A Sense of Purpose

You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 16:11

If you’re experiencing tough times, you may be asking yourself “What does God want me to do next?” Perhaps you’re pondering your future, uncertain of your plans, unsure of your next step. But even if you don’t have a clear plan for your life’s journey, you may rest assured that God knows.

God has a plan for the universe, and God has a plan for you. God understands that plan as thoroughly and completely as God knows you. If you seek God’s will earnestly and prayerfully, God’s plans will be revealed in God’s own way.

Perhaps your vision of God’s purpose for your life has been clouded by a wish list that you have expected God to dutifully fulfill. Perhaps, you have fervently hoped that God would create a world that unfolds according to your wishes. If so, you have probably experienced more disappointment than satisfaction and more frustration than peace. A better strategy would be to allow your life to be a tool for God to use to help others to make the world a better place.

Sometimes, God’s plans and purposes may seem unmistakably clear. But other times, you may be lead through the wilderness before you see the Promised Land. So be patient and keep seeking God’s will for your life. When you do, you’ll be amazed at the marvelous things that an all-powerful, all-knowing God can do.

God does not discipline us to subdue us, but to condition us for a life of usefulness and blessedness.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord, let Your purposes be my purposes. Let Your priorities be my priorities. Let Your will be my will. Let Your Word be my guide. And, let me grow in faith and in wisdom today and every day. Amen

How to Grow a Church

Sometimes we feel overwhelmed by the competition…we just cannot compete with the youth program down the street or the church that has all the young families in town.

The real truth is that our competition is not the church down the road.

Most youth do not attend a church because the church has a Family Life Center, most people do not attend a church because it is large and no church has all the young families in town.

In our community, every church in town could double in size and there would still be plenty of people who were not attending church.

Churches are not competing against other churches for new people.  Instead, they are competing against all of the other things a person could do and all the other things a person values. People have many options on Sunday morning –sleep in late, read the paper, play online games, participate in sports, have friends over for lunch, take a day trip, work, study for school, spend time with family, etc.

If we want to see our church grow we need to do something that will lead people to make the decision that going to church is one of their top priorities for a Sunday morning. 

What is there about our church that would lead someone to make such a decision?

Most churches say they want to grow but very few are growing.  We almost always underestimate the amount of change that will be required to get the results we want.  If we really want to reach new people with the life-changing message of Jesus we are going to have to change more than we think.
Lasting change comes as the result of a sustained effort focused upon a few key things.  Churches do not change because people read a book, attend a single workshop, have a Bible study or wish things were different.  Instead, things change because the laity provides good leadership embracing a good decision-making process and maintaining focused goals over a period of time.