Today we’ll learn that God’s providence is often behind things that seem coincidental in our lives.

Today we’ll learn that God’s providence is often behind things that seem coincidental in our lives.

Today, I want to talk with you about Christ as our Healer. Let me share a couple of true stories with you. The first story is about a woman named Sue that I was friends with at my church in Chico. Sue discovered a lump in her breast. Second story is our friend Steve Luster, a good friend at re:new and our head greeter.

I don’t have a problem with being busy. You look at an average day of Jesus’ life; it was probably busier than most of ours. However, it also contained margin, balance, and silence. The problem I have is that we make our business and our productivity into our identity. The problem I have is that we allow our business, title, and job become the thing that gives us value. We are willing to sacrifice relationships in pursuit of a career. When this happens, the result is going to be exhaustion… burnout.

did you also know that when you grow in your intimacy with God, you also make yourself vulnerable as well? Wait, what? You might be thinking, “I thought the closer we got to God the more protected we were. I thought if I walked close with God, he would protect me from bad things and hard things. I thought if a person followed Jesus closely bad things won’t happen to good people.”

Not so! In fact, if you have determined to invest your life in God and cultivate an intimacy with the Almighty, you’re actually asking for it.

Some have called this the “Peril Principle.”

Today, we pick up in Ruth chapter 2 and see how God takes care of those who trust Him, even if it comes in unexpected ways.

In our text this morning, we are reminded that God is our provider and protector.

If you’ve ever been deeply grieved or despairing, you know it’s dark down there. It’s tough to see how you’ll make it one more moment, let alone one more day. Naomi needs what we all need in the midst of prolonged trials: hope. God is a God of providence, and He offers hope at just the right moment we need it most in our lives. Today, I want to show you three ways God works to supply hope to us in times when life seems dark and foreboding. 

Today we begin a new series I’ve really been looking forward to! We are going to spend the next weeks leading up to the holidays investigating the book of Ruth in a series I’m calling Profound Provision! This series is all about God’s faithful and profound provision for us in our lives…even in the face of foolish choices, feeble faith, and imperfect lives.  

Welcome back to the third and final session of our Vision Refresh series. Today, I want to talk about how our local and global efforts are resourced.