Week 49 (1 - 7 Dec): Marked by Love

Dear Talent Beacon family, 

I say this often, because it is true: I love our church. I know that we have our imperfections, as does any other church, simply because churches are made of imperfect people. This community is God’s gift to me, presented to me in a time when I needed it most. I know I did nothing to earn this gift, this love, that has been given to me by God, and by the people in this church. Being a part of this family is itself evidence enough for me, of God’s goodness and providence. 

This is why Saturdays are sacred to me. Our Saturday meetings are not just a social gathering, but a family coming home to the household of God. It is where He fills our deep need for a sense of belonging, for connection. It is where we can be fully known and fully loved. All our steps are divinely ordained by our Heavenly Father – including the steps that have led us to this church. It is He who has chosen this community for us. It is His good and perfect gift.

If you have decided to make Talent Beacon your community, I want you to know that you have a part to play in this church that no one else can play in the same way. Just as a body has different parts, God has planted in us different gifts that He wants to use to fulfil His purposes. To be sure, no one is indispensable. But everyone is necessary.

My prayer as we end the year is that God would increase our capacity to love one another. It is certainly not easy, because relationships are tricky. It may feel like death and that’s because it is! We are called to die to ourselves in pursuit of Christlikeness. But there is also so much joy in loving and being loved in return. It is only in community where we learn to forgive, to acknowledge our own terrible behaviour and to give up our own preferences. In other words, only in community do we learn to love.

In John 13:35, Jesus says, 'By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.' Our love for one another is not an end in itself; it is a means for the world to know who God is. May we always be a church that is marked by love. May our love for one another, made possible only by the Father’s love, shine on 13 December, and all the days of our lives. 

Love,

Lycia