The Dark Side of Life

Of all the letters Paul wrote, II Corinthians is the most autobiographical.  In it, Paul lifts the veil on his private life and allows us to catch a glimpse of his needs and weaknesses.  In his letter, Paul records the specifics of his pain and sufferings.  He spells out the details of his persecution, imprisonments, beatings and feelings of despair.  However, in the midst of revealing the "dark" side of his life, Paul begins his letter by writing:

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.  He comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort others.  When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us."  II Corinthians 1:3-4

Sometimes, God uses suffering so that we might learn what it means to depend on Him.  Over and over He reminds us of the danger of pride, but it frequently takes suffering to make the lesson stick.  Paul reminds us to welcome hard times as opportunities to stop trusting in our own wisdom and strength, to start leaning on God and to give Him thanks for His sovereignty over our lives.  Take time over the next few days to read II Corinthians chapters 1-5 and may the words of Paul encourage you the next time you find yourself in a God-orchestrated dilemma.

Join us this Sunday, at 9:30am, as we continue our series called, Exodus: Seeing God in the Journey.  This week, we be in Exodus 13 and 14, as we look at probably the most notable story and most celebrated miracle in Israel's history...the crossing of the Red Sea.  It was in this moment that the nation of Israel experienced a divine encounter with God, as His power flowed through their obedience, which led them into some tense, uneasy, scary moments for this tired, yet hopeful nation.

Prior to our 9:30am service, join us at 8:45am in Pastor Doug's office, for a special time of praying for Parkside and the other churches that meet on our campus.

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same.  Please consider joining us this weekend.  We were created by God to worship and praise Him together, in community, so plan on being at Parkside this Sunday at 9:30am and don't forget your mask!

Also, for those that are not able to join us in-person, you can still join us online

As our church continues to move toward a sense of normalcy on Sunday mornings, Roger and I are excited to announce that our Sunday Morning Bible Study classes will begin meeting this Sunday, October 3rd at 10:45am.  It's been over 18 months since either our Senior Adult Class or the Hester/Malinowski class has been able to meet.  It will be awesome to see many of you reconnect in these smaller communities.

Please consider taking advantage of one of these discipleship opportunities.  See class details below: 

Topic:  A Study in the book of James
Facilitator:  Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski
10:45am to 11:45am
In-person ONLY

Senior Adult Discipleship Class
Topic:  A Study in the book of Mark
Facilitator:  Martha Bailey
10:45am to 11:45am
In-person ONLY

See you Sunday.

Pastor Doug