Wrap up and Kick off
The book of Revelation opens up with some brutally honest letters to some churches. In these letters, the leaders and congregations do find some encouragement of areas of their faith that they are getting right, but the letters also dive into some concerns. Without mincing words or trying to gloss over issues, these churches are confronted with a very honest evaluation of problems that they need to address, and quickly. As this year comes to a close, I have tried to place myself as a recipient of a similar letter and have prayerfully considered what "he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands" would have to say to me. This flips the narrative a bit. I often think about God, his character, his word, his involvement in my life. However, I don't take enough time to stop and think what He would say directly and personally to me. His word often digs deep into my heart on a personal level, but to stay in His words long enough
