We had a great start to our new study of 1 and 2 Thessalonians. Aaron and I are both excited about the opportunity to teach through these 2 letters.
During LG, we spent a lot of time on Saturday reviewing the introduction to the new church in Thessalonica and the purpose, places, people, and dates.
Our study
would make a great movie. We have a story of HOPE which includes Jewish/Christian
converts, Greek converts, mobs, Jason hiding people, Paul and Silas having to
escape out of town, Timothy meeting with the new believers and reporting to
Paul, and locations such as Thessalonica, Corinth, Lystra, and Philippi.
We have the same hope as these new followers of God the Son. We get to live with hope (anticipation, expectation, and confidence) and be linked by community.
The
challenge for the week is to read 1 Thessalonians again, but think about the
hope the new followers have even through the trials, confusion, persecution,
being made fun of, taken to jail, and losing contact with their leader.
Think about
this quote from Martin Luther King, Jr (and possibly others before him):
I may not be
the man I want to be;
I may not be
the man I ought to be; I may not be the man I could be;
I may not be the man I one day will be;
but praise God, I’m not the man I once was . . .
and that makes all the difference.
Be
intentional this week.
Travis
