Month of Prayer and Giving Day 22- Peace and Perseverance

“Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”
2 Peter 3: 14-18 ESV

Last Saturday afternoon I preach at the 175th anniversary of a church in a nearby town. In the message I called the small congregation to peace and perseverance.

This peace, I submitted – in light of the larger context of the chapter – was rooted in a confidence that God’s love for his people and his unlimited power guarantee that he will always keep his promises. Further, I stated that any delay in the fulfilment of those promises was owing to his patience and wisdom not to any defect in His promises. I concluded that section by avowing that all of God’s purposes would be finally and ultimately accomplished.
It is this peace that is the ground upon which we stand as we persevere – not losing our stability but growing in grace and knowledge for the glory of God. It seemed to go okay.

Chatteris Community Church is not 175 years old, but the same peace and perseverance is required in their ongoing work. Ask Robert Read. He’ll tell you.

The harvest in Chatteris is great. The labourers are few. The members are united in fellowship and committed to the work but there are not many of them in comparison to the need. They have sought to build up good relations with other churches in the area. But often those churches have their own challenges. They have on occasion been able to punch above their weight for a while with outside assistance from men within the Partnership. But that help is temporary. The need is ongoing.

Please pray that the Lord will continue to grant peace to His people in Chatteris. May their confidence in Christ be strengthened through the faithful ministry of His word and through tokens of His goodness they see from time to time. Please pray that they will persevere in doing good knowing that in due time they will reap – if they do not give up.

If you have ever thought of coming alongside a smaller church to offer encouragement and help, maybe this is a situation you should consider.

“Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.”
3 John 8 ESV

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