After A couple of years ago, I stumbled across a devotion that has been on my mind this week. As I now begin to work on sermons for May and into the summer, I am thinking about Boiling Springs Baptist “After” these first four months of 2017. The devotion included notes from missionary E. Stanley Jones and his autobiography A Song of Ascents. In this book, he tells of an African man who changed his name to “After” immediately following his conversion. Because all things were new, different, and important after he met Christ, the man wanted to reflect that new reality in his name as well as in his thinking. He goes on to say: “‘After’ is every Christian’s middle name.” After some reflection on these first few months of the year we can look back on the month of February and recall a great time of sharing, showing, and experiencing God’s love during our 28 Days of Love emphasis. We can look back on the month of April and how we have celebrated the life of Christ through the musical drama Celebrate Life! On Easter, we continued our celebration of the risen Christ, and just recently we were challenged by Rev. John Broom during our Renewal Services. Also, after several services, we welcomed new members into the life of Boiling Springs Baptist. As we look back on Easter, this is what makes us After Christians. After Easter, nothing in life is ever the same again. After some reflection, this week I am writing to simply express my gratitude to God for his goodness and grace, and to express gratitude to the people who make up Boiling Springs Baptist Church. The resurrection of Jesus has changed us, is changing us, and will continue to do so. “After” not only means the period of time following an event or activity, it can also mean in pursuit of. As we move ahead in 2017, may we continue to pursue a renewed relationship with Jesus Christ. I look forward to pursuing Him with you. You are loved, Keith
