This Week’s Message: Renewing My Covenant With God
Today was my 50th birthday and celebrating it at church with my church family felt extra special to share this milestone, it was incredibly meaningful to me.
It just so happens that the anniversary of my church’s planting also falls on my birthday which is a connection that is beautiful to me personally. This year was even more special as the entire church sang Happy Birthday to me while I was in the back booth, one of my spots where I regularly serve. Moments like this remind me of all the blessings and growth that my life has experienced since I started to attend Relate Church.
With each passing year, this particular celebration brings a different feeling of gratefulness to my birthday. It is more than just another number added to my age, it is a reminder of the faith and community that serves a higher purpose in my life.
Celebrating together with a church that is beautifully connected to one another and impacting a lot of people’s lives makes this day even more special. I am reminded of the goodness of God every Sunday morning.
The Sunday’s service was especially powerful focusing on the meaning of the covenant and renewing my own covenant with God. This felt like a very special moment for me especially as a woman who has been navigating life alone for many years. It was a reminder that God can any longing I may have for any relationship or future marriage.
Watch The Service: Covenant Renewal
Message Notes:
Psalm 90:12 NIV
Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 NIV
“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to them,”
declares the Lord.
“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
No longer will they teach their neighbour,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the Lord.
“For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.”
John 14:1-3 NIV
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”
A Covenant With God
I am no longer my own but yours.
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing,
put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you,
or laid aside for you,
exalted for you,
or brought low for you;
let me be full,
let me be empty,
let me have all things,
let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine and I am yours. So be it.
And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven.
Romans 12:1-2 NIV
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Matthew 11:28-29 NIV
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
My Sunday Thoughts: Reflecting On A Covenant With God
Establishing this covenant with God in church felt powerful, especially as a single woman aspiring to marry someone that shares my faith and follows God’s plan.
Once I said the words, “I am no longer my own but Yours,” I felt comforted. And in that moment, it was as though I placed all my hopes, my future and the timing of everything into His hands. Only to realize I have placed them all into the palm of Him.
This covenant reminded me that no matter what season of life I was in, I was always in the palm of God’s hand. It was like a new beginning, a re-adjustment of my heart to His purpose. I know that in the future, the Lord will place the right person in my life when the time is right, someone that’s willing to walk next to me in faith and honour the purpose which God has set for the both of us.
How I’m Living Out The Message This Week:
I will work on the statement, “I yield and accept all things to Your pleasure and disposal.” This week I will try to let go of something that is troubling me or something I wish to achieve. In this way I will offer it up for God to take charge.
My faith reminds me my life is completely put in God’s will. I will constantly place trust in Him, until He decides to give me an answer. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I will take a deep breath and rest. I will say a prayer, grab my journal and pen and write, “God, I trust You with this today,” and move on.
Every day I will work towards building my faith and trusting God’s plan.
Trusting God With The Week Ahead:
It’s not easy to head into a new week when you’re unsure you’re making the right choices for your life, yet there is hope because the only one I can lean on is God. I continually pray for HIs guidance and the direction of Holy Spirit to lead me in every moment.
My life up until this point has been a large amount of poor choices and for the first time in my life I’m truly walking that narrow road that is required of me.
I wish you a wonderful week ahead and hope this inspires you to reflect on your own church service.
Vera Friesen at My Sunday Thoughts