Across the Pastor’s Desk by Matt Hundley

Let me begin by wishing each of you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

As we reach the end of another year, we will often reflect on the good, bad and ugly of the past year.

From that we develop plans to see better results in the new year.

As a transplant to the community, I’d like to encourage you to take a view that begins with your own life, but expands to how your life impacts the larger community around you.

Recently, I had the privilege of praying for our City Council before their meeting. I used the Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6:9-13 as my guide. The following is what I prayed for our elected leaders on the City Council:

“Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name. May you rule here, in our hearts and over Albert Lea, as in Heaven. May our leaders, appointed by you through the will of the people, be led by your spirit. Give them divine insight and understanding to wield the authority vested in their office for your glory and the good of those they represent. Lead them away from divisiveness and partisanship through humility and forgiveness that causes cooperation for the good of the whole community they serve. Open their hearts and minds to new ways of doing things that honors the past and prepares the way into the future. Above all, may love be the hallmark of this community! May our citizens see it modeled by our elected leaders. To the praise of your glory. This we humbly ask in the mighty name of Jesus the Christ! Amen.”

We all see that our community has real problems. We might also be willing to admit that our lives are also filled with very real and often destructive issues. It is my humble opinion that the two issues are related.

Personal issues tend to feed into the problems within our larger community. The only solution I have found for my personal issues is a relationship with and submission to Jesus Christ.

You see, that is the point of the Lord’s Prayer. That we focus our hearts and minds upon God and his will, rather than our own. When human beings live for a purpose greater than their own lives, we see true transformation, on both personal and community levels. May we see the fulfillment of the Lord’s Prayer in our lives this coming year, and together enjoy the fruit of personal transformation as a whole community.

It is up to each of us to repent and realize the “incarnation of Christ” in our own lives, so that together we may enjoy the benefits.

 

The Rev. Matt Hundley is the pastor of Albert Lea Vineyard Church.