Never Outside Our Father’s Care

Drjriley   -  

For the LORD God is a sun and shield. The LORD grants favor and honor; he does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity. Happy is the person who trusts in you, LORD of Armies!

Psalms 84:11-12 

James Lewis has come to CCDC these past two Wednesday evenings. Each time he has expressed his very upbeat faith in God and told us, “If it wasn’t for Jesus we wouldn’t be here!” It was great to hear his encouragement to trust in God regardless of our circumstances. We need his attitude.

The times we are living in are filled with uncertainty, disappointment, and confusion. It is a turbulent time in our nation. Our faith in God is being tested during these months of the devastating pandemic, political unrest, and economic downturn. Doubt and fear tempt us to not trust God. Sometimes we may wonder, “Where is God?”   James Lewis’s words bring us back to the simple truth – God is here for us. It’s true that we are going through difficult times in the world, our nation, and our personal lives. But the real truth is God is greater than all our problems.

Psalm 84 tells us the truth, Happy is the person who trusts in you, LORD of Armies! We have the LORD of Armies on our side. James Lewis shows he understands this Scripture when he exudes an upbeat attitude. He has this attitude even though he has gone through the tragedy of losing his wife and dealing with the loneliness. He remains strong in his faith.  When we find ourselves in difficult circumstances or in confusing situations, we sometimes feel that God has abandoned us. But this never is the case!  Many of those who come to CCDC are facing tough challenges, and our hearts go out to them. Even though they may have lost a loved one or lost their job or lost their home, we do not want them to lose their faith in God.

Jesus teaches us to never doubt the blessings of God. He states we are never outside our Father’s care. None of our problems overshadow the fact that God truly cares for us. If God can take care of the birds he created, he can take us who are his children made in his image.

CCDC exists to share Christ’s love and encourage people to trust God with whatever they are going through. Our volunteers come with the willingness to serve and demonstrate the unconditional love and grace of God. We are seeing lives transformed and answers to the prayer requests we receive.  We are grateful for all our supporters who make it possible to provide this ministry to those in the Near Eastside community.

May God’s peace be with you,

                                       Pastor Jim and Debby Riley