"Our Gracious God!"

"The Lord was gracious unto them, and had Compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast He them from His presence as yet." 2 Kings 13:23

Thoughts from Pastor's Message... 
As I read the Scriptures regarding Moses, the children of Israel; I am amazed at what I see. Here was a nation of God's people, favored by God above all the peoples of the earth, and yet they continued to go against God. In our Congregational Scripture Reading today, we note that while they were disobedient, and actually shameful in attributing the great Exodus from bondage to the molten calf, it makes me ponder the graciousness of our God. It also reminds me of God's children in America. We are a nation founded on Godly principles; but the Godliness of our nation is fastly losing its commitment to God and His Holy Son, Jesus Christ. Our nation is built on sacrifice: God's Son sacrificed for our eternal existence and the forefathers of our nation sacrificed themselves as they signed the Declaration of Independence, which signing brought about our freedom as a nation. God dealt with the nations of the Old Testament as they refused to obey Him. God always deals with rebellion. Yet, as we read the Scriptures of God's dealings with His children, we hear over and over: He is a gracious God! What does gracious mean to us? There are several statements in Webster's Dictionary; the very first being: "Godly!" Gracious is an attribute of our God. "Graceful" is next, not only are we talking about how we conduct ourselves, but "Grace" is part of our Liberty in Christ. As the definitions go on we find: "Merciful, Compassionate!": God continues to be gracious, compassionate, and merciful toward America. But, never let us forget the sacrifices that have been made lest judgment be the portion of a nation that turns its back on our gracious God! We see the graciousness of Christ as He speaks to Peter and tells him, "I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not." Luke 22:32
                     Loving you, Pastor