Dear Church Family,

One of the most well-known and fascinating stories from the Bible is the story of Joseph of Egypt. His story is told in Genesis (37-50). Joseph, one of the thirteen sons of Jacob, was hated by his envious brothers, who seized him and sold him as a slave to Egypt. There, he rose as a trustworthy servant, was lied about and thrown to jail for years, and then was summoned by Pharaoh to help him save Egypt from calamity.

Joseph had spiritual gifts and wisdom, and everywhere he went and everything he was involved with prospered.

Why was that? Joseph was a blessing to many despite the hardships he endured due to the promise God made to his great grandfather, “I will bless you to be a blessing.” This means that every person born from Abraham’s bloodline stands on such a promise from God.

In Jesus, we, too, stand on that promise. The Bible says that as disciples of Jesus, we too are descendants of Abraham, “Those who believe [in Jesus] are the descendants of Abraham… For this reason, those who believe are blessed with Abraham who believed.” (Gal. 3:7-9)

What a wonderful thought! We are a part of God’s story through Jesus Christ that began with Abraham. What does this make us? It makes stewards of the promises of God—just like Joseph was.

Have you ever thought about the favor God has bestowed upon you to be blessed and be a blessing? I know sometimes it is hard to see and feel the blessing (think of Joseph and how many times he might have thought he was cursed!), yet God continues to carry us through so we can fulfill and accomplish God’s purposes as children of God.

As we start our “Stewardship Campaign 2021: Standing On God’s Promises,” I invite you to keep this thought in mind: You have been BLESSED and You are a BLESSING. I believe God’s favor is upon each of us as disciples of Jesus, and just like Joseph, everywhere we go and everything we get involved with can prosper.

This year, as we make plans for ministry for the next one and assess how we will serve, pray, and support our church, we will do so knowing that we Stand on God’s Promises and that we are Stewards of God’s Favor.

We will provide you with more information in the next week about our 2022 pledges and the Sunday when we will celebrate together our generosity and commitment to God and each other.

For now, how would you complete this sentence? “New World Church has blessed me…”

Please think and pray about how the church has blessed you because you will have an opportunity to share your memories and experiences in a video as we will be recording your answers in the next few weeks.

–Pastor Edgar