2 things

When I think about the future of West K, I get excited.  This church has so much potential, so long as we remain in the potter’s hands.  As we continue to give God glory and to seek out His will for this church, we know that we have two major callings: Creating disciples and reaching the lost.

Our first call is to create disciples (Matthew 28:19).  The staff and leadership have spent a considerable amount of time talking and discussing this calling and the methods we use in doing this.  Simply put, a disciple is someone who is growing to look more like Jesus.  Recently, I have loathed the responsibility I now have as a home-owner to rake and burn leaves.  I have spent hours and hours raking and burning.  I even received some help by a few of you in the congregation in this task.  Here is what I noticed; the longer I stayed outside burning leaves, the more I smelled like it.  Not just my clothes, but my hair (the little that I have) and my skin.  Burning leaves have a very distinct smell and it is as if the smoke has saturated my entire body.  Likewise, discipleship is growing to smell like Jesus.  Not literally, but being saturated by something so distinct that those around you can’t help but notice that you spend time with Jesus.  And that time you spend with Jesus permeates to those around you.  Over the next few weeks and months, you will notice that we will be emphasizing our individual and cooperate discipleship.  We want to encourage and enrich that smell of Jesus on our lives.  This involves every area from talking with your neighbors and co-workers, to parent’s discipleship of their children. 

Our second call is to reach people for Christ.  Each of us has an individual, as well as corporate role to play in sharing the gospel.  There are many ways to do this, but it will not occur without being intentional.  It is not by chance that you live where you live, work where you work, and know those around you.  God has blessed each and every one of us with an opportunity and it’s our responsibility to be intentional with those opportunities.  I used to spend time praying that God would reach the people I know for Christ, unaware that he had positioned me to be used as a means to answer that prayer.  Continue praying for those around you, that God would reveal himself to them and they would see their need for Him as savior and redeemer.  But be aware that God will very likely use you as the method to answer that prayer.

I would encourage you to read Hebrews 10:19-25 today.  May God use this to spur you forward.

 

*Special notes – this Sunday is our Thanksgiving congregational dinner at 5pm.  I hope to see you all there.  Also, keep your ears tuned into the announcements this coming Sunday as I will be sharing some key things up front.