Word
from the Pastor
July
2007
A New Day
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I
am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the
desert.
The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches,
for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in
the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself
that they might declare my praise.”
Isaiah
43:18-21 (ESV)
As I sit to write this to you, Jim Brown and I have just returned from the 27th General Assembly meeting of our
denomination, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). The General Assembly
meeting (GA) is an annual business meeting where the national business of the denomination takes place. There are many procedural and policy issues that we discuss and upon which we vote. It sounds exciting doesn’t it?
Many, if not most, times, it means long hard days of listening, discussing, sometimes arguing, and finally voting on
each of the issues that are brought to us. The business isn’t generally
what you would call exciting in the least.
But this year was different. Something new is in the wind. There was a fresh vitality and exuberant joy that permeated the atmosphere at the meeting. Only one issue brought about any debate, and that only lasted the allotted fifteen minutes until the motion
was passed as presented. Everything else went by smoothly and with complete unity.
All this was due to the main thing on our agenda. That new thing was the
creation of a means for congregations who wish to affiliate with the EPC en masse. Previously,
we could only receive congregations one at a time and pastors one at a time. But
we have such an outcry from people who want to be a part of us that we had to make a way for them to come as a group.
We call this mechanism for receiving large numbers at once the Transitional Presbytery.
This gives churches a chance to join the EPC in a transitional status that gives them a place to affiliate temporarily
while they get to know us and then join us through our regular one at a time process.
What does this mean for our denomination? It means that over the next
few years we have the possibility of doubling or tripling in size. This will
accommodate greater and more effective ministry; more resources for missions and outreach; a much more localized emphasis
due to greater numbers of churches in closer proximity; and the opportunity to spread the good news of God’s kingdom
to a world that is lost.
What does this mean for our congregation? It means that we will probably
have some other congregations close by. I don’t know which ones yet, but
there are churches nearby who are seeking affiliation with the EPC. Cooperative
ministry that helps us to reach the Central Coast
and beyond with the gospel will be a huge plus for the effectiveness of our ministry.
Our youth will be able to engage in joint events with other youth groups for mission trips, conferences, retreats,
service to the local communities, and fun. Regional women’s and men’s
conferences and ministry opportunities won’t be so far-flung. Our congregation
will be able to experience more of what it means to be connectional (a Presbyterian term that means getting together for mutual
support and accountability) within our own denomination. Why is that important? It is because with a common system of belief and common procedures, there is a continuity
of getting things done that bypasses having to try to blend different ways of administrating and operating a ministry or mission
event.
Another new thing that came out of our meeting was a strong emphasis on doing things in a new way in each congregation. That new way involves changing the way we think about the church. We must move out of the maintenance mode of self-service and self-preservation, and to begin to move into
the missional mode of operation. We can no longer afford to focus on ourselves
and catering to the needs that occur only within the context of the people who gather within the four walls of the church
building. It means a personal commitment on the part of each of us to start to
intentionally think about how we can touch the lives of those outside of our congregation with the truth of the gospel.
Of course, we will still take care of our own – that is what Christians are commanded to do for one another. That is why Jesus created the church. But the time has come to move beyond thinking only along those lines and begin to
take all of that practicing we have been doing on taking care of each other, loving each other, ministering to each other,
etc., and start using it to reach others who are outside of the church.
We must pray to see what “ways in the wilderness” and “streams in the desert” God would have
us come alongside Him to create that other people might experience the love of Christ. Many of those outside the church, whether they were once part of a church or they have never been part
of a local body, are just waiting to see and hear what real followers of Jesus look and act like. They need to have the stereotypes of the Church and its members wiped out so they can experience real joy
and peace in Him.
The only way that can happen is through the ministry of each and every one of us thinking about getting in touch with
them, whether it is casually or formally; over the back fence or in your living room; through openly offering to pray (and
following up on that prayer with action) or conducting a neighborhood Bible study; through tangibly displaying the love of
Christ and being willing to speak about the things of God with our neighbors.
It looks like an exciting time ahead of us. God is doing new things in
our midst and around our world. This is going to be one great ride for Heritage
Evangelical Presbyterian Church. HOLD ON!
Be blessed,
Dave
