Tuesday 05 January 2021
.. for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. (vs 4-5)
Background
I crochet and last year was a busy one for me as I had several relatives and friends give birth and I was busy hooking baby blankets for the new arrivals. My Facebook page was also busy with pictures of the babies as they moved from the closed eyes stage to learning to roll and stand and then to that strange, wide-based, lumbering walk that we all start with!
Their parents were naturally excited and wanted to share each new development with everyone they met. They watched in eager anticipation of their little one's next stage: their first word, first independent step – and so on (some parents did overshare a little!).
In a similar way, our writer to the young Church at Colossus is excited by its growth and its people's developing faith. He wants to encourage them as they learn and live their faith. He wants them to trust in what is yet to be so that they journey with God looking forward to more to come while learning what it is to be followers of Jesus in the here and now.
It reminds me of those new parents and the expectation and hope they hold for their babies. God looks at us with the same hope and expectation and, while we are still learning and exploring and occasionally staggering forward in our faith, we are encouraged to trust in God who is with us and delights as we learn and grow.
To Ponder:
- Have there been people around you who have encouraged your exploration and journey of faith?
- In difficult times have you been aware of God with you – and what did that mean to you?