(704) 599-9810 | Worship Sundays @ 10:55 a.m.
(704) 599-9810 | Worship Sundays @ 10:55 a.m.
🕊️ “Faith for a Worried People” — Finding calm assurance when the world feels unsteady, and rediscovering trust in the God who holds us fast.
Faith for a Worried People – November 9, 2025
Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 2:1–5, 13–17 | Modern Lesson: Grace Ji-Sun Kim
This Sunday at Holy Covenant United Church of Christ, Pastor Christopher Czarnecki invited us to loosen our grip on fear and rest in the promise that God’s love never lets us go. His message, “Faith for a Worried People,” drew from 2 Thessalonians 2:1–5, 13–17, where Paul urges believers to “stand firm and hold fast” even in uncertain times.
The morning began with a Centering Prayer that invited us to release the need to control outcomes and to rest in divine assurance: “Center us in you, O God, so that we might listen for your voice, trust your goodness, and find peace in your presence.” That quiet invocation became a thread of peace woven through the entire service.
During the Children’s Message, Pastor Chris brought out bubbles — a visual reminder of what it means to let go. Each child received their own small container, encouraged to think of a worry, blow a bubble, and watch it float away. “Are your worries floating away?” he asked. “Then let’s give those worries to God.” The joyful moment filled the sanctuary with laughter and light — a living parable of release and trust.
The sermon explored the everyday worries that weigh us down: the furnace that might fail, the illness that surprises, the world that feels fragile. From minor anxieties to major fears, worry can whisper worst-case scenarios and steal our peace. Pastor Chris reflected that even Paul’s early church in Thessalonica faced their own fears — convinced they had somehow missed God’s promised day. Paul’s reassurance was simple yet profound: “You didn’t miss Jesus. Don’t let fear steal your peace.”
Drawing from Grace Ji-Sun Kim’s modern lesson, “Fear is not Christian,” Pastor Chris reminded us that when fear constrains imagination, love cannot breathe. He shared a story from a journaling workshop where participants listed their worries, then crossed out the ones they could not control — a spiritual practice of discernment and surrender. “Perhaps faith works the same way,” he said, “crossing out what isn’t ours to hold and trusting that God will handle the rest.”
He concluded with the story of a pastor on a turbulent flight. While passengers gripped their seats in panic, a small girl sat peacefully, unfazed. When asked later how she remained calm, she replied, “My daddy’s the pilot — he always takes me home.” Pastor Chris smiled as he drew the connection: “When the skies of life grow dark and storms toss us about, remember who’s flying the plane. God will always take us home.”
The Choir lifted that assurance in song with “It Is Well with My Soul,” each voice echoing the quiet truth of the morning: peace is not found in control, but in trust. Even in the face of fear, it is well — because love holds the horizon.
🕊️ “Faith is not the absence of worry — it is the decision to trust that love will meet us there.”
“Do not worry about your life… for your Creator’s love will meet you there.” — Rev. Christopher Czarnecki
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