Dear Brothers and Sisters,

You are invited to come to the Wednesday evening prayer meeting and pray. (7:00 PM LHF time, Wed., Nov. 1, 2000)

Have you ever considered it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you've faced many kinds of trials? Have you ever considered it pure joy because you knew that the purpose of the trials was to test your faith? Have ever considered it pure joy when you faced many kinds of trials because you knew that the testing of your faith teaches you to persevere? Have you ever considered it pure joy when you faced many kinds of trials because you knew that God loves you and wants you to be mature and complete, not lacking anything and that that is his purpose in letting you be tested?

On the other hand, have you ever thought that we (LHF) must be doing something wrong because we seem to be under a curse of some sort? People struggle with doubt and depression and various physical problems. There seem to be unresolved conflicts and many who have been part of our fellowship for years leave and go elsewhere with various criticisms of the way we do things -- or, sometimes without giving a specific reason.

And what do you make of the fact that, over the years, many people have looked at us from the outside (after, maybe, visiting or coming to a wedding) and have said that we are a wonderful church, full of love?

I've asked these questions from time to time for years and can't say that I have a definitive answer. But -- we are not sinning grossly. We aren't. We aren't guilty of the sins listed under the curses in Deuteronomy chapter 27. (In fact, we are not under the law at all, but under God's grace through the blood of Jesus.) We are also not guilty of the gross self-centeredness and selfishness that Paul described 1 Cor. 11, which was the reason he gave that some of them were sick and some had fallen asleep. We, in fact, do love each other very much. But this is what our situation is. We are not yet "mature and complete, not lacking in anything."

Our creator and redeemer has a definite purpose for trials that test our faith. It's not to satisfy his justice through our punishment. He has already satisfied his justice through the cross. His purpose is not to punish us for our sin. His purpose is, rather, for us to be just like him -- mature and complete, not lacking in anything.

One of the most important things we can learn through trials is to persevere in prayer. God wants us to pray. (Bring your requests to him with thanksgiving.) Come and lets pray for each other and for all the church and rejoice that we are God's children and that he loves us. Let's pray for power through God's Spirit to know how great the love of Jesus Christ is and to be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Love in Christ,
Dean