Church Blog

We are Hard Working Worshipers

March 19, 2015

Easter Sunday, the one day of the year we dedicate our worship to a feast in honor the resurrection of Jesus, will be here before we know it. We are approaching the 5thSunday of Lent, saying no to sin and self-righteousness so that our hearts are prepared to say, “Amen! Yes!” to resurrection life.

Are you ready church? Are you ready to both worship the risen Jesus who has given you new life and to serve your neighbors with every breath of that life until you fall down exhausted on the couch after a feast worthy of a resurrected King?

That is the task of Easter Sunday for us: to be both worshipfully present for ourselves and to be dedicated servants of others. How do we do both? Is it possible to do both? Of course it is, every adult knows that is possible to work hard in preparation, to host like God Himself is our guest and to soak up every minute of pleasure as long as the party lasts. On Easter Sunday, you are the hosts, setting a feast of worship for over 500 guests. They will gorge themselves on food, on fellowship and be filled to the gills with the hope of Jesus’ resurrection. And, maybe, some of them will have their lives turned around that day. Take pleasure church, in the pleasure of your guests…and do everything you can to direct their pleasure to the resurrected Savior. This is is what it means to be a growing church. This is our first love.

Our first love is to testify about the Savior we love to the people that we love.

That is Easter for us. It is holy and it is pure joy.

Growing Pains are a Good Sign

March 6, 2015

Dear church family,

It is good to be us right at this time in this place. God has done more for us than we could ever ask and more through us than we could ever take credit for. Just this week we have celebrated the life of Hazel Hunter our matriarch who co-founded this church in 1949. Hazel lived a good life and she died a good death – that is, she died in full faith in Jesus and she died having left us better than when she found us. This week, we have had many personal ups and downs in which some of us have held onto our faith successfully and others haven’t been quite so strong. And yet the simple fact that we are concerned enough to seek real change so that one reaction we always have becomes something else – something good and holy and edifying – is a sign that God is working in our hearts.

God continues to grow our church, not because we have growth as a goal, simply because we want to be whole life disciples and others want that too.

We are regularly going through growing pains in the life of our congregation. Remember with me what those are so that we can be aware and then do something about them

1. Communication: it is easier to be left out of the loop as the church grows. Please pay attention to the bulletin and to the all church emails (if you are not on the email list, contact Lauren in the church office).
2. Comfort: Everyone has a prefered size culture and we easily give our comfort zone a moral status. Pay attention to how you are feeling and go out of your way to make guests and new members feel as welcome as you have in this church family for 10, 20 or 30 years.
3. Control: Church change and growth results in less control over everything, for everyone. Let’s get used to it. Church is messy. People are messy. YOU are messy.

Let us want the change that Jesus brings in the lives of our friends, family and neighbors mores to keep tight reigns on these 3 C’s.

For the last few Sundays, there has been a very full room in the second service (which can make us introverts feel quite uncomfortable). When you arrive, find someone to talk to, introduce yourself to someone you don’t yet know and grab a seat towards the front of the room to leave space in the back.

God is putting heaven and earth back together and He is starting with us. Amen? Yes! I want that.

Your Pastor,
Robert