The Perfect Weekend
We are in a season of growing independence around our house.
Our kids have more friends, more activities, bikes that can get them around town, and more ways to communicate through smart devices. With middle schoolers, they are simply out and about more and more.
Which means our family can feel disconnected, spread out, stretched thin, and constantly juggling activities, responsibilities, work, and, of course, our dog Brittany. Who could ever forget Brittany?
I know this is nothing new for a lot of you. It’s simply the season we are in now.
About ten days ago, we finally said,
“Listen…we have got to prioritize some time together. We need a family weekend.”
The boys had a half day of school, and we made no “real plans”, just plans to be together. Laugh. Spend time together. Eat good food. Not have to go anywhere unless it was for fun. Reconnect as a family over the long holiday weekend.
After their half day, they were going to bike home and let the fun begin.
Well…
One of my sons broke two bones in his arm and shattered a growth plate.
Instead of our relaxing family weekend, we were divided up, spending time in hospitals, driving back and forth to the hospital locally and then to Pensacola and back, having surgery, and somehow feeling even more stretched than before.
Not a lot of laughter, quality time together, good food, or fun…unless you really love ERs, surgery, and hospital food. Also, I didn’t see Noah Wyle anywhere at the hospital…
It was not exactly the weekend we had envisioned.
We’ve all been there.
We have high hopes. We are looking forward to rest or restoration or simply something good. Then, for reasons often completely outside our control, the plans change. The dream gets hijacked. Things fall apart.
Honestly, that is life.
Most of us live with a constant sense of longing, and yet over and over again, what we hope will satisfy us either doesn’t happen or doesn’t happen the way we hoped.
So what do we do with that?
In his letter to the Philippians, Paul tells the followers of Jesus to dwell on whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, and commendable. He tells them that as they practice this way of life, the peace of God will guard their hearts and minds.
Then Paul starts talking about his own life.
At first, it almost sounds like Paul is playing misery poker. Where people are trying to outdo the other with how terrible their life is…
“You think you’ve had it rough? Let me tell you…”
He has had plenty, and he has had nothing. He has been hungry and well-fed. He has experienced abundance and need.
And yet Paul says…
I have learned to be content.
Feast or famine? Content.
Better or worse? Content.
Plenty or little? Content.
Paul is telling these early followers of Jesus that more will not ultimately make you happy, and less cannot ultimately take your joy away.
The perfect weekend won’t fulfill you. The ruined weekend doesn’t have to destroy you. Getting the job or losing the job is not the final determination of whether your life is meaningful or not.
There is another way to live.
A life that rests in the beautiful satisfaction that God is enough.
C.S. Lewis once wrote,
“If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort, you will not get either comfort or truth, only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair.”
And then Paul writes one of the most famous…and most wildly out-of-context…verses in the Bible.
“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
We love that verse.
We put it on shirts. Athletes write it on shoes. We quote it before presentations, big games, difficult conversations, and probably before skydiving.
But Paul isn’t saying, “With Jesus, I can accomplish anything I set my mind to.”
He is saying something much better.
A slightly more literal translation reads,
“For all things, I have strength in the One strengthening me.”
Paul’s life is defined neither by wealth nor poverty, success nor failure, comfort nor suffering. His life is defined by a contentment that transcends all of it because his strength comes from Christ.
In other words…
It’s been really rough. It’s also been really good. And through all of it, I have discovered that Jesus is enough.
That changes everything.
It isn’t that I will accomplish all things.
It’s that I don’t need everything to go my way in order to be okay.
I am content in Christ.
I have enough in Christ.
Whether the outcome is good or bad, whether the weekend goes according to plan or completely falls apart, in Jesus, I have enough.
Last Sunday afternoon, after two chaotic days, disappointment, surgery, travel, and then the usual flurry of Sunday morning activity, we all got home and crashed.
And then people started stopping by. Neighborhood kids. Friends. People from The Chapel.
Monday brought more of the same, and eventually we got out together as a family and ended the day with family at our house for dinner.
For us, that is what gives us life. Knowing that we are a hub, a place where people feel at home and welcome and at peace…and when our weekend hadn’t gone according to plan, to have our house a buzz with people that we can welcome in, make them feel at home, and at peace, it was wildly satisfying for us…even if everything leading up to that moment was not the perfect weekend we had been hoping for.
And looking back over the chaotic weekend in the hospitals and long drives, we actually laughed a lot in the hospital. We got some one-on-one time with our kids that we don’t normally get. And, funny enough, one of our boys’ favorite restaurants…which we don’t have here…is in Pensacola…and we didn’t even know. Right next to the hospital.
So they even got one of their favorite meals.
Maybe it wasn’t quite as bad as we thought. Maybe we were content.
The weekend went absolutely nothing like we planned, but somehow, in the middle of it, it became something really good.
And maybe that is part of what Paul is trying to teach us and what Jesus demonstrated through his life.
Contentment isn’t getting the life you wanted. It is discovering that Christ is enough in the life you actually have.
I don’t know what is going to disappoint you this week…but I promise you, it’ll be something…hopefully it’s not me though…I don’t know what plans might change, what expectations might go unmet, or what might not turn out the way you hoped.
But if we can learn contentment now, those things don’t have to carry quite so much weight.
This is part of what it means to follow Jesus…allowing him to reframe the realities and priorities of our lives.
We learn to live in a way that isn’t dependent upon smooth sailing, but is instead being a blessing to the world around us. A life that proclaims the good news of Jesus and embodies the ways of his Kingdom.
And whatever comes…good or bad, abundance or need, the perfect weekend we planned or the weekend we never saw coming…we can say with Paul…
For all things, I have strength in the One strengthening me.
Because in Christ, I have enough.
If you are around this week, I hope you will join us. Lots of great stuff coming this week.
This Sunday
I hope you will come this Sunday for worship at 8:30 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Sarah and I will be out of town, but we are so excited to welcome Will Washington. Will is from Dallas, TX, and is the Youth Pastor at Park Cities Presbyterian. Fun fact, I interviewed Will to be my intern when I was a youth pastor about 13 years ago…and now his parents live here in town and worship at The Chapel. We’re excited to welcome Will to be a part of The Chapel this Sunday.
Sunday Mornings for birth through 12th graders at The Chapel.
We offer Sunday morning programming for every age during the 10:00 a.m. service.
Nursery Care — Children ages 0–4. Email Sarah@thechapelatseaside.com for more information.
Kids Church — Children ages 5 through 4th grade. Check in at The Chapel when you arrive. Email Chelsea@thechapelatseaside.com for more information.
Youth Bible Study — Students in 5th grade and older. Students should bring their Bibles and come ready to learn how to read Scripture and discover what it has to offer them.
Youth Group
Youth Group meets each Wednesday from 6:30–7:30 p.m. at The Chapel. It is a great time of fun, worship, learning, and growing in faith with some wonderful leaders. Whether you live here or simply happen to be in town, we hope your students will join us! It has been awesome.
Tuesday Noon Prayer
Join us every Tuesday from noon–1:00 p.m. for our weekly Noon Prayer Hour at The Chapel.
We spend time praying through Scripture, worshiping, sitting in silence, and simply being in the presence of God. It really is a beautiful hour together. Come and go as your schedule allows.
Wednesday Bible Studies
Our Bible studies meet Wednesdays at The Chapel.
Men: 8:00–9:15 a.m.
Women: 9:30–11:00 a.m.
We’re journeying through 1 Samuel together this fall. If you haven’t been able to join us in person, be sure to check out our weekly podcast, Chapel Study Notes, where we recap each lesson. Listen wherever you stream.
Chapel Women’s Retreat
We’re excited to host our first official Chapel Women’s Retreat, February 4–6, 2027. Sign up and learn more at the link here.
25th Anniversary of The Chapel
The Chapel building will celebrate its 25th Anniversary on Sunday, October 18. Join us that morning for a special worship service as we celebrate and give thanks for all God has done in and through this place.
Baptism and Bonfire
Join us for an evening of Baptisms and a Beach Bonfire Celebration on Sunday, November 1st from 4-6 p.m. We will have registration open for this soon if you simply want to attend.
If you are interested in being baptized, please click here. And we’ll get you signed up and set up a time to visit about Baptism.
Habitat Build Day
On Friday, November 13th, we will have another Build Day with Habitat. November 13th is a general build day, but we are having The Chapel at Seaside people also sign up for that date. So if you are free, we’d love to have you join. Build days take place on Fridays from 8am-12noon. We will meet on site in DeFuniak – See registration for location details.
Click here to register for November 13th – select November in the options.
Parking
As you know, parking is limited at The Chapel. We encourage you to park by the school on Smolian and use the linked parking passes. These passes are valid for Sunday morning worship through noon. Just print the pass, put the correct date on your dashboard, and you’re good to go.
Here is the link to Sunday morning Worship Parking Passes.
Here is the link to Wednesday morning Bible Study Parking Passes
Let us know if you have any questions or need anything.
And if things don’t go according to plan and you end up in Pensacola at the hospital…let me know…my kids have some recommendations for a restaurant right next to the hospital.
We look forward to seeing you this week as we continue to find contentment in Jesus…and lets all try to avoid ending up in a hospital…unless of course your Noah Wyle and that is your job…
Blessings.
Andrew