night, my hand is stretched out without wearying…
10 "Then I said, "I will appeal to this,
to the years of the right hand of the Most High."
11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
As we reach the end of 2022 and are now at the beginning of 2023, many of us, like the writer of Psalm 77, recognize the last year was a year filled with both wonderful times…and tough times. I don't think I am going out on a limb to suggest that 2023 will likely be very similar! After all, that is the nature of the life that God has blessed us with in His wonderful creation, which is also a fallen world in need of Him.
In reading Psalm 77, I am struck by two helpful observations:
1) When tough times come, seek the Lord. As Anne and I end this year, I have had Covid twice, and our parents are just getting out of the hospital with their own health challenges. While these are not unexpected or crushing troubles, they are emblematic of the days of trouble that visit each of us, often without warning. The solution the Psalmist arrived at was to recount the days and the ways in which the Lord had been wonderful. The past year has been filled with many faith-building times in our Church: Encouraging visits from Gregg & Kathy Marutzky, Kyle & Monique Plum, John & Michelle Hafer, Chester & Kit Umaguing, Kene Izuchukwu, Steve Brand, Rob & Pam Skinner, Rafael & Griselda Lua, Tom & Kelly Brown, and Jacob & Tiffany Ardron, as well as the great times of fellowship, baptisms, and celebrations! All have served as great reminders of the goodness of God in our lives!
2) When times are wonderful, store-up for the future. What is not expressly stated in Psalm 77 but is clearly implied, the Psalmist had years of stored-up faith on which to draw and a well of insights from God's word. My recommendation as we go into the new year, beat a path to God's Word! Don't wait until life is challenging to turn to God – seek Him intently in His word now while times are good! Forge a well-worn path to His word, meditate on His truths, and memorize the way to His promises now so that your heart will be able find them blindfolded, in the dark of night, with your outstretched hand when the inevitable day of trouble comes. Anne and I have had countless times where the Word of God sustained us when nothing else could. At the end of the year, we plan our spiritual journey in God's Word for the upcoming year. I personally am getting advice on what version to read and planning to read through the entire Bible again this year.
We look forward to seeing what God does in 2023 but even more so look forward to going deeper into His Word!
Anne & Brock
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Greetings from the Church in MyanmarGreetings and prayers to you from your brothers and sisters of the Myanmar Church of Christ in Yangon, Myanmar (formerly Burma) is a South East Asian Nation of more than 100 ethnic groups, bordering India, Bangladesh, China, Laos, and Thailand, with a population of 56 million. The Myanmar Church was planted in 1996, led by John and Michelle Hafer from San Francisco. Currently, there are 57 married disciples and 39 singles. In addition, there are 11 widow disciples in the Church, and 7 of them have children who are also disciples, numbering 20. After experiencing challenging times from Covid and the political changes, the Church had a retreat at the beach for the first time in 3 years. As a result, relationships began to be rebuilt in the fellowship; their faith was refreshed by having quality time together in the word and prayer, and dreams to grow in loving God, building spiritual family, and serving others have been rekindled. Please pray for us as we hope and pray that our children (around 40) will become disciples and that the single ministry will see many baptisms this coming year. We are wishing you a fruitful 2023! Greetings sent via David, Peninsula Fellowship Group |
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Quotes Worth Quoting - New Year Edition"Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right." - Oprah Winfrey, 1 Peter 5:10 "Because you are alive, everything is possible." - Thich Nhat Hanh, Luke 1:37 "Forgiveness says you are given another chance to make a new beginning.' - Desmond Tutu, Isaiah 43:18-19 "Real strength has to do with helping others." - Mister Rogers, Heb 13:16 "For we are leaders of inclusiveness and community, of love, equity, and justice." - Judith Heumann, Luke 4:18-19 "Some of my favorite opinions are dissenting opinions. I will not live to see what becomes of them, but I remain hopeful." - Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Heb 11:1 "Every moment is an organizing opportunity, every person a potential activist, every minute a chance to change the world." - Dolores Huerta, 2 Cor 5:11-21 |
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Join Us For Any Of Our Upcoming Events!Happy New Year! We hope you all had a lovely weekend and are having a wonderful day! Our fellowship groups will meet in person around the Bay Area next weekend for Sunday service. Midweek services will resume on January 11, with an all-fellowship Winter quarter kick-off Zoom midweek. Then for the rest of the winter quarter, we will have a selection of class offerings on different days of the week depending on what class you decide to join. For example, we plan to have a book club, a singles class, a marrieds class, and more. We will post all specific information in next week's newsletter and online. Click on the events button below or check our events page on our website for additional upcoming events. We hope you have a wonderful week and look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming events! |
