p>Acts 1:8 – You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
2 Corinthians 5:14 – Christ’s love compels us [to obey His command], because we are convinced that One died for all, and therefore all died.
2 Corinthians 5:15 – And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him Who died for them and was raised again.
Proverbs 29:18 – [As a church family we know that] Where there is no vision the people perish.
Isaiah 58:11 – [We also know that] The LORD will guide us always; He will satisfy our needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen our frame.
[When we trust in the Lord’s strength and not our own, our church] will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
Last week I told you that one thing I do to relieve stress is read novels by my favorite fiction writers. From your response, it sounds like many of you do the same. Well, another way I personally defeat this enemy that plagues so many of us who live and work in the D.C. area, is by watching THREE STOOGES shorts. In fact, I have an old video tape filled with about six hours worth of these brief movies and I often watch one or two while I eat my lunch. Even though I’ve seen them dozens and dozens of times, they still make me laugh-and relax.
As I prepared for this year’s VISION SUNDAY sermon one of my favorite 3 Stooges episodes came to mind and I want to show you a very brief portion. But first, let me set it up. In this particular short, the stooges have fallen in love with three sisters. They ask the girls’ father for permission to marry but he says no-so the stooges start one of the first ever sit-ins. They actually pitch a tent and camp out in the poor man’s living room and refuse to leave until he agrees to give them his daughters’ hands in marriage. Well, their sit-in or rather “camp-in” works because it generates a lot of pro-marriage publicity. People send them fan mail from all over the country pledging their support of the proposed nuptials and eventually the father yields under all this pressure and gives his permission.
Well, this triple marriage became such a news item that a local builder actually gives the newlyweds a piece of land and a house big enough for all three couples to share. The problem is, this house has to be assembled. It’s sort of a build-it-yourself home kit. The lumber, pipes, wiring, fixtures, etc. are all there-but the three stooges have to put it all together. When they hesitate to do the work themselves, their new brides tell them there will be no honeymoon until their home is assembled-so they begrudgingly get to work. Unfortunately, in their haste to get a roof over their heads, the stooges lose the building plans and you can imagine what happens! Without a clear plan to follow they make all kinds of mistakes and have to keep correcting errors. This leads to a lot of frustration and fights between the stooges and their new brides. They eventually DO finish-but this is what the house ends up looking like: (THREE STOOGES CLIP)
Now, I think you can guess why this particular Stooges short came to mind as I was preparing for this VISION Sunday sermon. I mean, to me at least, it serves as a visual reminder of the fact that, without a God-given plan-without a clear-cut vision to follow, churches fail to accomplish anything lasting. Things fall apart like the Stooges’ house did. Psalm 127:1 comes to mind where it says, “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.” Rick Warren refers to this principle of church health and growth in his best-selling book, The Purpose-Driven Church. In fact, he cites several benefits of having a God-given plan to follow. We looked at them a few years back, but let’s review them.
1. First of all, a church with a God-given vision HAS BETTER MORALE than one that doesn’t.
Fights like the stooges and their brides endured are few and far between in churches with a clear-cut mission to follow that is inspired by a God-given vision. This is because morale and mission ALWAYS go together. As the Apostle Paul points out in 1 Corinthians 1:10, “Let there be real harmony so that there won’t be splits in the church…be of one mind, united in thought and PURPOSE.” Warren writes, “People working together for a great purpose don’t have time to argue over trivial issues. When you’re helping ROW the boat, you don’t have time to ROCK it.” Working together to achieve specific God-given goals builds a real esprit de corps in any church.
2. And then, a second benefit of a church’s having a clear cut vision-inspired plan to follow is that it tends to REDUCE FRUSTRATION.
An awareness of God’s plan allows a church to forget about things that don’t really matter. Churches that give God’s guidance priority experience the truth of Isaiah 26:3 where it says that,
“God gives perfect peace to those who keep their PURPOSE firm and put their trust in Him.”
You see, a clear purpose not only defines what we do, but what we do NOT do. And, this is especially important for us here in Montgomery County where we are so busy. We literally don’t have time to waste doing things that don’t matter-things that aren’t part of God’s plan for this church.
3. Thirdly, a clear purpose ALLOWS CONCENTRATION.
It makes it possible for the leaders of a church to focus all of their efforts in the same direction-unlike this short where the stooges just keep getting in each other’s way as they tackle different non-related parts of the construction of their “free” house. One works on the roof while another works on the floor or a wall. They fail in their building attempts because they don’t work together on the right part of the house at the right time. I think Paul was referring to this principle of concentration when he wrote in Philippians 3:13 and said, “Forgetting what is behind and looking forward to what lies ahead, I am bringing ALL MY ENERGIES to bear on this ONE thing…” (Living Bible)
Well, like these silly stooges, many churches fall into the trap of majoring on the minors. They diffuse their strength and resources on good, but less important agendas. For a church to be effective, it must major on the majors. It must live by that old cliche’ that says, “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” And, the main thing for any church must be to seek and then work to accomplish the will of God.
4. And then one other benefit of a clear purpose is that it ATTRACTS COOPERATION.
I mean, people want to join a church that knows where its going. They’re eager to get on board because people naturally are looking for something that gives meaning and purpose and direction to life. We see this in the Old Testament when Ezra told the people of Jerusalem exactly what God expected them to do, they responded, “Tell us how to proceed in setting things straight, and we will fully cooperate.” (Ezra 10:4 LB)
Well, as I said, here at Redland we understand the value of this vision-inspired planning.
We have learned the importance of following God’s leading-going through the doors that He opens-hence the graphic in today’s power-point. So, once a year our church council goes away on a retreat. We bathe this retreat in prayer asking God what He wants us to do in the year to come. Then we plan according to His leading and a month or so later I preach a sermon like I am doing this morning in which I share with you the plan-the VISION-we believe God has given. I love George Barna’s definition of this important word. He writes, “VISION is a clear mental image of a preferable future imparted by God to His chosen servants and based on an accurate understanding of God, self, and circumstances.” Say that with me so I can be sure it gets into our minds this morning.
Well, as I said, every year we approach our fall retreat with this mind set-this desire to know God’s mind – His VISION for the future of Redland Baptist Church. Now, I must say, this year’s retreat was ESPECIALLY meaningful. In fact in many ways I see it as the prayerful culmination of several years of retreats, as we have talked and prayed about God’s plans for Redland. This year, we met at the Wehunt’s home on Lake Christopher Drive. Friday night Aaron, Steve, and I each shared our goals for the coming year-goals we had prayerfully prepared. Then, we took some time to evaluate last year-how we have done when it comes to meeting those goals. The next morning, Bill Wehunt, the chair of our Futuring Committee shared his report-the recommendations of his committee when it comes to building and staff development. You (WILL HEAR/HEARD this part of our vision in detail in Sunday School this morning.) Well, I wish you could have been with us on this retreat that Saturday morning when Bill shared, because it was a very powerful moment. I mean, to me it was one of those special moments when I felt like we had clearly heard God’s call to us as a church. It felt like we weren’t “seeing through a glass darkly” but rather “face to face.” It reminded me of a church council retreat about five years ago when God gave us our purpose statement-that night we sat in our family room and agreed that God was calling Redland to be, “A grace-driven church for a grace-needing world.”
In fact, the Saturday morning of this year’s retreat was such a powerful moment, that I pulled out my pad and pen and began to make notes of the church council’s response to Bill’s report-a report that features our building a family life center and calling a new staff member to serve not as a minister of discipleship but rather a minister of outreach-someone to use our gym as a tool of evangelism here in Montgomery County. Here’s some of the things I noted. First, Angie Smith referred to Jim’s upcoming retirement from the navy and their plans to move back to the West coast and excitedly said, “We’re staying! We want to be a part of this.” By they way, I do have that written down Jim and Angie-we’ll be holding you to it! My own eyes were filling with tears and I looked around the room and saw that I wasn’t alone. Several church council members were just as moved as I was. Carol Davis stood up and said, “Last night I prayed and felt God telling us we need a minister of outreach. I’m so thankful and so excited to hear this recommendation.” Rick Edwards said, “I spent time in prayer and kept feeling led back to the Great Commission.” Jim Mitcham said, “I woke up at 2:30AM and felt God pushing me toward evangelism and the importance of ministering to children. We can do both those things with a gym.”
I mean, there was a lot of excitement in that room and as I felt it I wrote, “This IS a retreat. It’s not just another planning meeting. People are getting serious about listening to God’s voice.”
This vision-inspired excitement propelled the rest of the retreat’s planning as we scheduled the next 12 months of ministry and mission. And I hope that after today, the excitement we felt will spread through this entire body-an excitement that will energize us to doing all that God has called us to do in the coming months.
Now, I’ve divided this year’s vision sermon into two parts. In the first part, I want to share with you a brief sketch of what we believe God has called us to do in the coming year. We believe this makes up God’s plan-his “blueprints” for RBC. Then, in the second part I want to take a few minutes to share what I believe it will take for us to accomplish God’s plan.
1. Okay-Part 1 – What has God called us to do? What is His plan?
A. Let’s begin with OUTREACH.
In 2005 we will continue to do approach evangelism with what you might call an “Acts 1:8 mind set.” We will obey our Lord and Savior and both give and go, sharing the gospel “…in Jerusalem and Judea” – that’s here in Montgomery County and the D.C. area, “…in Samaria…” – that’s here in the U.S. of A., and “…in the uttermost parts of the earth.” – that’s over seas and in neighboring nations.
I want to look first at “the uttermost parts” brand of evangelism. We have decided to continue our partnership with the church in Oriental, Mexico and will send a team there, led by Bob Michael, July 16-23. This will be our fourth year to do so. We’ll do VBS and street evangelism, and minister in the prisons as we have done in the past but this year we are also going to try something new. I’ve asked my friend, Steve Baker, to join us. You’ve met Steve and know that as a former IMB missionary, he has a heart for missions. You may remember he returned to the states with health problems after 15 years in the field and now that he’s recovered he’s preparing to go back overseas as an ESL teacher. He feels’ God has called him to use teaching English as a Second Language as an opportunity to share the gospel in nations where normal missionaries aren’t welcome. Well, when I was in Mexico last summer God showed me that ESL would be a great way to share His love with the people of Oriental, because they so desperately want to learn English. Each day I would take a break from the construction crew to stand at the door and welcome the children to VBS, using my limited Spanish to say, “Buenos Dias. Como sta?” Most kids would say, “Bien” or something like that but there were these two brothers who would always respond, “No-Pastor Adams-not Buenos Dias, Como Sta-Good Morning. How are you?” And each day they would want to try out new English words. In fact all the older children flocked to my girls-Sarah and Becca-in an attempt to learn more English. Well, God used all this to show me that if we had an English class, the whole town would come! So, that’s what we’re going to do. Steve is preparing a concentrated ESL curriculum that can be done in one week. And we’ll use that as a platform to share the gospel! I’m VERY excited about this!
Okay-let’s talk about Kenya. As you know we had a team of 20 ready to go there last year but due to an increased terrorism alert level the trip had to be cancelled. Instead of going ourselves we sent materials that the team had prepared, along with money to finance the VBS we were to lead for the children there. This made it possible for students from Daystar Universtity, a Christian school to commute each day and run the VBS in our place. Well, next year we are going to Rwanda. There is no terrorism problem there and Cathie Burke says we could be very useful in the ministry there so stay tuned for details about that trip-but this year instead of going to Kenya-we are bringing Kenya here! This fall we will bring three of the Amani Ya Ju refugee women to spend a week with us! They’ll stay in our homes and share their testimony in worship.
This will help more of us to experience one of the benefits of going on mission-that is rubbing shoulders with the Christians in far away countries that are on mission there every day. I’m thrilled at the prospect of doing this because all of us will get a chance to meet and learn from these women-not just a 20 member mission trip team. For example, we’ll each spend time with Maimuna-a former Muslim, now a believer-but who is persecuted for her faith-threatened with death by Muslims for her faith in Jesus. I think God will use Maimuna’s visit to teach us all that there is a cost involved in being a Christian-and that a growing relationship with Jesus is worth ANY cost!
We’ll need a team of people to help us prepare to do a good job at hosting these women, finding them homes to stay in-organizing meals, etc. Some of you may feel led to serve in this way-or to give to help cover the cost of bringing them here. Now, when it comes to this year’s “…Samaria” missions-we WILL send a team back to Conway, New Hampshire this summer July 20-August 6. And, let me report, that church is growing! They are running over 150 in worship each Sunday with additions each week and are now one of the largest Baptist churches in New Hampshire. I would remind you that when we started this partnership five years ago they where averaging 30! And since they are so healthy, I’d like us to challenge them next year to join with us on mission in some other needy place, like inner city Baltimore, for example! This year we’ll also continue to support the new church start in Milford. (4th Outreach slide) Patrick Lengle, their pastor, and I had lunch last week and that little church is also growing but since his salary with NAMB has been reduced, he has had to go bi-vocational by selling real estate. He’s not discouraged though because that gives him an “in” in the community. Plus, he has a friend who has just graduated from Bible College who has agreed to join him in working to start that needed evangelical church in Milford. So listen up for dates when we will send one-day mission teams to work in Milford this year.
And then when it comes to “Jerusalem and Judea” evangelistic endeavors, we have a calendar full of events that will be spear-headed by our Outreach and Evangelism committee, things like Sports Camps and a “souped-up” PIE program. I also want you to know that I feel led to investigate the possibility of doing ESL here at Redland-using that tool to reach out to all the internationals in our area.
Now, I know (you’ll hear) (you already heard) our Futuring Committee’s recommendation to build starting with a Family Life Center and to call a new full-time staff member tasked with Outreach. But let me take a few minutes to talk about WHY I feel God is leading us in this direction. You see, I believe a gym/family life center will open a door for us to share the Gospel-a UNIQUE door-one that no other church in our area has at the moment. This will be a place where we can run the Upwards Basketball leagues we talked about last year. Awana will be able to use this facility as well. We can run men’s leagues, and senior adult walking programs, and tons of other ministries that can only be done in a gym-and all this will give us an opportunity to tell people about Jesus-people who would never darken our doors otherwise. It will put us in contact with lost, unchurched people-and you can’t share the gospel with lost people-unless you find ways to be in contact with lost people and there are tons of lost people all around us who desperately need to hear the gospel.
In their book Lost in America, Tom Clegg and Warren Bird report,”The unchurched population in the United States is so extensive that, if it were a nation, it would be the fifth most populated nation on the planet…our unchurched population is the largest mission field in the English-speaking world and the fifth largest globally.”
A couple weeks ago I was up at SKYCROFT for a convention meeting and the director told about their opening a “Starbucks style” coffee shop in their little book store. Now, our county’s public schools use SKYCROFT for their outdoor ed camps and before this all those teachers would never enter the bookstore because they know they sell Christian materials. Well, since this coffee shop has opened, they stand in line to get in the bookstore! And they don’t just buy coffee, they buy Christian books and tracts. So, this coffee shop has given SKYCROFT an opportunity to be in contact with lost people and I am convinced that our family life center will do the same for us! Another thing-to use this expensive evangelistic tool properly, we will need a full-time minister to run it-hence this new staff member! I hope you’ll plan to come to one of our town meetings and bring your questions and suggestions about all this!
Now-if you’ve dozed off-wake up an listen to me at this point. Redland does a great job when it comes to providing a church home for all the Christians that come in and out of this area. Using Bill Wehunt’s terminology-we are a wonderful “oasis” for the Christian families Uncle Sam transfers in and out every year. We also provide a “grace-driven” oasis for Christians who become hurt by grace-less, legalistic churches-and don’t get me wrong, I believe God has called us to be an “oasis of grace.” But I also believe He has called us to reach out to-non-Christians-unchurched families! And to do this we are going to have to intentionally do things that enable us to build relationships through which we can share the grace of God, expressed in sending His Son. This gym and full time outreach minister will help us do exactly this.
B. Now, when it comes to fellowship,
I can clearly see God’s leading in calling Angie Smith to continue to help us fulfill this vital purpose of our church. I thank God for all they do! She and her committee have excellent ideas and are already doing top-notch work, like our “Amnesty Sundays” and “Dinners for Eight.” So all I can say is we need to support them in all they are doing as they work to keep this a place that is known for it’s Sweet Sweet Spirit! And then another answer to this Pastor’s prayers is Frank and Virginia Coffman-and their willingness to head up our Sweet Hour Of Prayer Power-SHOPP ministry. We’ve decided to “re-set” this commitment each year so today you need to sign up again. Remember, our desire is to have every hour of the week covered with prayer, as each of us sign up to pray for an hour for the ministry of our church. The Coffmans send out a prayer guide each week and they have set up a sign-up list in the foyer this morning. I’d like to challenge each of you to commit to taking one hour each week for this purpose of praying. Remember, this will only undergird our work and also make our fellowship stronger! You see, as more and more of us spend more and more time in God’s presence, more and more of us will become more and more like Him, which will make our fellowship more and more Godly!
C. Okay, let’s quickly move on to our plans when it comes to MINISTRY.
We have a great deal of exciting things on the calendar but let me mention just a few. First, Brian and Carrie Lagas will lead us this year in manning the Manna Food Bank. I believe several of you went with them to do just that yesterday. Second, our deacons have organized what they call “Habitat for Redlanders” where they pair up skilled carpenters and plumbers and electricians and auto mechanics in our church with members of this body of believers who have need of these kind of services but can’t afford to pay someone. Third, Brian Childs, Fred Corely, and Willie Price have set up sort of a “Job Match”ministry in which they get people who need jobs together with people who need employees. Fourth, this year we’ll once again partner with Baptist Family and Children Services not only with our financial gifts but also by hosting a Christmas party for the foster children, and a back-to-school backpack party for Baltimore’s inner city kids. Both of these ministry efforts were very well received. In fact I have heard Redland complimented several times in convention meetings for our loving labors in this vital ministry. And, then, as you’ve no doubt heard me mention on prior Sundays, with the help of Dorlene Harper and Erica Petrolle, we’re publishing another COOKBOOK. This time the proceeds will go to the children of the Amani Ya Ju refugee women. The ministry is called, “Amani Watoto” which means “Children of Peace.”
As you have heard Cathie share, the ethnic wars and conflicts of Africa have affected many innocent people, especially children. Many African boys and girls have had to face inconceivable hardships of hunger, fear, pain, loss, and distrust as a result of these hostilities. The Amani Watoto program intends to instill in children the values of God’s love and acceptance for one another, regardless of race or ethnic group. The hope is that, through this Christian program, future generations will enjoy a life of peace. The funds generated by this recipe book will help make Amani Watoto a reality for these children. So get your recipes in and get ready to buy and sell the books when they are completed!
D. Now, when it comes to Discipleship in 2005…
I feel we need to continue to work to strengthen our Sunday morning Bible study hour. We’ll not only be evaluating our current dated curriculum, but will also offer undated discipleship studies and in-depth Bible book studies in the Sunday School Hour. You voted unanimously last week to start Awana here at Redland this fall. Al Uy and his team are already working to get this ministry going-it will start September 11. I look forward to the unique slant that Redland puts on this program of Scripture memory. I also believe we should calling one of our own to serve as a volunteer minister of Discipleship. We talked about this on the retreat. We even gave this principle of staff development a name-“The Falconer Factor”-remembering how this has worked in Hugh’s willingness to be our volunteer administrator and with Dona Kauffman’s willingness to be our volunteer Children’s minister. I believe this is a great way to expand our staff because the best leaders come from within. We know them and see God’s gifted-ness in them-and set them apart for special ministry much as the church in Antioch set Paul and Barnabas apart as missionaries.
E. Now, when it comes to WORSHIP…
I think we do a pretty good job. But this year I DOO feel led to add more personal testimonies to our services on a regular basis, and also to bring back Children’s Sermons. Jennifer Crocker will be helping to organize this.
Okay-I’ve answered the first question. We’ve spent several minutes here reviewing all I believe God has specifically called us to do but before we go I want us to answer a second question, namely:
2. “What will it take for us to do all this?” I want to mention two things.
A. First, it will take our sacrificial obedience when it comes to STEWARDSHIP.
And one kind of stewardship it will require is financial. We will have to give of our tithes and offerings in order to finance this plan-especially calling a new staff member. I am happy to report that for many years now Redland has been blessed with financial health. I am so proud of the way you people give! Now, unlike most years, in 2004 we didn’t quite make budget. We only missed it by about seven thousand dollars but at the end of the year we had a surplus of nearly $100,000! Most church stewardship committees struggle to decide which bills to pay, but every year at this time ours meets to decide how to use the surplus. And this is due to your sacrificial giving! Well, to do these things God has called us to do will require our continuing to give sacrificially. This fall our discipleship campaign will be focused on this topic-helping us all understand the importance of acknowledging the fact that Jesus is Lord of all-including our checkbooks. This campaign will also be geared toward helping us raise the necessary funds to build Phase 1-between two and three MILLION dollars. Of course the more we raise the more we can build. I hope that shocks you a bit! To finish this God-given plan-we will need to be stewards of our finances…
…but it will also require us to be good stewards of our TIME. I mean, all these missions and ministries need people power-so more of us will have to become directly involved. More of us will have to move from the pew to the trenches! And this is especially true when it comes to children’s ministry-which by the way is the key to reaching adults! AWANA, and UPWARDS are very powerful, effective programs-but they take people to run them. Sunday School, Graded choirs, missions education these are also powerful, effective programs but they take people to run them. Nursery is a powerful, effective program but it takes people! All these children’s programs are the key to reaching entire families for Christ-BUT THEY TAKE PEOPLE TO RUN THEM! You know, frequently in our weekly staff meeting Jennifer will be discouraged-telling me how many “no’s” she has gotten that week from people she asks to work in preschool and children. And, to be honest, my usual response is to think there’s nothing we can do about this because it is typical for any church to have problems getting people to work with children. I remember, Nancy Walker had this problem and Donna Kauffman had this problem so my first thought is, “It’s not going to go away, Jennifer. We just have to get used to it.” Well hear me on this-to fulfill God’s call to this church we will have to WHIP this problem once and for all! To staff all these necessary ministries we will each have to do our share. In fact, I must remind you that whenever we have a parent/child dedication service, you all PROMISE to do your share! You read that responsive reading and pledge your support! So, here’s my vision for the next year-Jennifer enters my office for staff meeting and says her problem is she has too many people wanting to serve! I mean, the problem of staffing children’s ministries may be normal for many churches but we CANNOT do what God has called us to do here at RBC and have “normal” participation in children’s ministry. We have to be ABNORMAL!
B. And then the second thing accomplishing this vision will require is for us to have an accurate understanding of the CHARACTER of God.
We have to REST in the knowledge that God is all-wise and all-powerful if we are to have the faith required to do all He has called us to do. In his new book The Holy Wild, Mark Buchannan tells about a time one summer when he and his family discovered a nest of snakes living in their basement. They were not poisonous-just some form of harmless black snake-but apparently a pregnant mother snake found her way in to their basement and gave birth. Well, like me-and I imagine many of you-Buchannan hates snakes. He writes, “I once heard of a man who, while digging in his garden, hacked his shin apart with his spade when a garter snake slithered up his pant leg. I understood this, the panic, the wildness, the madness, the willingness to maim yourself to protect yourself. If it had been me and not Adam and Eve in Eden we wouldn’t be in the trouble we’re in, but not because I have greater virtue but because it was a serpent who seduced them. I’d have killed it first.”
Now, the Buchannan house is apparently not air conditioned. They live on the west coast of Canada-and I imagine most homes are like that there. And, on those rare summer nights when things got hot, the Buchannans would sleep in their cool basement. They had put a hide-a-bed down there for this use. Well, when their house became infested with these snakes, Buchanan tried to get rid of them and found the mother snake curled up on the back ledge of the bed frame of this hide-a-bed. He writes, “She was only about fourteen inches long and no thicker than my baby finger. But in my phobic, manic alertness she may as well have been a Burmese python…” The snakes are gone now but ever since that incident he says he has not been able to rest in that room. On hot nights, he just suffers in his bed upstairs. Now-understand that hide-a-bed hasn’t changed. It’s just as sturdy and comfortable and cool. What changed was his experience. He’s always afraid of another snake crawling between the sheets. So, what he thinks about the bed determines whether or not he can rest in it.
Well, the same is true about God. Do you remember Tozer’s powerful statement? “What we think about God is the most important thing about us.” It is! Our knowledge of God affects everything we do or don’t do in His name-and-as Buchanan points out here-“unless and until we REST in God, we will never RISK for Him.” And I will admit, there is a lot of RISK involved in this year’s vision-especially building a multi-million dollar facility and calling a new full-time staff member. But until we rest in the knowledge that God is all-powerful-we will never risk God-sized tasks in His name. Without this knowledge, Redland will never do great things for our Great God. We’ll go on being an oasis for Christians but never become a great missionary outpost that reaches the lost. And I believe-I KNOW-God has called this church to be BOTH!
Now, I can think of no better Sunday for a Christian who is looking for a church home to attend because today you have heard exactly what kind of church God this is. You’ve heard all that we believe calling us to do. And, if after hearing all this, you feel God leading you to join us in fulfilling this vision, then we invite you to walk forward during our closing hymn and ask to move your membership here. Others of you attending this morning may not be Christians and you are seeking purpose and meaning in life. That is only found in a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. We invite you to make that decision this morning and to share it with us. Won’t you come as we sing? And then I also want to invite any of you who so desire to just come to the altar and pray this morning-pray and ask God how He wants you to be involved.
Let’s all respond right now as God leads.