“God’s Beggar”
by Tom Goodman
February 23, 2005
What a fantastic Sunday! We celebrated the greatness of our God with joyful music. Then we joined our new American citizens, the Shombas, as they led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Then we rejoiced with Cheryl Selby as she kicked
off her new Austin-area ministry to ex-offenders. Then we got excited as we listened to the new opportunities in Children’s Ministry and Adult Bible Study. It was a great way to spend seventy minutes!
This Sunday we return to our in-depth study of the Lord’s Prayer. Among the essential things Jesus taught us to pray, one was for our daily bread.
The last time you prayed, for what did you pray? Probably for something related to your job or your health or your family. The things that compel us to talk with God are usually not world events but personal events. Oh, if we are
asked to lead a public prayer, we’ll pray for protection for our missionaries or wisdom for our nation’s leaders or provision for our church and so on. And we are likely sincere when we pray for those things in public. But truly that
which drives us to our knees in desperation in the middle of a sleepless night usually has something to do with daily life.
It’s good to know that God wants us to bring him the things we’re going to bring him anyway! Maybe God knew that we need assurance about this, because the Bible is filled with urgent calls to bring our urgent needs to him. And when
Jesus taught us to pray, one of the things he said we should do is ask God to meet our daily needs. He taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” As Augustine said, “No matter how rich one may be on earth, one is still God’s
beggar.”
Richard Foster said, “Try to imagine what our prayer experience would be like if Jesus had forbidden us to ask for the little things. What if the only things we were allowed to talk about were the weighty matters, the important things, the
profound issues? We would be orphaned in the cosmos, cold, and terribly alone. But the opposite is true: he welcomes us with our 1,001 trifles, for they are each important to him.”
How true. Come this weekend for another Sunday of celebration as we see what God’s word has to say about “our daily bread.”
—Tom
— Important Notes —
Discover Hillcrest is this Sunday, February 27. The class will be held right after the morning service, AND LUNCH IS PROVIDED! The class is for those who want to become members, and for those who just want to learn more about
Hillcrest. Topics include:
o The most important thing you need to know about Jesus
o What we teach about baptism
o Four fundamentals of spiritual growth, using the acronym “H.I.L.L.”
o How to “connect” with others in the church
o How to help us reach others for Christ and church involvement
o How to worship
While I teach the adult class, BJ teaches "Discover Hillcrest Kids" for children ages 8-12, and Jim teaches "Discover Hillcrest Youth" for students in grades 6-12. Childcare is provided for children under the
age of 8.
Jim Siegel’s First Anniversary was yesterday, February 22. Make sure to pass along a word of thanks and a promise of prayer as he continues to lead our Student Ministry! You can drop him a line at jim@hbcaustin.org.
Exciting News About Children’s Sunday School! Beginning March 6, children in grades 1-4 will experience something new: G-Force! This new curriculum from Lifeway combines
large-group worship and teaching with small-group reinforcement. Think of it as a one-hour Vacation Bible School each Sunday! There’s some great stuff going on in preschool, too, and kids in fifth grade are about to begin a Sunday School
study called Everything You Need to Know to Be a Teenager. As BJ says, “Our goal is to make the 9:30 a.m. hour on Sunday mornings the best hour of a child’s week!” For more information, go to www.hillcrestaustin.org/#children.
Exciting News About Adult Bible Study! Beginning March 6, Adults will have two great options for Bible study on Sunday Mornings. Option 1 is our current organization of wonderful Bible Study departments and
classes. Option 2 is a new organization of small groups called RiBS (Relational Bible Study). These small groups will form from those who come on March 6 to the MPC to connect with other adults who prefer this
format. The RiBS groups will focus on study, application, ministry, and fellowship. March 6 is also designated as a “Friend Attend Day” for Hillcrest, so please make every effort to be here for this big kick-off day in our Adult
Bible Study program. For more information about Adult Bible Study, go to www.hillcrestaustin.org/#education.
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