16 Jun God can use even you!
16 June 2026
Where did Winter go That beautiful sunshine & milder than expected weather is a surprise blessing…but it really is supposed to be colder than this. I have an acquaintance in town who told me she & her boyfriend were supposed to head off into the Snowys for a ski weekend…she’s never skied before…hmmm…I reckon they’ll have to put that off for a few weeks. Unless they’d rather just enjoy the hiking…which I find enjoyable.
Speaking of enjoyable…I mentioned Sunday that the more I read through the Bible each year, year after year, the more I find in the pages of both Old & New Testaments that makes me sit up & take notice…& frequently it’s something that feels small or at least not as big as say the parting of the Red Sea or the raising of Lazarus. For instance, I’ve really enjoyed reading 1 & 2 Chronicles this year.
The Jewish compilation of what we call the “Old Testament,” the Hebrew Bible, actually puts Chronicles in the same section as Psalms, Proverbs, Job, & Ecclesiastes…“the Writings.” The Chronicles are the very last books in the Hebrew Bible and aren’t presented as history, but what scholars often call “history with an agenda.” I think we’d say “spin.” That’s not a bad thing really, it just is something to note. What is especially notable is that Chronicles is mostly a retelling of the dynasty of King David, as an idealized king, chosen by God to establish his people around worship in the Promised Land in God’s favoured city of Jerusalem where David’s son Solomon will build the Temple where God will dwell among his people. The story has the same tragic flow to it, the nations fall to Assyria & Babylon because of the unfaithfulness of their kings & the people, but David & the faithful kings are held up as heroes. Hezekiah is a descendant of David who is one of the exemplars of faithfulness who strives to drive the pagan worship practices out from among God’s people, who too often fall prey to the worship practices of their pagan national neighbours.
Hezekiah rules in Judah in the south while Israel, the northern separated part of God’s people, falls to Assyria. So he has seen firsthand the cost of disobedience. He is the son of an unfaithful king & from the outset of taking the throne begins reversing the policies & practices of his father. His story beings in 2 Chronicles 29:1, “Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he became the king of Judah, & he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah. He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestor David had done. In the very first month of the first year of his reign, Hezekiah reopened the doors of the Temple of the Lord & repaired them.” Hezekiah begins by restoring the Temple to its central role in the life & worship of God’s people.
Things go well & the nation responds to his leadership. By the end of that chapter we read this: So the Temple of the Lord was restored to service. And Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced because of what God had done for the people, for everything had been accomplished so quickly. – 2 Chronicles 29:36 Note that last underlined sentence. As we operate according to God’s purposes God operates on his timeline. Judah has begun the process of national repentance from the Palace to the Temple to the people, & God blesses their work even more rapidly than they expected. I’ll say it again… As we operate according to God’s purposes God operates on his timeline. What God seeks is hearts responsive to his commands & his purposes in this world. When that’s us, God is not restricted by human limits. Think about that when you come to worship this weekend…that may set the whole tone for our celebrations.
For instance…
- Saturday June 20th – We have the privilege of hosting a Regional Gathering for our gospel co-workers in the CrossLink Christian Network. From about 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. we’ll have 20 or so people from around NSW gathered to pray, worship, learn & catch God’s vision for his church moving into the next years of life together as a Network. We’ve been asked to provide morning tea, lunch & afternoon tea. “Thank you!” Your response has been overwhelming. If you can come for part of the day, please do & make some new friends! But please tell Sue if you’re coming so we can make appropriate catering arrangements. Some of our guests will be staying over & worshipping with us on Sunday the 21st which is our 13thbirthday! God is so good & he’s so good through you! And it looks like he isn’t finished yet!
- Sunday June 21st – our worship & teaching theme this week: What if God really could…Use even You? What are your qualifications? Every task, vocation, or role has some sort of “minimum certification” it seems. You can’t just go to work any more, you have to have some Certificate, Degree, License, or Recognition of Prior Learning. Gideon may seem like an unlikely person for God to use. He is hiding, fearful, uncertain, & abounding in excuses. But we discover that God is unconcerned about our qualifications & very concerned that we answer his call to serve his purposes. The same God who worked through Gideon will work through even you. God doesn’t call you to be big, bold, or brave; He calls you to carry out his purposes. Everything else comes from him.
- DON’T FORGET…Sunday is a Morning Tea Sunday too! We especially want to show our guests what a Birthday Party looks like!
Looking forward to seeing you all Sunday!
John
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