Encouragement for 2024 from Brother Chip
/There was a prophet in the Old Testament by the name of Nehemiah. Nehemiah was known for leading God's people to rebuild the walls and city of Jerusalem. If you take time to read the story, you find opposition and ridicule all through the process by a couple of men, Tobiah and Sanballat. At every turn, they did their best to thwart the rebuilding of the wall. In Chapter 6 of Nehemiah, we find the wall and gates are almost finished, even with all the attempts by Tobiah and Sanballot to keep it from happening. In chapter 6, Tobiah and Sanballat try one last time to keep Nehemiah and the people from finishing the wall. Tobiah and Sanballat sent Nehemiah a message to meet with them and discuss what was taking place. In reality, they were simply going to do away with Nehemiah and keep the wall from being completed. Six times, they sent the invite for Nehemiah to come meet with them, and six times, he refused; here was his reply 6:3, "…I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down.."
When he sends this reply, the wall is almost done. It would have been easy for him to take a break, to knock off early, to justify some downtime, and simply let those around him finish the wall while he went to a meeting. He had to be tired and worn from all he had done. No one would have blamed him for easing up just a little for a short period, but that was not Nehemiah! Nope, Nehemiah was committed to God and the vision he was given of the restored wall, city, and people. No way was he leaving the wall at that moment when the vision was about to be fulfilled. When God calls a person or people to a project, it is absolutely imperative that they remain on the wall.
Time and time again throughout scripture, we see people called by God to do a work, and then there comes this proverbial moment to decide to stay on the wall or to take a break and come down. As followers of Christ, I believe Jesus' challenge to take up our cross and follow Him daily is the purpose we are called to do. Each day in our lives, we have to decide whether we are going to follow Jesus or ourselves. Am I going to seek fulfillment in Jesus or in the trappings of the world? Am I going to let Jesus mold me into the woman or man He has created me to be or settle on being less than? Am I going to be a follower of His at home, work, public, and private, or am I going to do what I want to do? Are we going to stay on the wall, or are we going to come down?!
I believe we here at FUMC have been given a gift of calling and opportunity. We have been and are called to follow Jesus and make a difference for the Kingdom in our homes and communities. Last February, we began this journey together as FUMC 280. We separated and basically started again as a new congregation. God has given us this fantastic opportunity to start fresh, rebuild, and fulfill the great commission of making disciples for Jesus and see lives transformed. We no longer have to be a body divided, but we have this marvelous moment to come together to make a huge difference in our community for the Kingdom of God. Now, how do we do this? How do we continue to move forward in ministry together in 2024?
First, we do not allow ourselves to be distracted by any pettiness. Examples would be gossiping about one another, demanding our way, or holding on to the hurts of the past. If you want to know if something is calling you off the wall, ask this simple question, "Does this make disciples for God's Kingdom?" That is our North Star and our guiding mission, and all else should pale in comparison to making disciples. One of the most important things we must remember is that many things fall into the temporal category of life, yet our focus should be on the eternal, Jesus. Being like Him and helping others be like Him as disciples is what MUST drive us!
Think with me about our Five Imperatives we have kept before us the last few months. All five are driven by being and making disciples.
Radical Hospitality - (Romans 12:13) Seek out opportunities to show hospitality. Make people feel welcome in the midst of God's people, helping them feel like they belong and are loved by God. Inviting people to experience the love of God by joining us for worship. When people attend our church, making sure they know they are loved and that there is a place for them. When visitors leave worship, they should leave having experienced the Living Christ in some way. They should see, hear, and experience Him through being around His people. They should experience something and someone they will not find in our secular world.
Extravagant Worship - (Psalm 100) Providing a weekly service where people can encounter the living God and experience the joy of fellowshipping with Him. Take time each week as disciples to gather and tell God we love Him! Faithfully worshipping God each week and inviting others to join us is an essential part of being a disciple! Worshipping God is the center of who we are!
Intentional Discipleship - (Matthew 16: 24 - 26) Pick up your cross and follow. Make a conscious choice to grow deeper roots of faith as a follower of Jesus. Individually spend time with Jesus daily through prayer, journaling, studying the scriptures, and other spiritual disciplines. Corporately, consistently worship God together each week, weekly being a part of a Bible Study or Small Group, and serving together those in need around us in the community.
Mission and Service - (James 2:18 - 26) Faith without works is dead. Simply put, be the hands and feet of Christ. Seeing the needs around us in our world and addressing them with love, kindness, compassion, and God's heart. This is the follow-through of being a disciple of Jesus.
Extravagant Generosity - God gave extravagantly, and we should do the same. (John 3:16) This is giving God our time, talent, gifts, service, and witness, being generous and looking for ways to bless and not curse, operating with open hearts and open hands, and using the blessings that have come from God to help others around us in His name! Giving and blessing become part of our nature because we have the heart of God, whose nature is to give extravagantly! We love and bless because He did so unto us first!
As we enter a new year, I encourage you to continue to practice our Five Imperatives. God has begun a fantastic work here at FUMC 280, and He wants it to continue. I know there will be moments when we tire of being on the wall, but do not come down! Keep praying, keep loving, keep giving, keep reaching out, keep witnessing, and keep being a part of what God has called us to do! Make disciples! Stay on the wall and we will be amazed at what God will do!
Peace and Grace,
Brother Chip