Doctrine for everyday life: God’s Providence

So, tonight our doctrine is the providence of God. And I want to begin with a Christmas card.

I often start with a Christmas card, especially don't often start in, what month are we in? March,

with a Christmas card. But this week on Wednesday, I decided that was the day to clear my drawer.

Admin is not my strong point. So, since lockdown, I hadn't actually gone to the drawer. And so,

I cleared out all of the letters that had been piling up. And I found this Christmas card from

December 2020. God's timing is wonderful. And you'll see why I say God's timing is wonderful

when we're thinking about God's providence. Let me read just some of this. It's a letter or a card

from a lady called Angela. It begins, to Reverend James. It's a good title. It's a good start.

Where do I begin? I walked into your parish one day, bewildered and upset. I'd seen one of your

parishioners guiding the children in their spiritual journey. The same lovely man guided me into your

church. And the story goes on of her coming in, feeling very low spiritually, emotionally,

struggling to care for herself. And she came in, and she was welcomed. And we prayed for her.

We gave her some money. We directed her towards Bethany. And that was the beginning for her of

spiritual recovery. And not just of spiritual recovery. She is now training to be a lawyer.

And things have really changed. And she wrote this at the end. Where is it?

I was amazed on that fateful day, as your church doors were not usually open on that day.

That was the time when we were having early morning services to accommodate all the restrictions.

And so there's a wonderful Christmas card to reflect on, thinking about the providence of God.

It's a wonderful doctrine that God, our God, is able to take up thousands of events and decisions

and conversations, which can seem utterly random to us, but in God's hands can often achieve saving

purposes and always achieving his purposes. It's a doctrine that's been cherished and loved all

through church history. Charles Spurgeon often has great quotes. He says this of providence,

the providence of God is the great protector of our life and usefulness, and under the divine care,

we are perfectly safe from danger. So it's recognized as one of those bedrock doctrines

that's good news. But I wonder, how do we view life actually? Because not everybody cherishes,

values, providence. We hear a lot of talk about luck and chance and karma, coincidence.

Not everybody speaks about providence. How do we see the small and great moments of our lives?

Those chance meetings and conversations, the flat tire and the broken technology, the medical reports,

the daily Bible passage that speaks to our need directly. How do we think about climate crisis

or pandemic or the war in Ukraine? Who or what is in control? Now for many people, that's not a question

they ever think about. Or perhaps they think nobody is in control. It's the laws of the universe.

We make our own luck. Or what goes around comes around. Now others would say, well, God's in charge.

Sort of. Some people would have the idea that if there is a creator, well, perhaps he, as it were,

wound the earth up at the beginning and now it just kind of runs its own course and God doesn't get

involved. Others within the Christian community imagine that God has limits. So there's a school

of theology called open theism that says when it comes to the future, God doesn't always know what's

about to happen. That's an attempt to, as it were, get God off the hook when it comes to suffering. Well,

God didn't know our God was absent. What does the Bible have to say about the small and large moments

of life? And we're told over and over and over again that God is the God of all providence.

Psalm 115 verse 3, our God is in heaven. He does whatever pleases him. Proverbs chapter 16 is a chapter

Psalms 115:3 Proverbs 16 · chapter mention

full of providence. Verse 9, in their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their

steps. So the end of chapter 16 verse 33, it says even when someone casts the lot, the decision lies

with God. So our aim tonight is to see the truth of providence as we find it in the Bible, that we would

trust the God of providence, that we would draw comfort from this doctrine, indeed that it would give us a

sense of joy. It's a vital doctrine. I was learning this week from two different Johns. First from John

Calvin. He has a lot of helpful material in his institutes. He has the image of God holding the helm of the

world. God is the captain. He is in complete control. Calvin says he's not a momentary creator.

You know, he doesn't make the world and then kind of wash his hands off it. No, he's acting and directing

in the actions of all of his creatures. And again, that's not in a vague and limited way. That's not,

you know, God controls weather patterns or perhaps those things like that. Rather, he superintends the

sparrows. So God holds the helm of the world. And then John Piper has written a massive book

on providence, and he describes providence as God's purposeful sovereignty. That's very helpful. So that's

a reminder that God is the sovereign king. He sustains and controls all of creation towards his intended

purpose. And that purpose is for his glory and for our joy. Providence is a huge topic within the

Bible. We are going to have a narrow focus, hopefully to give us a flavor of just how extensive it is.

So we're going to go to Psalm 104 in just a moment to see God's providence over the natural world. And then

we'll go to the book of Genesis, to the story of Joseph, to see God's providence over human actions

and even over human sin. We need to think about that. So that in everyday life we would trust him,

we would worship him, and that it would help us to pray to him as well. So turn with me in your Bibles

to Psalm 104. We're going to read together from verse 19 to verse 35. So this is the second half of

this psalm. And there we read, he made the moon to mark the seasons and the sun knows when to go down.

You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl. The lions roar for their

prey and seek their food from God. The sun rises and they steal away. They return and lie down in their

dens. Then people go out to their work, to their labor until evening. How many are your works, Lord?

In wisdom you made them all. The earth is full of your creatures. There is the sea, vast and spacious,

teeming with creatures beyond number, living things both large and small. There the ships go to and

fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there. All creatures look to you to give them their food at

the proper time. When you give it to them, they gather it up. When you open your hand, they are satisfied

with good things. When you hide your face, they are terrified. When you take away their breath,

they die and return to the dust. When you send your spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of

the ground. May the glory of the Lord endure forever. May the Lord rejoice in his works. He who looks at the

earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke. I will sing to the Lord all my life.

I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to him as I rejoice in the

Lord. But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the Lord, my soul. Praise

the Lord. So Psalm 104 is all about God's providence over the natural world. So the first nine verses,

we began with those, we began with those, God is creator. Verses 10 to 18, we sang those, God is provider

and sustainer, not in a passive way, but in an active way. And then we just read verses 19 to 23,

where it speaks about God being over the rhythms of nature. So the moon comes out and the lions come out

and they go to work, they go hunting their prey, but then the moon goes down, the sun comes up,

the lions go to bed and the lions go to bed and the people go out and they begin their work. There's

rhythms in nature and God is over those. And then verse 27 to 30, there is that a very clear picture

that God brings life, God sustains life and God ends life. Animals, people, everything.

And so the impact of this Psalm is that we're invited to see in the natural world, God's providence up

close and personal. It's unavoidable if we have eyes to see it. That we're invited to see past the laws

of nature. So often that's where people are inclined to stop. We see beyond those to see the God who sets

those laws and who works through the laws of nature. We're invited to walk around in a beautiful spring

day and to see God's providence on display in the beauty, the diversity, the wonders of nature. The

buds and the trees, the birds who feed, the weather that we enjoy, all the life cycles come from God.

Volcanoes, tsunamis under the providence of God too. God's providence governs and creates.

Psalm 104 is also really helpful because it speaks to the purpose behind God's providence.

Verse 31, may the glory of the Lord endure forever. May the Lord rejoice in his works.

God's providence is a demonstration of God's glory. His wisdom, his goodness, his power are on full

display to the world. As Manley Hopkins, the poet, said, creation is charged with the grandeur of God.

And a day like today, we see it in full view, don't we?

So God's purpose in providence over the natural world is that his glory would be on display

and that he would have joy in his works. There's a reminder that from the beginning,

God said creation was good and creation is still good. Yes, there is brokenness, but yes,

there is beauty in God's eyes. And there's another purpose as well. Verse 33 and 34,

I will sing to the Lord all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. As we see the

glory of God in providence, it's intended to bring us joy and to draw out praise. The natural word,

as Alistair McGrath says, is a gateway to praise. Our five senses are all opportunities for us to praise

the God of providence, whether that's a glorious sunset or a glorious meal.

And that's absolutely in line with Jesus teaching on providence in nature in the Gospels. Matthew

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6, Jesus told his disciples, don't worry, God provides for the birds, God clothes the flowers,

and how much more will he feed and clothe you. As God's people, we trust in a God who controls

and who cares about the little things, the little things in nature. But that also reminds us that God

cares about the little things in our lives because he's our father. And then by extension, God's people,

we are to be a thankful people. Thankful for the thousands of ways in which he feeds, clothes,

cares, provides for us. That Jesus is clear that God has a special care for his children, for his church.

Perhaps that changes our focus when it comes to God's providence or when we think about God's

sovereignty. Often attention is drawn to God's control when things go wrong. And maybe in a

questioning way, when the crash happens, when the hunger hits, when the storm blows through the town.

But how often do we miss God's everyday, and we could call it his hidden providence,

the thousands and millions of times he protects and provides and gives safety. As God's people,

we're invited to walk through this world, seeing his control and being thankful for his care.

So there's God's providence over the natural world, very briefly. Now we're going to move

to the book of Genesis and to the story of Joseph. But before we do that, we're just going to pause

momentarily because we need to recognize whenever we're thinking about any of the doctrines of God,

that there is an element of mystery involved. There is mystery connected to God's providence,

and so we need to approach it with humility. Perhaps one way to think about it is to think about

the relationship between parents and children. Children will often have lots of questions, lots of

requests. Why can't I have sweets for breakfast? Why can't I have unlimited screen time? Why is it a bad

idea to ride my bike with my eyes closed? And many, many others. That's what children do. But what

should parents have? Parents should have, should have, always, but we should have more wisdom,

more understanding, a broader perspective on the world. So we understand why certain things are bad,

and certain things are good and better. Certain things are safe, and certain things are dangerous.

And so children are then invited to trust their parents who have a greater knowledge of how the

world works. Sounds very ideal, doesn't it? Well, that's how it's supposed to work. And mystery,

providence and mystery, many questions are prompted when we think about God's providence.

If God controls actions and decisions, does that make me just a robot? If God controls actions and

decisions, well, how can I be held accountable? Or how can God be holy and sinless,

and have providence over sinful actions? But how can God not be the author who's responsible for that

sin? So there's some really big and deep and complex questions associated with the doctrine of

providence. And it requires us to come towards it with humility and with faith, to be able to hear the

the clear teaching of the Bible, but with a readiness to live with the tensions that we sometimes are going

to discover, and to be able to trust the character of God and the character of his word. So we'll see a little

of that together now as we think about the story of Joseph. So we're going to begin thinking about how the

story of Joseph demonstrates God's providence over human actions and human decisions. Now the story of

Joseph is a great place to go for thinking about God's providence. We see God at work in so many

different ways, directing lives and decisions and actions and circumstances towards his saving purposes

for his covenant family. For the family of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, we see God at work. Now we're going to be in

Genesis 39 together for a few moments, which in a sense takes us to the middle of Joseph's story.

So his brothers by this stage have sold him as a slave to traders. He's ended up in Egypt where he's been

sold to this man called Potiphar. And so Genesis 39, let's read verses 2 to 5 and watch out for our key word,

which is the word favor. Actually we'll read verse 1 to 5, won't we? Yes. Now Joseph had been taken down to

Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from

the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered and he lived in

the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave

him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor, there's our word, in his eyes and became his

attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household and he entrusted to his care everything

he owned. From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord

blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything

Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field.

Favor. What does that mean in this context? It means that God is acting on the heart and the will

and the mind of this Egyptian wealthy man called Potiphar so that Joseph the slave becomes head of

the household. Now we're familiar with the story perhaps and maybe that doesn't surprise us because

we already know the direction it's going. But isn't that remarkable that you would buy someone as a

slave and very quickly elevate him to be just below yourself in prominence?

Favor. We see favor again at the end of the chapter so things turn in a different direction in Potiphar's

house. He's falsely accused by Potiphar's wife and is thrown into prison and let's now turn our attention

towards the end of the chapter. Verse 20 to 22. It says where he's in the king's prison.

But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him. He showed him kindness and granted him

favor. There's a word again. In the eyes of the prison warder. So the warder put Joseph in charge of all those

held in charge of the prison. He was held in charge of the prison. He was held in charge of the prison.

And he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything

under Joseph's care because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

So there's that word favor again. Potiphar has wrongly treated Joseph, but the Lord was with

Joseph. And again, the Lord is bringing his favor to bear so that this prison guard acts in the same way

as Potiphar. And again, doesn't it strike us as surprising that a prisoner becomes in charge of the

prison? That a prisoner would be entrusted with that level of responsibility? It's the favor of God

in display because God is with Joseph. Now we're not done with seeing this idea of God's favor in

Joseph's life. He is in the prison. A couple of people who work for the Pharaoh come into the prison.

They have some dreams. One gets promoted back to his job again. And Joseph says, remember me when you get

your job again, and instead he gets forgotten. So he's there in prison for two more years. Then Pharaoh

has a dream and Joseph is summoned. And at the end of that chapter, chapter 41, verse 41 to 43, we read,

So Pharaoh said to Joseph, I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh took a signet

ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold

chain around his neck. He made him ride in a chariot as his second in command. And people shouted before

him, make way. Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. How do we explain that kind of

turnaround? Well, again, to help us, we can think about how Stephen in Acts chapter 7 thought about

Acts 7 · chapter mention

this turnaround. Stephen said, God rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom

before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. God is turning

the hearts and the minds and the hearts and the minds and the wills of an Egyptian rich man, an Egyptian

prison officer, and the Egyptian king Pharaoh, so that his purposes come to pass. Now each of them,

they are acting, they are deciding, but God is fully decisive. His are the plans that come to pass.

God rules over the thoughts, the directions, the actions of not just of his people, but of all people.

Because remember, these are Egyptians.

Three responses as we consider God's providence over human actions. The first is that of humility.

From this we go to, for this we go to James chapter 4 verse 15. So James is talking about people making

James 4:15

their plans in their business and not to boast and project forward about how things are going to go in

the future. James says, you ought to say, if it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.

We are not to boast. We are not to hold tightly to our plans, thinking so long as our plan is made

sufficiently robustly enough, it's bound to happen. As the people of God, we are encouraged and invited

to see God over our family, our work, our future plans, and to have the necessary humility that comes

with that, that comes with our planning. That's one response. Another response is that we're invited

to have courage. For here we can go to Romans 8 and verse 31, where Paul says, if God is for us,

who can be against us? And within that wonderful chapter of Romans 8, what's the source of our trust

is the people of God? It's in the all-powerful God of providence who is for his people. It's this God

who says nothing can separate us from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. And so we're invited to

take heart and to have courage, even if it means suffering for our faith, even if it means being

persecuted for our faith. If God is for us, who can be against us? And this reality should also provoke us

towards worship as well. As we see it being worked out in the gospel, so in Acts chapter 2, Peter, as he

Acts 2 · chapter mention

preaches at Pentecost, verse 23, Jesus was handed over to you by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge.

And he draws attention to the crowds that you had your wicked designs in wanting to kill Jesus,

but God has had his eternal purposes, and those purposes came to fulfillment. God controlled the

events of the gospel so that Jesus could be your savior and mine. God was over human acting and deciding

so that in the fullness of God's time, Jesus would die on the cross to take our sin to bring us to God.

Now, we need to move towards God's providence over sinful human actions. And here is where we need to

take, I think, the greatest care. We will see it in Scripture, but we need to be careful in how we handle it.

I came across a very helpful, well, for me anyway, it was a helpful illustration from John Piper again.

He was talking about how scientists have found a way to handle radioactive uranium.

And they can handle that uranium so as to create useful energy without themselves being contaminated by the radiation.

And Piper says if people can figure that out,

then we begin to understand how much more

We can see it here in the Joseph story.

Now, how is that brought out in the story of Joseph?

So let's go back to the beginning of Joseph's story.

And what do we find? We find multiple sin there, don't we?

We find favoritism from his father.

That's wrong.

We find the sin of hatred among his brothers.

We find the sin of jealousy

of the brothers. We find them plotting

murder and then in their greed

plotting to sell Joseph as a slave.

All of those are sinful actions.

Even when he gets himself to, when he is taken to Egypt,

we find that he has lied about, he's sinned against,

he has forgotten, promises are broken.

After 13 years,

slave and prisoner,

from the beginning of the story into Egypt

until he takes power,

and then the brothers come to Egypt for food.

Remember, there's the global famine,

people coming from all over to Egypt

because Joseph has been given wisdom

to know how to handle the famine.

And so his brothers come.

And in chapter 45,

we find when Joseph finally reveals himself

to his brothers.

And the section that we want to look at here

is chapter 45 from verse 4 to verse 8

Isaiah 45 · chapter mention

to see Joseph's understanding of what was going on.

Then Joseph said to his brothers,

come close to me.

When they had done so, he said,

I am your brother Joseph,

the one you sold into Egypt,

and now do not be distressed

and do not be angry with yourselves

for selling me here

because it was to save lives

that God sent me ahead of you.

For two years now,

there has been famine in the land

and for the next five years,

there will be no plowing and reaping.

But God sent me ahead of you

to preserve for you a remnant on earth

and to save your lives

by a great deliverer,

by a great deliverance.

So then,

it was not you who sent me here,

but God.

He made me father to Pharaoh,

lord of his entire household

and ruler of Egypt.

Now, did you notice

three times

Joseph declares,

God sent me.

He says to the brothers,

you sold me,

but God sent me.

And what's he saying in that?

He's saying that above their evil,

sinful plans

stood

the Lord God.

And with them,

they were motivated by hatred

and greed,

but God had his purposes

of salvation

and love.

God is able

to work

even through

those sinful human actions

in order to bring about

his great deliverance.

It's an idea

that's repeated

in a sense

the key verse

towards the end

of the Joseph story.

We can read Genesis 50,

we'll read verse 19

and then verse 20.

Again,

so this is after

their father Jacob dies

and the brothers are scared,

they're thinking,

well now,

Joseph's going to take

his revenge.

But Joseph said to them,

don't be afraid.

Am I in the place of God?

You intended to harm me,

but God

intended it for good

to accomplish

what is now being done,

the saving

of many lives.

Joseph says to his brothers,

you,

you meant evil

against me,

but God,

God meant your evil

for good.

God meant your evil

for the saving

of many lives,

for the keeping

of his promises,

for continuing

the plan

of salvation.

And so the story

of Joseph

is reminding us

of the extent

of God's providence,

that God has these

eternal purposes

that will not change

when it comes to salvation,

and those purposes

can take in billions

of factors,

including

the sinful

actions of human

beings like us

as he works

out his salvation.

And remember,

that does not make him

the author of sin,

does not make him

accountable for sin,

but it says he is

wise enough

to work through

that sinful

action.

Again,

we hear this

from the apostles

as they begin

to share the gospel

in the book of Acts.

Again,

this is Peter,

Acts chapter 4,

Acts 4:10–12

verses 10 to 12.

It is by the name

of Jesus Christ

of Nazareth,

whom you crucified.

Now,

there's an evil,

sinful action,

enemies of Jesus

plotted to crucify him.

By the name

of Jesus

of Nazareth,

whom you crucified,

but whom God

raised from the dead,

their saving good,

that this man

stands before you healed.

Jesus

is the stone

you builders

rejected.

It's a wicked

thing to reject

God's Savior.

But that Jesus

who they rejected

has become

the cornerstone.

He is the

foundation

of

God's

kingdom.

Good purpose

from their

sinful actions.

Salvation

is found

in no one

else,

for there's

no other name

under heaven

given to mankind

by which we

must be

saved.

The greatest

good in all

human history,

the salvation

of sinners,

is achieved

through the

greatest evil

in all

history,

the killing

of the innocent,

righteous son

of God.

God's

and that

comes to

pass

by God's

providence.

As we

conclude

our thoughts,

four ways

to live

under the

providence

of God.

The first,

and we've already

said it,

is it calls us

to live with

humility,

to remember,

Psalm 31,

Psalms 31:15

verse 15,

our times

are in

God's hands.

Humility

acknowledges

his right to

govern as

he chooses,

acknowledges

that his plans

are the ones

that will come

to pass.

trust.

We're also

invited to

live with

trust

when we

think about

the providence

of God

because this

is our

father.

This is our

father's world

that we are

thinking of

and that we

are living

in.

God has

a special

care for

his church

and for

his children

and we

need to

take comfort

in that.

When all

we can see

is chaos

and confusion,

God still

sees with

clarity.

He knows

what he is

doing.

He is still

on the

throne.

And there

is a freedom

in accepting

our limits

and learning

to trust

God's

character

when we

can't

understand

or see

in the

moment

what he

is doing.

And I

think when

we think

about the

providence

of God

we're also

invited to

live with

praise,

to live

with our

eyes open

to the

reality that

at every

moment,

every

conversation,

every turn

in our

lives is

being directed

and governed

by God.

Our lives

are being

sustained

by God.

It's a

source for

worship.

And there's

also a

source of

thankfulness

as we

recognize that

in God's

wise providence

our failures

are not

final.

our God

is wise

enough

to work

good

even out

of our

sinful

actions.

Not that

he would

ever

encourage

us to

sin

because

God

is

holy

and he

hates

sin

but he's

so

wise

that he's

able to

take up

our sinful

actions

to achieve

ultimate

and lasting

good.

And

too,

when you

think about

the providence

of God

it's an

encouragement

for us

to pray.

In our

community

groups we'll

be thinking

along these

lines.

The God

of providence,

the God

who governs

everything,

chooses

to work

through his

people's

prayers.

In his

wisdom

our prayers

are instruments

achieving

God's

purposes.

That's a

motivation to

pray.

God

in his

providence

has placed

you in

the family

that you're

in,

in the

friendship

group that

you're in,

in the

community

that you

live in,

in the

workplace

that you

find yourself

in,

by his

design

so that

we can

pray.

So that

we can

pray for

others.

Knowing

that God

works

through

the prayers

of his

people.

Praying

his

saving

good,

his

blessing

would

flow

in the

lives

of

many.

Back to

my 2020

Christmas

card.

This

lady

Angela,

she didn't

know,

walking the

streets of

Edinburgh that

morning,

that that would

become,

in God's

providence,

the pathway

to hope

for her.

But praise

God,

he did.

the person

who welcomed

Angela

didn't know

her story,

had no

idea what

a simple

welcome

would do,

but God

did.

We

couldn't

know that

the simple

act of

praying for

someone who

was in

distress and

giving a

little bit

of money

and pointing

someone to

a source

of help

would lead

to recovery,

but God

did.

We

couldn't

know that

a snowball

of God's

mercy

would begin

from this

place,

but God

did,

because we

have a God

of providence

who plans

and who

directs

our steps,

our lives,

our stories.

The providence

of God isn't

something to

philosophize

over,

it's something

that should

lead us

to praise.

We'll finish

with a quote

from B.B.

Warfield,

a firm

faith in

the universal

providence

of God

is the

solution

to all

earthly

troubles.

Let's

pray

together.

Lords,

our God,

we thank

you that

you are the

God with

universal

providence,

that you

are controlling,

governing,

ruling,

sustaining,

not just

partially,

but totally,

not just

some of

our lives,

but all

of our

lives.

We thank

you for

the hope

that we

can find

when we

recognize

your character,

that you

are good

and that

you are

trustworthy.

Lord,

we ask

that for

those of

us who

are Christians,

that we

would rest

in your

fatherly

care over

us,

to be

glad that

we are

in your

hands and

not in

our own,

that we

be glad

that we're

not

suffering to

the winds

of fate

and chance,

but our

steps are

being planned.

Lord,

for any

tonight who

aren't

Christians,

may you

show them

your

goodness,

even in

bringing them

here this

evening,

to consider

your

control

and your

controlling

all history

so that in

your right

time,

Jesus would

come as

the Savior

we all

need.

Lord,

may you

cause each

one of us

to be

looking to

him with

faith.

And we

ask too

that you'd

help us

to pray

as we

realize that

you have

deliberately

chosen

to place

us exactly

where we

are,

that we

would want

to be

instruments

of your

blessing

to the

people

around us.

Help us,

we pray,

in Jesus'

name.

Amen.

So we

will sing

a hymn to

close,

Christ is

mine

forevermore,

and then,

if you

can,

stick around

for 10

or 15

minutes,

and we'll

have our

discussion

groups.

So let's

stand together

and sing.

Let's

stand together

and sing.

Let's

stand together

and sing.