December 01, 2023 | Letters from the Lead Pastor by Christy Pittman
“… when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy…”
~ Titus 3:4-5b
As we approach the end of 2023, the year of kindness, I wonder what we have learned. Reflecting over the past 12 months, we learned that kindness is active and able, aware and advancing, amazing and astounding.
But I think the most important lesson is yet to come…. kindness is atoning. And this is the piece that we must not only learn but embrace, live, and know fully that Jesus is the perfect kindness of God. Jesus was sent to us to atone for our brokenness and reconcile us completely to God, eternally.
God showed us his goodness, his love, and his kindness when he sent his Son, wrapped in humanity, into the arms of a teenage girl. Jesus came to fulfill the promises of old, to guide us with peace, and ultimately to bring us salvation through his sacrifice. THAT is the kindest gesture the world has ever known.
So, as we walk through this advent season, and prepare our hearts for the coming of the kindness of Christ, let’s try to not forget the magnitude of the babe born into poverty who would rise to the throne of heaven via the devastation of the cross.
It is my prayer that this season we allow kindness to infiltrate our reality, so that it spills over and saturates every area of our lives, not because of any work of our own hands, but only because of the kindness of God.
Blessings through Advent,
Pastor Christy Pittman
