Greetings Sun City Christian Church.

It is good to be back home from vacation and praising God together with you sin this season of Lent. Our theme for this season is “Wandering Heart: figuring out faith with Peter.” With the help and wisdom of A Sanctified Art worship resources, we are focusing on the life and faith of one of Jesus’ most famous disciples.

In Peter, we see a person who is both steadfast and unsteady, a dear friend and a betrayer, a follower and a wanderer. In Peter, we often see ourselves. By following Peter’s journey, we watch the story of Jesus unfold through the eyes of a very normal human trying to figure it all out- just like us.

The goal of this series is to affirm that faith is a constant journey of steadfast pursuit, one that ebbs and flows. That wandering is exploration, not necessarily distance from God. We want to affirm the ways Peter keeps going: he drops his nets, he walks on water, he runs to the empty tomb, he swims to shore to meet the risen Christ. He keeps searching and yearning and loving, even after missteps or mistakes.

Ultimately, in Peter’s story, we are reminded that God loves imperfect people—in fact, time and again, that’s precisely who God claims and calls. This Lent, we will look for ourselves in the stepping stones of Peter’s story. We will reflect on the stages of our own faith journeys as well as who and what has shaped us along the way. As we wander, let us tune our hearts to sing God’s grace. May we rest in streams of mercy, never ceasing.

As we connect the theme phrase, “Praise the mount” from the hymn, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing to our featured text of Matthew 16:23-30, we will think about the proclamations of faith that we are willing to make. It is easy to be hesitant when talking about our faith, but together in our act of worship we will find the comfort necessary for us to find strength in our convictions and proclaim Jesus who we know him to be.

See you Sunday,
Brett