You are On Our Side

What exactly are we hoping for?

Jan 25, 2025

Hello. It’s me (Jen). I’d like to apologize for how long it’s been since I last wrote. And let’s be honest, you maybe didn’t notice because, in our world of notifications and emails and constant stimulus, it’s hard to know what isn’t there, in the sea of everything else.

Do you ever just get overwhelmed by it all and pull back? You have a thing on your to-do list that you want to do but it gets crowded out by everything you have to do. Or it’s a text or an email you haven’t responded to yet, and the days just keep passing, but you can’t bring yourself to answer.

Between my ABS work, a variety of travel, and still lots of transition on the personal front, I couldn’t make myself sit down and write one more thing. I thought about it … a lot.

But today, as I read my daily Scripture reading and reflected on this past week, I was so struck by some things in Colossians 1 that I had to share.

“So your faith and love are based on what you hope for, which is kept safe for you in heaven. Colossians 1:5b, GNT

Have you ever paused to consider what exactly you’re hoping for? If we were to really get down to the underlying hopes and fears that drive our view of the world, the people around us, our religious or non-religious beliefs, what does it say about what we really hope for?

Honestly, it’s pretty convicting, right? We could all benefit from a little more reflection on what drives our decisions and positions. When Paul speaks to the Church in Colossae, he’s highlighting that they’ve got their hope directed in the right place - they really understood that God “rescued us from the power of darkness and brought us safe into the kingdom of his dear Son, by whom we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven.” (Colossians 1:13-14).

I don’t care how together any of us think we are. We just aren’t. We ALL need rescuing from the power of darkness. You can see it all around us, even in the broken aspects of the Church. And if our plan, our hope, for how we get out of that brokenness is ourselves, it’s just not going to go well.

Christ was sent to be “the visible likeness of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). I want to put my hope in a future that looks like the one Christ described and lived. A Sermon on the Mount, loving God and loving others, putting others before myself kind of future. And I hope, for me and you, that we will all experience the gift that Paul hopes for the Colossians, that “your lives will produce all kinds of good deeds, and you will grow in your knowledge of God.” (Colossians 1:10b).

I’ve loved this song for a long time - You are On Our Side by Bethany Dillon. It’s an incredible reminder that Jesus came for all of us, to bring us out of the brokenness in every human heart. And in these days, if some of the lyrics feel controversial to you and you believe in Jesus, I’d encourage you to consider again - what are you hoping for?

Praises & Prayer Requests

Praise God that we’re rapidly approaching my one-year anniversary with ABS! What an incredible privilege it has been to be a part of this mission. I love it today even more than I loved it on my first day.

Praise God for how He has continued to help our family settle in to Philadelphia - we have a church home, an actual home, the girls are halfway through their school year. It’s all gone so quickly! And we’re even surviving our first winter - ha!

Praise God for the college opportunities Katie has in front of her. We’ll share more in the days ahead as she makes decisions, but I’m grateful that God has even given her an option that would cover all her costs - a beautiful replacement of what she gave up when we left Florida.

Thanks for joining us in prayer for these requests:

Pray that God would help me to lead well and faithfully in accordance with His Word and the example of Jesus.
Pray for Katie’s college decision.
Pray that Tim and I would find the space and energy to begin to invest in friendships locally. We continue to be so grateful for our friends back in Florida and all over the US, but we would also love to build a few close friendships here. It’s just been hard to find the time!

Thanks for praying with us! Let us know how we can pray for you!