Well Pleased - January 2022 Newsletter
Happy New Year everyone! May our God of new beginnings refresh His mercies for you and your loved ones, and to the ends of the earth.
Well done… well done, my good and faithful one. These are lyrics from a song called “Well Done” by the Afters. I assume they are referring to the baptism of Jesus out of Luke when the sky opened, and there was a voice saying “Well done, my good and faithful servant;” to Jesus as he was baptized. We all want that greeting some day when it’s our turn at the gates of Heaven.
What does it mean to be a good and faithful servant? Is it just reading the Bible, and memorizing verses? Is it coming to church, and giving your offering every week? Yes, those help, but in addition, is to build relationships of faith. Our goal is to be disciples - to take the words of Jesus Christ to bring light to the darkness of this world. Hope is not just a catchphrase, it’s a lifestyle. As believers, we embody faith and hope to a world that just cannot understand why we would put so much effort.
The first line of the song that I referenced above is - “What will it be like when my pain is gone and all the worries of this world fade away?” What a glorious day that will be. Life is not all pain, neither is it all joy. But we come to the feet of the Holy One to find more joy than pain. We can be witnesses to the joy, not just the happiness, the JOY of being one of God’s own chosen people.
Our Methodist baptismal vows lay out what it means to be a good and faithful servant. To reject wickedness and evil, injustice and oppression; trusting wholly in the grace of Jesus Christ, teaching and giving example to the next generation. Notice none of this is passive. We have to be actively involved with our faith, and be prepared to learn from one another and maintain sometimes difficult relationships.
How are you being a good and faithful servant? Are you active in your faith? Or has it become passive, and stale? Maybe it would help to join a small group or Sunday school class to sort it out with others who may have questions just like you. Or if you don’t have questions, and just want to connect with people who are interested in living out their faith - through rejecting wickedness and injustice, finding time to teach what you’ve experienced, or give space to allow those who are hurting to have a safe space to be themselves, and find the Spirit and where it’s leading.
Do you know what kind of spiritual gifts that you can use in being a servant? If the answer is yes, then that’s great, and I’d love to talk to you about how Bethany Church can help you walk into your callings and natural gifts. If not, I’d still love to talk to you about how we can find them and encourage you to go deeper in your walk of faith.
There are many opportunities Bethany Church has to be a wonderful community resource for the neighborhood and beyond to partner with. Let’s remember our baptismal vows, and live them out every day for bringing God’s Kingdom to the earth for His glory.
In Faith,
Pastor Dan
Pastor’s Picks:
This book does a good job of intentionally slowing me down to find the holy in the ordinary, like making my bed, washing dishes, brushing my teeth. If you want to find some new routines, this book is a good one to help rethink those mindless tasks into spiritual discovery.
This may seem a little different. I came across this album by random, and the whole album is mellow worship music. I love the lyrics of the songs, and I wasn’t expecting this at all, but it worked.
Movie / TV: “Ted Lasso” (TV-MA) - This show is about an American football coach who is hired by a British soccer club to be their coach. I could say so much about the show, but in a few words, this show embodies the messiness of grace, and is hilarious and heartwarming, but beware of gratuitous language, and innuendo.
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