Am I a Believer?

I, Pastor Lauren, am an introverted skeptic by nature. As a police officer, I was trained to collect all the evidence of a crime (fingerprints, CCTV footage, DNA, eyewitness accounts, photographs, etc.) BEFORE I requested a warrant. I wanted to present airtight cases, beyond a reasonable doubt. I couldn’t go off hunches. I needed the facts straight before I could get others to believe.

The Apostle John careful wrote his Gospel account to present the facts of the resurrection so that we might believe Jesus is the Christ and have eternal life. He wrote for those he knew would not get to see Jesus face to face and touch him with their hands. Blessed are those who have not seen yet believe….

This week we saw how Thomas, one of the disciples, wrestling with doubt and skepticism. He would not believe in the Risen Lord until he could see him with his own eyes and touch his nail scarred hands. When he saw and touched Jesus, he declared, “My Lord and my God!” May we declare Jesus our Lord and our God with the same boldness Thomas went on to do. Thomas’ legacy does not end in doubt. It ends with him being filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost and martyred for his faith in India. It ends in a legacy of faith. May we be bold witnesses like Thomas.

This week, our church considered question number 17 of the Global Methodist Church Catechism: “Who is under judgement?” Our answer at Austin Global Methodist Church is: “All stand under the righteous judgement of Jesus Christ both now and on the last day.” If you would like to learn more about this, study Matthew 7:21-23, 25:31-36, John 5:22-29, Acts 10:42, 17:3-31, and II Corinthians 5:10 in your personal devotions.

Please keep our El Salvador AGMC mission team, including several Concordia University students, in your prayers this week. They have arrived in El Salvador and are representing AGMC, Concordia University, and the Kingdom of God as ambassadors of the faith!

May you take any doubts you have to the One who is faithful and trustworthy. Stop doubting and believe in the Resurrected Lord!

Blessings,

Rev. Lauren Green Yates, MDiv.

Pastor of Austin Global Methodist Church

austingmcpastor@gmail.com 

737-287-4716