We are so thankful for the prayers in the congregation! A couple weeks ago in the newsletter, our pastor asked the congregation to pray for clarity of vision for our leadership concerning the direction and initiatives for our church. This report coming to you today is what the Lord has given to us in reply.
VISION: EQUIPPING THE SAINTS FOR THE WORSHIP FOR THE GLORY OF CHRIST
As we have prayed and discussed this matter, we have felt confirmed time and time again that our vision should remain the same. Our vision for our church is be the body of Christ, serving our Lord in this world for the glory of God. Rather than changing our vision, we realized we needed to develop our vision into a direction, telling the congregation where we believe we should and will be going.
We will be hearing a sermon series on these topics in August, and later we will post those sermons as articles. But let the following serve as a summary of what we believe is our church's direction:
We will be hearing a sermon series on these topics in August, and later we will post those sermons as articles. But let the following serve as a summary of what we believe is our church's direction:
DIRECTION: DELIGHT, CONNECT, GROW, MULTIPLY
Delight - Delighting in the Lord is our first and greatest calling, and is that what we should be given to all our days and in all our ways. No amount of work or effort will do our souls any eternal good if we are not first delighting in our Lord and Savior. We must continue to delight in our Lord in terms of our private and corporate worship, as well as in all of our lives. Our mission is to invite people into an ever-increasing delight in the God of our salvation.
Connect - There is no doubt, we have wonderful people who love our Lord, that span the many ages and stages of life. At the same time, we all live very busy lives. Where the challenge comes in is the distance relationally that is felt and even projected from to another. A good number of people have the wrong impression (perhaps from social media) that others are doing just fine by themselves. While, on the other end, many others are simply and sadly not looking for greater relationships within the body! But both of these scenarios are not true and proper perspectives in our union in the Lord. We need to want to love to reach out and support one another, as well as develop true an lasting relationships. This is what we, the leadership, would see as a need for our people to be more connected. Our mission, then, is also to improve our connection between one another.
Grow - Further, we need to grow. God’s grace comes to us where we are, but His grace never leaves us there for long. Instead, He longs to sanctify us, to grow us up in grace, that we might be conformed more into the image of His Son. This growth comes to us through hearing and believing the Word of God. As is such, our church and her officers must be given to declaring and imparting all that the Lord has commanded us and in the power of the Holy Spirit. However, this growth will not take place in isolation, but only when we are truly connected in true community with one another. Further, proper growth in the body is when all parts grow together proportionally, so that they might support one another through their pains and developments. Therefore, we envision growth to take place communally, where not only individuals become stronger in the Lord, but also the bond of love that holds us together.
Multiply - Lastly, we need to multiply. Making an analogy of a tree, If ‘delighting’ is the root, ‘connecting’ and ‘growing’ are the trunk and branches of the tree, ‘multiplying’ is the bearing of much fruit. We long to see our people doing more than taking in deep delight and relationships in the Lord, but also growing to the extent that they themselves are leading in the producing some thirty, sixty, or hundred fold! The fruit of our fellowship in the Lord and His Word should be the mission of our people in the world. Our mentality should be not just of ‘me, you, & Jesus’, but as I have been poured into who might the Holy Spirit be leading me to pour into myself? Neither are we to limit our focus to a set time or place, on certain days or even on certain mission-fields, but we are seek to make disciples wherever we are (the home, classroom, and work) with the gifts we have. As we each intentionally invest in others, we will gradually see, Lord willing, the growth of God’s kingdom in our midst. Our mission is then for all of our members to multiply!
Connect - There is no doubt, we have wonderful people who love our Lord, that span the many ages and stages of life. At the same time, we all live very busy lives. Where the challenge comes in is the distance relationally that is felt and even projected from to another. A good number of people have the wrong impression (perhaps from social media) that others are doing just fine by themselves. While, on the other end, many others are simply and sadly not looking for greater relationships within the body! But both of these scenarios are not true and proper perspectives in our union in the Lord. We need to want to love to reach out and support one another, as well as develop true an lasting relationships. This is what we, the leadership, would see as a need for our people to be more connected. Our mission, then, is also to improve our connection between one another.
Grow - Further, we need to grow. God’s grace comes to us where we are, but His grace never leaves us there for long. Instead, He longs to sanctify us, to grow us up in grace, that we might be conformed more into the image of His Son. This growth comes to us through hearing and believing the Word of God. As is such, our church and her officers must be given to declaring and imparting all that the Lord has commanded us and in the power of the Holy Spirit. However, this growth will not take place in isolation, but only when we are truly connected in true community with one another. Further, proper growth in the body is when all parts grow together proportionally, so that they might support one another through their pains and developments. Therefore, we envision growth to take place communally, where not only individuals become stronger in the Lord, but also the bond of love that holds us together.
Multiply - Lastly, we need to multiply. Making an analogy of a tree, If ‘delighting’ is the root, ‘connecting’ and ‘growing’ are the trunk and branches of the tree, ‘multiplying’ is the bearing of much fruit. We long to see our people doing more than taking in deep delight and relationships in the Lord, but also growing to the extent that they themselves are leading in the producing some thirty, sixty, or hundred fold! The fruit of our fellowship in the Lord and His Word should be the mission of our people in the world. Our mentality should be not just of ‘me, you, & Jesus’, but as I have been poured into who might the Holy Spirit be leading me to pour into myself? Neither are we to limit our focus to a set time or place, on certain days or even on certain mission-fields, but we are seek to make disciples wherever we are (the home, classroom, and work) with the gifts we have. As we each intentionally invest in others, we will gradually see, Lord willing, the growth of God’s kingdom in our midst. Our mission is then for all of our members to multiply!