Wow!  It's been six weeks since the last sermon I preached.  It will be good to be back in the pulpit.  You all have been very patient with my preaching absence (some of you have even enjoyed it)!  So, first of all, I'm very grateful to Dave Dorst and Frank Wang for filling in and doing such a great job (including our first video sermon!).  It was wonderful to hear from Paul Hahn of MNA about how a flourishing church demonstrates generosity, creativity, and humility.  Then we got to enjoy Jegar Chinnavan of the First Asian Indian PCA Church in Herndon who spoke to us about missions and obedience.  And last but not least, we were able to welcome back Dr. Dave Dorst who preached about the necessity of gratitude for the Christian life.  My thanks to them all.

As I sit here at the end of another snow day (Wednesday), I can't help but think that just two days ago I was sitting on a beach in South Florida enjoying the 86 degree warmth.  And now I'm wondering what I did wrong that I'm back in the land of cold and snow.  I know, some of you love it.  I'll listen to you complain in July.  But can you imagine if things never changed?  And the season you simply had to endure lasted all year long?  And it's been going on now for years on end ... like winter in Narnia under the spell of the Ice Queen?  If so, you'll get a small taste of what Jeremiah had to endure.  He was miserable.  He was hated.  He was persecuted.  He was angry.  He was beaten.  He was probably cold too.  And in our passage this week (Jeremiah 18-20) he cries out to God, seeking understanding, seeking vengeance, seeking justice, seeking something, anything ... that would help to make sense of his situation.

And so God makes him several promises, but he begins with an illustration of the Potter and the Clay.  And with this illustration, God is letting Jeremiah know that He's still Sovereign, and He has the right to not only create His people, but He can also re-create His people.  And then He promises to do just that.  But Jeremiah still struggles because his outer circumstances are still harsh, and his inner turmoil is still overwhelming.  What can He do?  And what will God do?  Let's find out together this Sunday.  See you there!  Dr. Dave