So often, my very capable father-in-law comes around when I’m trying to solve a problem. For example, when my hotdogs were falling through the grill, he peered over my slumping shoulders and said, “Turn them the other way.” Duh. When I was trying to remove a begrudging screw, my competent father-in-law said, “Here, use this screwdriver instead of that butter knife.” Ugh.
I hate it when the solution is so obvious, and I can’t see it. I hate it more when I look like a complete imbecile in front of Sherry’s Dad. Sigh.
Recently I was able to grab a long lunch with Christian Financial Resource’s Regional Vice President, David Powers. David has a unique perspective on how the big “C” church is doing as he is a widely traveled individual. “How are churches doing?” I queried. “It’s rough. So many churches were hit hard by the pandemic and haven’t bounced back,” David quickly responded.
But I was looking for the secret sauce. What trend, innovation, or latest conference speaker has unveiled the path forward for hurting churches? Who had figured it out and what was their cutting-edge strategy?
David was also quick with, “Actually, Alan… it’s the Gospel. The churches who have moved beyond western models of church growth and success and singularly focused on the good news of Jesus — those are the gatherings who are thriving.” Duh. Ugh. Sigh. The solution has already been right under our noses. The Church has just become too smart and self-sufficient to see it. To me, this really IS good news (Biblical pun very much intended) because it gets us all back to Jesus!
God has used the pain and difficulty of previous years to bring us to a revelation vision of “Gospel-driven. Together.” This is how Jesus will be lifted high and how His church at LifeBridge prevails.
I’m excited that our response and buy-in of our new vision have been great.
We are Gospel-driven. Together. This is who we want to become and where we are headed.
And now… our vision must take flight by our mission… what we will do to realize God’s vision. The HOW of vision is mission. AND, powerfully, we are mindful that Jesus has already done the necessary work. Our mission and doing is a response to what HE has already done. The Gospel drives us. Together.
This Sunday, we begin a four-week trek unfolding our mission. Sunday will be part I. This Sunday will have a bit of a different feel as I will be teaching compared to my normal preaching. Have your pens ready!
Our mission will show each one of us how to practically roll up our sleeves, keep Jesus at the center, and love each other– inside and outside our walls.
I trust you understand the importance of all this and will gather with us this Sunday… 10:30 a.m. We’ll have the coffee ready; you bring a friend or two. Excited to be in the presence of Jesus together. Gospel-driven. Together.
Blessings!
alan
p.s. – Please be watching for more details concerning our “Serve Sunday” on November 13th. Dave and Tina Weber & Matt and Lauren Long are leading the charge. We will need all hands on deck for a dynamic day of serving and worship. And… thanks again for your faithfulness in giving during an economically challenging time.