Dear Truro family,
It is with great joy that I remember you always in my prayers. As you know, after only four months of official “retirement”, I have returned. It is a joy and honor to serve with you all in the Kingdom of God at this time and in this place.
I wish I could assure you that my life has always turned out the way I thought that it should; however, many times God has had other plans for my life. I have enjoyed some of those plans and found great joy in them. Other times have been hard and difficult and brought suffering, anger, and disillusionment. Unfortunately, many times I’ve had no choice about what has happened, but I am in the midst of suffering just the same. It is in those moments that I have had to trust God. So far God has not let me down! I have found that faith, no matter how small in the moment, has sustained me. Some of that faith has come from family and friends who have carried me.
There are three things that have served me well over the years.
- Healing from the past hurts.
- Help today
- Hope for tomorrow
It’s our past (our yesterdays) where we have been hurt. Very few past hurts can be changed to make it all better today. What we can do is recognize that we have been hurt. Our pain can come from our own sin or the sins of others, either way it causes brokenness in us. These hurts are often caused by traumatic events, loss, disobedience and many other things. So, what do we do with the pain?
We get help today! We see a counselor, make an appointment for healing prayer, find a spiritual director, sometimes simply reading a book is healing. Or we talk with friends and family. We repent and genuinely ask for forgiveness and work hard to reconcile our relationships where it is possible.
How do we find hope for tomorrow? Romans 15:13 says “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” When we begin to feel God’s peace and experience His joy especially during times of worship and prayer, the Holy Spirit fills us with new joy and power to do the work he has given us to do. Or even during times of quiet and rest we feel at peace. Hope has come.
I’m excited about what God is doing at Truro. I truly believe God is doing a “new thing” and we all have the opportunity to be part of that new thing. We get to join God in this journey through prayer, healing, reaching out to others, sharing with others, and most importantly keeping our eyes on Jesus!
I look forward to being with you all on this journey!
Sue+