watershed: a community church

Tonight I've found myself glued to the news, watching the toll of the multi-vehicle crashes on Interstate 39/90 near Madison. At least 2 people were killed and dozens more injured in the accidents blamed on foggy driving conditions. (See the story at Channel3000.com). The obvious damage and unexpectedness of it reminded me how unpredictable life can be. Lori and I immediately thought of our friends and family and of the many times we've traveled that stretch of road.

We thought of all of you and prayed for your safety and the safety of your families and friends, and I'm learning to not just watch the news, but to pray for everyone whose lives are being affected.

Please join me in praying for the rescue workers, those involved in the crashes, the loved ones who are waiting for news, the doctors and hospital staff, and for the wisdom of those who will have difficult decisions to make during these events.  If you would like us to pray for you, please send us a note via the Contact Us page and our prayer team will pray.

In the midst of life's unknowns, I'm so glad for the hope you and I can have. As a follower of Jesus I am confident that this life is not all there is and that when my life on earth is over, whenever that is, my Savior will greet me with arms wide open. This week we will all be presented with opportunities to give reason for the hope we have - as the topic of the crash comes up around Stoughton, in our workplaces and in conversations with people who have important questions about life and its meaning.

These moments are opportunities for you and me to speak into people's lives at a moment when they seeking answers. We don't have to have it all figured out, but we can join them in the search for answers, and share with them the hope we have found in knowing and following Jesus - hope for both this life and life after death. As a church family, please join me in praying for those who have been impacted by today's accidents and for those with whom we have an opportunity to share this week.

Psalm 62:6-7 says, "For He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken."

With hope,

Jeff

I recently came across this beautiful reflection on what it means to hope at Christmas, written by Jars of Clay frontman Dan Haseltine.

"But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." -Luke 2:19

Christmas comes each year with its dangerous invitation to hope. Yet for most of us this invitation feels more like an inconvenience and a burden. We see this burden from the very beginning, as Mary herself pondered the meaning of all these things. I wonder how many of her personal hopes and dreams were on the altar at this moment. Surely this was not the life that she had dreamed for herself, and who could possibly understand the road that she was about to walk? Who would go with her? As she began to consider all that she would lose along this journey the invitation to hope must have felt callous and far-fetched.

If you are like me this is where most of my adult Christmas' have been spent, burdened and heavy under the Hope that promises much but asks for everything along the way. Maybe this is your story this year, maybe your losses have been deep and painful. Maybe you stand in the reality of every Christmas from now on being a bitter reminder of those that are no longer with you, and things that have been lost along the way. If this is you take courage from Mary who somehow found a way to move from peep pondering and introspection to singing. Somewhere along the road the question of her life ceased to become "If you knew me and love me God how could you ask this of me" to "God who do you see when you look at me?" Somewhere along the way her hope was unfettered to all those good things that she had hoped her life would be and became anchored to God's hopes for her.

"For he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed," -Luke 2:48

Where do you need hope this Christmas?  How can we be a portrait of hope to the Stoughton community?