“Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, might, honour, glory, and blessing.” I heard every created thing which is in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, or on the sea, and all the things in them, saying, “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honour, the glory, and the dominion forever and ever.”
There are 3 devotion verbs expressed above, all describing our personal worship of Jesus Christ considering His eternal work of salvation. First the word glory, which we give due to Christ’s splendour. His spectacular victory on Resurrection Sunday causes us to worship Him, not just with word and songs but with our lives. What does that look like for us? Second, we honour Christ which means that we acknowledge His worthiness. He is worthy to receive God’s power, our wealth, the rightful place of authority and rule. In the name of Jesus everything in heaven, on earth and in hell itself comes to bow in submission. Third, we are challenged to give thanks – in recognition for everything Jesus has done. What do you suppose His love language is? I mean, how does He know that you are grateful?
For me, my gratitude is seen in my surrender. To yield my will. To give myself to the principles of the Bible and God’s Kingdom illustrates my “giving thanks”. As I leave for Ukraine, I go as His ambassador. I go believing the glory of Christ is seen in His Church there and that we can help them show this glory amid war. II Corinthians 3:18 says; “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. But we all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory”. Through the trial of Russian aggression, the Ukrainian Church is being transformed and is an illustration of the glory of God. I think that’s important to support and encourage. It’s the goal of CLA to honour God, with our time, wealth, and lives. Therefore, I ask you to help the church in Ukraine by praying for them, by loving Ukrainian refugees, by giving to our emergency relief overseas. Our small team (Peter Paluch, Vince Laurino, Wayne Nelson) will stop first in Lviv, the largest city in Western Ukraine (it is also near my grandparent’s farm prior to their coming to Canada in the 1930’s). Sunday I’ll preach in Lutsk, a church we’ve supported in different ways over the years. Monday we travel to the capital Kyiv and finally on to see Bishop Vitaliy Shalukhin who was in CLA Langley for many months before returning to Kherson last year. We’ll meet with him and his pastors in Ivano-Frankivsk, their new administration center away from the front lines. Thank you for your financial support and prayers. The world is a better place because of CLA.
