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
