God's Mercies Are New Every Morning

I'm working today on the end of the year report that I'll give at our upcoming Voters Meeting.  It's fun to look back and see God's handiwork in our midst.  We kicked off the year with a special series focusing on the verses from Lamentations 3:22-23 - God's compassions never fail...they are new every morning! We were all encouraged to read our Bibles daily, to pray every day, to keep the 8th commandment in what we say about others, to sit aside our own agendas and pray "Thy Will Be Done," and to receive God's gifts with gratitude and praise.  All of this led to the best Easter celebration we've ever had.  The church gave my dear, sweet wife and I a wonderful sendoff as I began a three month renewal.  The church spent the summer studying the topic of prayer and enjoyed a wonderful summer of music - soloists and musicians and a variety of concerts.  When I returned in August, it was business as usual - preaching, teaching, leading, serving and praying.  We wrap up the year with growth in membership, Sunday worship attendance, Sunday school and weekly Bible classes.  We began several new ministries and saw groups like our Lutheran Women in Mission help extend our reach into our community and world.  We also established a new mission statement: Live and Grow in Christ ~ Encourage and Reach Others.  All in all, it has been a year full of blessings.  And I should not be surprised by that - God's mercies are new every morning!