I'm Available

When the prophet Isaiah had his vision of the glory of the Lord in the temple (Isaiah 6:1-8), he heard God asking who would take on the mission that he had.  Isaiah boldly proclaimed “Here am I. Send me!”  He is wonderful role model of how we can respond to the challenges that the Lord sends to us.

Often, however, it’s hard for us to know exactly what God wants us to do.  Very, very few of us have an experience like Isaiah’s, where the Lord speaks to us in a voice that’s impossible to ignore.  The life of discipleship for us more frequently involves trying to sense what God’s will is for us, or what mission he has in mind for us.  Over the years, I’ve had a number of people who have been so excited about the faith that they were eager to do anything for God.  But they didn’t know what God wanted them to do.  My advice was simple: tell God that you’re available, and he’ll give you a mission.  If you express your desire to serve, God will honor it.  Things will fall into place, usually in surprising ways, and you’ll find yourself making a difference in the name of Jesus Christ.  You may even find it so enjoyable and fulfilling that you wonder if it’s too easy.  That’s because you’re doing exactly what God has called you to do.

Since our special worship service on January 18, Old Union has been considering the theme verse that God has given to us:

“Encourage one another, and build each other up.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

This commission from the Lord is something that comes quite naturally to Old Union Church.  Many of us have had our lives and faith strengthened through the ministry of this church, and many of us have experienced the satisfaction of encouraging others.

Now that we understand the identity of our church, the next step is to figure out how to live it.  What can we do to encourage and build people up?  We do a decent job within our church family, but what about everyone else?  How can Old Union become a beacon of encouragement and up-building in our community?

To answer these questions, all we need to do is tell God, “I’m available.”  Old Union Church is available.  We’re ready and eager to serve God.  And then we watch.  We’ll discover people in our community who are discouraged, whose lives have been shattered.  Opportunities will fall in our lap to make difference in the lives of the hurting people of our community.  It won’t start with something heroic or splashy, but with simple, easy activity that will eventually develop into something that takes our breath away.

Please join me in telling God, “We’re available.  Old Union Church is ready to do what you want us to do.  Here we are.  Send us.”  Then watch to see what God will show us.

A Special Worship Service

Old Union had an unusual worship service on January 18.  Usually, as the pastor I select a Bible passage and tell the congregation how I think it applies to our lives.  Instead, you selected 14 Bible passages in advance, and told each other how you think they apply to our congregation.  During worship, we divided into five groups, each led by two elders, for lively and uplifting discussion.  By the end of the service I sensed a renewed excitement about our church, and how God is at work in it.

I was also very aware of how God was at work through the entire process: through the session as we planned the event, and through the congregation as He brought to people’s minds powerful and insightful Bible passages.  During the week before this worship service, I thought to myself, “Could I even dare to imagine that God would have all the groups select the same passage as the one that best describes our church?”  With 14 excellent passages to choose from, and five groups doing the choosing, it didn’t seem possible.  But it was.  After all, all things are possible with God!  All five groups selected the same passage, which was also the passage the session had selected during their discussion the week before.  Apparently God wants to use this Scripture to guide us in our ministry and mission:

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, 

just as in fact you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).

As exciting as the January 18 worship was, it is only the beginning.  Now that we have a guiding vision for our church, it’s time to do something with it.  On January 25 I began a series of sermons on this passage, and the verses that come before and after it, to help us learn as much from it as possible.  The session is developing plans for how all of us can use this verse focus our attention on what God wants us to do.  As we grow in our understanding what God is telling us, we will be able to focus the life of our church around it, giving purpose and meaning to all that we do.

Spend some time reflecting on these questions that arise from the passage.

• What can we do to encourage one another?
• What can we do to encourage our community?
• What can we do to build each other up?
• What can we do build up our community?
• How can we do these things together, as a church?
• How can we do these things as individual members?

The session and I would love to hear your suggestions and ideas!

This is not something new.  The discussion groups on the 18th talked about the many ways that Old Union and its people already encourage and build people up.  By focusing on these gifts and considering how we can use them to touch a discouraged and broken-down world, we can be part of God’s work to increase his kingdom.

 Peter