Wesley Foundation at MSU

Is it all hevel? Or is there more to the story?

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11. Hevel is our current reality, but it doesn't have to be our destiny. What if it's true that we're made for beauty and eternity instead of meaninglessness? 

A study of Ecclesiastes-Where can we find joy in a world filled with uncertainty? 

John 20:19-22 "When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit." 

From the very start of his ministry, Jesus is clear about his focus. Jesus is obsessed with, focused on, oriented around the huge idea of the Kingdom of God. When we follow Jesus, his focus becomes our focus...his obsession becomes our obsession...his priority becomes our priority. But what is the Kingdom? How does someone like me get in? And what do I do when I'm part of the Kingdom of God?

Mark 3:13-15 With Jesus. Jesus radically wants to be with you. His love for you knows no boundaries and his desire for a relationship with you has no limits. Jesus comes to be with you so you can be with him. 

Has God ever called you to something that you've never done before?  It can be intimidating because the unknown is scary.   It can feel overwhelming because you may doubt yourself and your abilities.  Let's take a lesson from Joshua and his calling while also looking for wisdom on what to do when we're on a road we've never been on before by looking at what God tells the Israelites to do through Joshua.  

Isaiah 59:8 paints us well by saying, "They don't know where to find peace."  Though this was written about a different people group, Isaiah's words speak to the landscape of our culture today.  Within so much hate and division alongside worry and fear, we are people in need of peace.  We long for more wholeness and peace because we were made from wholeness and peace.

Made for more: relationships.  One area of life where we often experience less than we're made for is our relationships.  All kinds of relationships, from family and friends to romance and roommates.  Created in God's image, we have the capacity for the same two adjectives that describe God's relationships -- holy and love -- to describe our relationships.  When it comes to relationships, what are your adjectives? 

Made For More: Meaning, Connection and Wholeness.  We long for more because we're made for more.  the Bible describes us human creatures as being made in the image of God.  That explains a w hole lot about us.  It explains our Creator's original design for us, and it explains our longings, like why we ache for a purpose, why we crave connection with others, and why we hunger for wholeness.  This image of God thing means that we're made for more than we're probably experiencing.  It means we're made for a meaningful purpose, connected relationships, and satisfying wholeness.