Providence Presbyterian Church - Powdersville SC

Hope means to keep living amid desperation and to keep humming in the darkness. Hope knows that there is love, it is trust in tomorrow, and it is falling asleep and waking again when the sun rises. In the midst of a gale at sea, it is to discover land. In the eyes of another it is to see that you are understood…as long as there is still hope there will also be prayer…and you will be held in God’s hands. – Henri J. Nouwen

We had our high school reunion last month and it was such fun! A blast would be a better word. Why would this group, who has held together for so many years in fast and loyal friendship, still get together and laugh, share their stories of where they are and where they still hope to go? Yes, Parker High School had some outstanding graduates that year – many went to college, many made successful careers, many became ministers in various faith communities, and many were still their wonderful, fun-loving, outgoing selves – full of hope and anxiously awaiting what was to come next in their lives….with faith that it would be good,

Hope – As I looked into the faces that I grew up with and we talked about what we had hoped for back in high school…..all of us did not achieve the dreams and hopes that we had – the ones that were captured under those innocent faces of our yearbook of the 50’s. However, there was still that beautiful countenance on many of their faces despite hardships, failures, that were personal, job-related, or life changing, there was still that gleam of hope and the fragile string of that golden thread is woven through many of our lives today and keeps us connected for strength and love.

Providence is in a place of hope with new leadership that has come to us. We were in church Sunday afternoon for the Commissioning Service of Pastor Drew. We heard the Word read and spoken and the charges made to Drew to support our church and its people and the charges made to us, as a congregation, that we would be equally supportive of him. It was a beautiful service and a wonderful reception followed where fellowship abounded among those who were there. As we came home, Lewis and I talked of the hope we had when we came first to Providence – pioneering spirits of hope that we could actually be a part of a new church development. This hope was realized and we are now an established church with many demands and frustrations. However, this is God’s church – this church was not placed in this town by chance – it was placed in this town by God, the foundation of hope and promise. He is the One who guaranteed the land would be here – wherever that was in Powdersville, and He is the One who guaranteed that this was His place we would come to worship, build relationships, plan mission work and projects, and become the place He wants for us. We hope we can be all that God desires us to be in return for the many blessings He has given to us.

As we begin this autumn season, when you pray with hope, you may still ask for concrete things like health, happiness, a better salary, that we can make a commitment to this church to grow and support it to the next place God wants us to be, even in the scary times we find ourselves living. If we pray for faith, hope, love, freedom, happiness, and humility without making them concrete in the nitty-gritty of daily life, we may not be involving God in our prayers for this real life He wants us to live.

Just as we renewed hope and commitment at our reunion, we renew hope and commitment each day with our family, loved ones near and far, friends, our church, and our pastor and Session who lead this church. We then are praying for the hope that will give us freedom and allow us to look realistically at life without feeling depressed, dejected, or over-whelmed. Our numerous requests simply become the concrete way of saying that we trust in the fullness of God’s goodness. Whenever we pray with hope, we put our lives in the hands of God. Fear and anxiety fade away, and everything we are given and everything we are denied is nothing but a finger pointing out the direction of God’s hidden promise - that one day we shall understand and taste fully the grace and love of God.

As you enter this autumn and this season of thanksgiving, keep hope and thankfulness at the forefront of all that you pray for – not only in your personal lives and homes, but for our church and its life as well.

Grace and peace, Becky