Independence Day
This Wednesday we celebrate Independence Day.
Through the efforts of our founding fathers and most certainly provision by God, our country was born and we were no longer dependent on King George or the British Empire. Our country continues to be fiercely independent and quite proud of it. As we all enjoy this Independence Day with BBQs, trips to the beach, or a spectacular fireworks display, I want to take this opportunity to remind you that, while we might feel very independent in so many ways, it doesn’t apply in one crucial area: our relationship with our Lord.
I suppose I didn’t surprise anyone with that statement. As believers, we know that we should be looking to Christ at all times and in all circumstances, but it goes so much deeper than that.
The breath in our lungs, the beating of our hearts, our very existence is dependent on God (Gen 2:7, Prov 16:9).
That common grace is something everyone benefits from, even if they have no idea how fortunate they are. Through the saving grace of God, we learn the source and significance of what so many take for granted. That awareness, when fully realized, should amaze us as to how great He truly is and draw us to Him more and more each day.
In addition to the dependence we are to have on Him (vertically), God also designed relationships to extend horizontally with each other, most notably, between believers (Rom 12:4-5). That community we share with each other, how we depend on and support each other, glorifies God and is the church.
For about two years we have been dependent on the Lord for preparing RBC and our new Senior Pastor, Jason Swanson. The search team was dependent on the Lord’s guidance for finding and evaluating candidates. The elders were dependent on the Lord as we further examined Jason’s background. Jason was dependent on the Lord to ensure that his decision to accept our call was based on His perfect will.
We praise God for the work He did through countless major and minor events to bring Jason to RBC. We now welcome him to our family and look forward to him leading us as our shepherd. As this new stage in RBC’s life begins, let us all continue to depend on the Lord and see how He will work in and through us for His glory (Phil 2:13)!
Seeking His glory,
Mike Peay
RBC Lay Elder