Fields United Methodist Church

Jesus Along the Way: Words of Grace and Hope.                    Pastor Tom Joyce

October 21, 2020

“I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak.”  Ezekiel 34:16

This season of pandemic for many of us has felt like wondering in the forest, not knowing which way to turn with every bend of the path. Most people are probably doing ok, but others feel helpless, alone, scared, and just plain lost. Even without the pandemic, we can feel lost, in the morass of healthcare, a changing culture, new technologies, and the general uncertainties along the way. But, there is hope because there is grace; you are not alone and never have been alone. God says, “I will seek the lost,” not “I might seek the lost,” “If I have time to look…” or “if they deserve seeking out maybe I will consider it.” God in no uncertain terms will seek you out, where ever you find yourself along the way, no matter which fork in the road you take God is with you; and not only finds you but will “bind your wounds,” taking away the sting of sin and healing your troubled soul. But God’s grace to you does not end there; God says, “I will strengthen the weak” for the journey ahead. Have you ever gone through a difficult time, thought about the path that was taken and realized that only by God’s grace you made it through? No matter how far off the path you have strayed, no matter how lost you feel, the love of God will never, never let you go, never not ever. That is a promise. Jesus said “I am with you always, even to the end of the age,” and that is a long time, an eternity. I heard that promise one morning many years ago, alone in my bed asking God’s forgiveness for being foolish in living; God sought me out, and bound the injuries of my heart resulting from straying away from the Word, and strengthened me for the day to come.  God, through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ loves you more than you will ever know, and will seek you out, will bring you home, will bind the wounds of your heart, and will strengthen you by faith. There is nothing too big that God cannot overcome, no sin so dire that can’t be forgiven for those who believe, and no path that can be taken where you cannot be found. That is God’s promise, to you, especially you, especially today.

Rev. Tom Joyce