James: Living Out Your Faith

Hey Fox Meadow Family, this is Pastor Tim. I have the privilege of preaching this Sunday and filling in for Pastor Rick. We will be taking a break from the book of Galatians and exploring James 1:1-18 together in a message called "Every Good and Perfect Gift." This passage is all about trials (1:2-12), temptations (1:13-15), and the character of God as it relates to these things (1:16-18).

As you can imagine, my wife and I experienced a difficult summer of trials. Early on, God directed me to the book of James, and the words found there really fed by soul. James 1:1-18 in particular helped clear up misconceptions about trials and temptations and gave me an interpretive lens through which I could better understand our experiences.

I came to love the way that James writes! It's so immensely practical and filled with vivid imagery from everyday life. He is mainly concerned with the connection between what we believe and how we live, and that is why I have chosen to summarize the book this way: "James: Living Out Your Faith."

We started going through James at ELEVATE (our youth group), and then I discovered that God had also placed James on the heart of Tracy Pollner, our men's group leader! I have really enjoyed our fruitful discussions the past few Tuesday mornings at men's group and the past few Wednesday nights at youth group.

Please pray for me as I prepare the message, and pray that the congregation would be receptive to what God has to say through me. "May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer" (Psalm 19:14).

Grace be with you,

Pastor Tim