Hi Church!
You have heard the phrase “happily married”. But have you ever heard anyone say, “happily single”? Sounds strange?
While most want to, should and will get married, some will not get married and others find themselves in a single “season”. But regardless of your current relationship status, there are some things that should be true for all of us.
This Sunday we will be learning “HOW TO BE A FIRST CLASS SINGLE”. As I mentioned in the previous email, single people are not second class citizens. Jesus never married. And His greatest follower, Paul never did either. He willingly gave up that right to make a greater difference for God’s kingdom. And, he did just that! Some of the greatest contributions to this world have been made by single people. But it means that single people must see their status from God’s perspective and live according to his standards.
Do you remember our study from a year ago on Ruth? I called it “Ruth Truth”. Ruth is a prime example of a woman who acted “wisely”, sowed the right seeds, and reaped God’s harvest of blessings. Remember this: You Reap what You Sow. You Reap More than You Sow. And You Reap In a Different Season Than You Sow. A Good reminder for all of us.
If you are married, you might wonder how this message applies to you. It does. Why? For one, you were single at one point in your life. True. And second, you will be single again. Ture. How? Either your spouse will die before you. Or when you die, you become single in heaven. People do not stay married or get married in heaven. Everybody is single. It is going to be different!
Plan to join us on Sunday at 9:30 am or 11 am for a great time of worship, fellowship and encouragement!
On a personal note, this past week I was reading back over my medical records from my accident on October 5, 2021. Due to some medical insurance questions, I had to secure all of my accident records for October 5-6. It was a book. 125 pages of notes and records of all that they observed and did while I was in the hospital for approx 24 hours. I haven’t disclosed much about the extent of my injury, only that I was cut very badly and came close to bleeding to death.
Reading my Trauma Surgeon’s notes this past week choked me up, This is what she wrote in her own words: “saw a man with miter saw injury with deep laceration to right superior chest wall that extends through the lateral aspect of the pectoralis major and superior aspect of the pectoralis minor. Axillary artery appears intact, with some edema around the axillary vein.
S/P repair of deep right chest wall laceration with placement of Jackson Pratt drain.”
Friends, the saw blade penetrated nearly 4inchs, all the way through my chest and into my back. I am still here, as you are, only because my work on earth is not yet done. God said, “not yet”. So He gets the credit for sparing my life, my eyes, my mouth, my lungs, and my artery when that blade broke into 6 pieces and went flying all around me.
I am so thankful!!! And I am telling you that I am truly 100% healed. I have no soreness, weakness or mobility issues in my right chest, arm or shoulder. God has made the body amazing in its ability to heal. And on March 5th, exactly 5 months from the date of my accident, I registered to run in the Savage Race in Dade City. I look forward to still being able to do this with my son, Jacob. We love the challenge and competitiveness of the 6 miles and 26 obstacles. It is a lot like life!
I share this with you, because I want to thank you for praying for me. Through my whole rehab I was able to still work, serve and speak each Sunday. God was like literally “my right arm”. And my wife, Jennifer, took amazing care of me as she always does.
And second, I want to encourage you to fight through the troubles and challenges that life throws at you! No one lives a trouble free life. You might be surprised by the things I and others have faced in life. True. But we press on! We do not give up! We stay on mission. That is what God’s people do.
In His Good Grip,
Pastor Mike