Dear Church Family and Community,

 

So, I cannot tell you the first time I sang along to the hymn, Trust and Obey. I can, however, tell you that growing up on this hymn was such a gift to me. The memorable refrain pointedly reminds us that there’s no other way to be truly happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. This song remains a favorite because it reminds us that through burdens, sorrows, toils, grief or loss, we are to trust and obey. It calls us to do what God says, go where God sends, and to never fear – only trust and obey.

The power of songs is that they tend to linger with us even after the music fades. The lessons of lyrics, and the feelings they gift us, also linger on. With a song like Trust and Obey, we have a reminder that a foundational pillar of our faith is to trust and obey God. It sounds so simple, but we know that on this side of heaven it is so hard. This is why I’m so grateful that God helps us to build and grow our faith with the help of Jesus and His example before us, His Holy Spirit inside of us, His Body all around us, and His Word before us.

Trust and Obey has been what God has asked His people to do from the beginning. The message to Eve and Adam and Abraham and Sarah,who we have studied in recent weeks, can be summarized with trust and obey. So, it makes sense that now as we get to Isaac and Rebekah, God’s message to His people continues to be trust and obey. I love that in starting with our introduction to Rebekah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Bethuel and Milkah, Laban, and, yes, even Rebekah herself, are tasked with trust and obey.

Last week we continued our Faith Builders: Lessons from Early Women of Faith series by looking at Sarah.Sarah’s journey reminds us that our faith is built on our waiting on the Lord. This is an important message for us because we live in a society obsessed with the tyranny of the now, instant gratification, and equipped with access to more and more…and even more than ever before. Sarah helps us learn that waiting on the Lord is reliant on complete trust (and obedience) and not our patience, or even ourselves.

Though waiting is not easy, we can take comfort in God being with us. Though waiting is hard, we can take joy in knowing that God fulfills His promises. Though waiting may last longer than we ever hoped, we can always hold on to God because He is gracious and always delivers at His appointed time. Waiting can sometimes leave us susceptible to fear, but God gave His Son for us, His Spirit in us, His Church all around us, and His Word before us. If you missed hearing this message, please be sure to check it out here on our website, or through our sermon podcast on Soundcloud, Google Play, iTunes, or Stitcher.