A New Hope

Yesterday was AMAZING!  What a great time of worship together, and if I had to put a movie title to all the things that are happening right now at WestK, it would be “WestK: A New Hope.”  God has been moving among the people of this local church, and we are seeing continual spiritual revival!!!

Next week we are kicking off a new sermon series on the “I Am” statements Jesus uses in the Gospel of John.  While Jesus uses this statement over 20 times in this gospel, over the next 7 weeks we are going to be diving into 7 times where Jesus reveals himself and his relationship with the Father through the words “I Am.”  Also, this next Sunday we are going to have an affirmation vote by the members of the congregation about the Eldership and my desire to step into the full-time lead minister role.    I have talked with many of you about how this transition will take place and what affect it will have on the youth ministry.  Well here are some key points that you need to be aware of: -      Over the next 2 months, I will be meeting with the leadership and parents to discuss the future structure of the youth program. -      Over the next 2 months, I will be meeting and talking with students to discuss the future of the youth programs. -      Over the next few months, I will be working with the youth staff volunteers to discuss the structure, involvement, and functionality of the youth programs. -      Over the next few months, I will be working with the leadership and further discussion about additional ministerial support and how this factors in to everything. -      Currently, I am teaching Jr./Sr. High Sunday school and will continue to fill this role. -      Currently, I am leading our Wednesday night youth group and will continue to remain involved in this.  Starting in January, I will continue to remain regularly involved in this program, but potentially with a limited role.    I look forward to working with the youth staff, parents, and students as we all make this transition together.  A beautiful thing about the church is that we are called to be the church together.  The church is not any one person; we were never created to do this alone.  Instead, we were created and are now gifted to support, love, and encourage one another.  If we try to do anything alone, we will struggle and fail.  However, as a church - a unified body of believers, God has empowered us to do many amazing things for his glory.

Take a moment and read Philippians 4:6-7.  We don’t have to be anxious/worried about anything, including the future of the youth ministry.  But we do need to pray, so I would ask that over the next few weeks and months, that you would continue to pray over the key points that I listed above.  There is power in prayer and I ask that as you pray over the areas above, that you also keep your eyes open in expectation to the Father’s answer.