Hi Newport Church Family,
We hope that you are in good health and spirit and experiencing God’s presence and favor in ever increasing ways.
It’s graduation season, so a big congratulations to all graduating students and families, who have navigated a particularly difficult year of studies. We are praying for each one of you, believing that God will give you great hope, expectation and favor in this new season.
Every Season brings New Growth
God said to Noah, “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.”
This was God’s promise after the flood, and we are all beneficiaries of that promise.
With every season there are new opportunities to learn and grow. Just as each new school year brings new lessons, every season of life brings new lessons.
Seedtime, harvest, cold and heat all bring new experiences that we can learn from.
As we emerge from a season in which COVID-19 has been at the forefront of our conversation, what lessons have we learned that we can take with us into this new season?
What a great time to pause and reflect on what we have learned, so that we can come out of this season better and stronger as individuals and as a church.
The Call to Draw Closer to God
The song of Solomon, is a poem describing Solomon’s love for his bride while being allegory of God’s love for us, and our love for Him.
In his poem Solomon writes:
My beloved spoke, and said to me:
“Rise up, my love, my fair one,
And come away.
For lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of singing has come,
And the voice of the turtledove
Is heard in our land.
The fig tree puts forth her green figs,
And the vines with the tender grapes
Give a good smell.
Rise up, my love, my fair one,
And come away!
The winter is over, summer is here and God is calling us to draw closer to Him, and to know His Presence in ever great ways.
The Communion of Saints
In our church foyer the words of the Apostles Creed are framed on the wall.
These words are the words that frame what we believe as followers of Christ.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth;
I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic (universal) Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Over recent weeks I have been declaring this creed in my daily prayer and every time I do they cause faith to rise in my heart.
One declaration that has stood out to me in it’s relevance to this season is, “I believe in the communion of saints”.
My prayer, as we emerge from this winter season, is that our belief in the communion of saints, the gathering, corporate worship, presence of God’s people together, will not diminish but will increase.
The winter is over, summer is here and God is calling us to draw closer to Him and to each other through the communion of saints.
Let’s learn from the lessons of this last season, and draw closer to God and to each other, so that His Kingdom will come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Thank you for your Generosity
A big thank you to all those who contributed to our Miracle Offering, your generosity is making it possible for us to be present in our community and beyond as a hub of hope and faith.
If you were not able to give your offering yet, you may do so by clicking here.
Thank you for not only making a difference but being the difference!
We look forward to seeing you in our 11am service this Sunday either in person or online.
We will be taking communion together, believing for God to do what only He can do through the work of His Spirit, as we gather to worship and honor Him!
We love and appreciate you all greatly,
Pastor Jonathan & Dianne Wilson
Senior Pastors