This past Sunday, we looked at the story of Moses and we ended up asking 2 different questions.
–What is the Lord calling/challenging/commanding each of us individually to do?
–Whats keeping us from doing/responding/following through with whatever it is?
If you missed the service on Sunday, Id encourage you to check out the message! Click here. It has been such a blessing to hear from so so many of you and how the Lord has used it! I pray that the Lord would continue to move and press us to respond to what it is that He has laid on our hearts.
The challenge on Sunday was to ask these questions to ourselves, but Id love for us to take a couple of minutes to think about these questions for Embrace as a whole.
–What is the Lord calling Embrace to do? Whats He challenging us as a church with?
I truly cant even begin to sum up what the Lord is already doing in and through this church right now. I get the blessing of hearing stories on a now daily basis of all the things that are happening often left speechless by them. Its awesome. As Ive shared, Im excited about whats in store this summer Its going to be solid! But were also already looking towards and preparing for this Fall and I cant contain myself whenever I start thinking about it. Lord, please move in such a way that we clearly cant take the credit for any of it.
But back to the question whenever I ask it for Embrace what I keep hearing is this Dont get comfortable. Dont play it safe. Dont become a typical church. Its not about us or our comfort. Its about the Lord and those yet to come. Keep moving forward. Continue taking steps of faith. Reach the next person for Christ.
Ill be honest in saying that theres been (many) times that I havent wanted to hear this from the Lord whatsoever! Why? It would be so. much. easier. to play it safe. It would be much more comfortable to slow down and become a normal church. Itd be so nice to not have to take any more steps of faith. And yet as we said on Sunday, weve only got one life. And I dont know about you, but I wanna be a part of something thats much bigger than myself. I wanna be a part of a church thats willing to do anything the Lord asks thats willing to do anything to tell the next person about Jesus. I so badly want my life my one life to matter in the realm of eternity.
I question my sanity in praying this (Bec questioned that a long time ago) but I pray that wed never become a normal, tame, safe, ineffective, political/judgmental filled, fair, predictable, typical dead church the same kind of church that turned many of us away from God in the past. But instead that wed look forward. That wed continue to take seemingly crazy steps of faith. Reaching people yet to be reached. Serving others expecting nothing in return. That wed give generously. That wed run from any sort of comfort zone. That wed place others before ourselves. That it would constantly and always be about the Lord and not any of us (including the pastor!) That the Lord would use the life of this church for His glory.
Now to the second question.
–What would keep us as a church from doing/responding/following through with this?
I pray that nothing would. Lord, help us to follow you.