I am confident we were all disappointed not to gather yesterday. Winter weather cancellations are rare for us. However, after considering the warnings and guidance issued by local authorities and the National Weather Service, our elder team believed that cancellation was the prudent course of action. In the end, we can be thankful the Lord spared our area the worst of the winter weather. As we express gratitude, let’s also pray for communities in Georgia and across the nation that were struck hard and who will be recovering for days to come.

As I was home with my family yesterday, the absence of gathering was a stark reminder to me that there truly is no substitute for gathering with the church. I missed being with you, shaking hands, and hugging necks. I missed singing as a congregation (we had some GREAT songs planned!). I missed preaching the message I had prepared about who should be baptized. I hope the same is true for you: “absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

Though Tricia and I enjoyed a pleasant time of family worship together yesterday as we continued our reading of Acts, we were decidedly not the assembled church. Family worship is wonderful and important, but it is not the gathered body of Christ. Not even close. Moreover, no pre-recorded video, livestream, or other online “substitute” comes remotely close to the experience of gathering in-person with my church family. So, while we were disappointed not to gather yesterday, I pray the Lord will use this cancellation in your heart as he has mine. May he strengthen our appreciation and resolve to gather with the church. There really is no substitute.