I am praising Jesus - Annual General Meeting Report

I AM PRAISING JESUS

Church “Annual General Meetings” are not dry, dusty and dull.  No!  They resonant with life and vibrancy and energy.  Why?  Because they are a moment to celebrate what God has done and to seek God together for what he will do.  I hope you will find twenty minutes at work or in a slow evening at home or while the kids slouch in front of the TV to pause, enjoy, and praise God as you read through these reports. [Note: this blog post is only my introduction and not the whole, exciting pack of information!]

Our values remain loving people, courageous in mission, Bible saturated and Spirit dependent.  What this annual moment allows us to see is how God has moved us forward from a tentative sense last May to a reality of being ‘beacons’ (in Chris’ image); of a response to Ali Boulton’s question (‘Is God calling us to move from a local church to a regional movement?’); of a fulfilment of Sue and Ruth’s word ‘pioneer’.

I am praising Jesus!

Making Jesus Known

The Apostle Paul writes: ‘…I have made myself a slave to everyone to win as many as possible.  To the Jew I became a Jew to win the Jews…To those not under the law I became like one not under the law…so as to win those…To the weak I became weak to win the weak.  I have become all things to all people so that by all means possible I might save some.’  (1Corinthians 9:19-23)

We do not compromise ‘keeping his Word’ nor accept ‘denying his name’, but we do courageously and together walk through the doors ‘he opens’ willing to compromise our preferences and comfort for his glory (Revelation 3:7-8).  It’s our value of courageous in mission.

This year God has quite amazingly created the resources to purchase ‘Beacon Church House’ on Marston Grange, working to provide us with a house bigger and better than we planned ourselves!  On May 8^th Kevin and Wendy Mills ‘preach with a view’ to join our staff team as our ‘evangelists’ leading our mission there.

I am praising Jesus!

As I write (Thursday evening April 28^th) our first ‘core group’ gathering of those potentially called to reach the Highfields Estate are meeting and praying together.  The seed is sown on a remarkable journey.  God has opened doors into some of the most resistant families on the estate; into Castlechurch School (185 children came into the centre for ‘Easter Explorers’); and in terms of unexpected but welcome funding.  It was only in September Matt was formally ordained and called, partly to lead this mission.

I am praising Jesus!

This Sunday (May 1^st) is the third week of ‘Simply Church’, our new Sunday afternoon meeting at Sandon Road with a solid core group establishing themselves ready for mission.  Our mid-week activities at Sandon Road are at new ‘highs’ with the transition of pre-school to full time hours with almost 60 children (around half from the MOD) executed excellently by Ruth and her team.  Brigades and Marching band are filling the space; BFG is growing into a permanent home; and our Tuesday Stay and Play is planning for a new ‘mission’ focus for its growing numbers; plus countless other activities and programs too.  Our links with John Wheeldon remain fantastic and plans for ‘phase 2’ and a completion of the building are underway.  I also remain a governor at John Wheeldon Primary Academy and Western Road Academy.

I am praising Jesus!

Our morning service at Beacon International Centre continues to grow, perhaps most excitedly with the 12 and 13^th baptisms of the last 12 months on May 1^st, with more already scheduled for July.  (Should we think about a second morning service?).  Our business operations, led by Andy Oxlade, and our mission here, led by Matt, are both strong – bolstered by newly introduced ‘chaplains’.  Mid-Week Connect is now well-established with its own distinct group of people meeting weekly and Chinese Church is healthy and strong.

I am praising Jesus!

After a wonderful trip I was privileged to make in December, in June 12 of us head to Smile in Nepal to support and learn from Nawaraj and Vidya’s incredible work there.

I am praising Jesus!

It’s also been a delight to be released to preach at two University missions and around a dozen outside ‘evangelistic’ preaching opportunities this year as well as offer some support to fellow-ministers and churches in our HEBA network.  Later this year we will have some ‘ministers-in-training’ spend a month or so learning with us and a number of ministers from our region and beyond continue to visit and share ‘best practice’.  Later in May our ‘General Sectary’ who oversees the 2000 odd churches that are BUBG has asked to visit and explore our ‘model’ of church.  All this is a great way to ‘partner in God’s grace’ with other local churches.

I am praising Jesus!

Knowing a few people well

It’s about making Jesus known (our value of courageous in mission) but also about knowing one another – realistically a few people well.  Of sharing life in all its complexity.  To this end we remain committed to growing in such a way that no ‘main meeting’ (a church service in the traditional language) is ever much more than a hundred regular adults (yes, I know Sunday mornings are already past this!).  It means they can be relationally high (no one feels lost or overwhelmed and people are quickly able to contribute); specific in their mission (meeting at lunchtimes, or speaking Chinese, or for a particular estate); but supported and resourced by the wider, larger body.  But alongside this in January we focussed on our smaller groups, launching a number of new ones and creating further opportunities to get to know a few people better.  Our weekends away this year I hope will prove another great way to get to know and love each other well – and how fantastic to have two for the first time!

I am praising Jesus!

Trellis to support the Vine

God has moved us from last May when we articulate a vision of being ‘beacons’ – perhaps in four local communities (and what an outrageous, gospel ambition that was) – to very really if tentatively and initially being one church used to grow God’s kingdom from within four local communities.  Alongside our established ‘main meetings’ of distinct groups of Mid-Week Connect (Wednesday), Chinese Church (Thursday); Sunday Morning at 10.30am and Sunday Evening at 6.30pm, we now have Sunday Afternoon at 4.00pm; a Highfields core group meeting; and later this year every expectation God will have begun something more than just bricks and mortar on Marston Grange.

I am praising Jesus!

But this needs ‘trellis’ to support and enable the vine to grow.  A trellis partly made of money, staff and leaders.

Over the last three years God has moved us from a £25+k deficient to this year an expectation of around £4.5k deficient.  This is remarkable. 

As a church we are responsible for 17 remunerated staff across church, pre-school and businesses.  Three church (Alex, Matt, Roberta); nine pre-school; five business.  I directly have the pleasure of line-managing Matt, Ruth and Andy who then oversee their own teams.

Our leaders are exceptional across the church in a 100 ways.  Chris and Lawrence personally for me are fellow-elders of the highest calibre and their leadership is used by God to bring liberty, creativity and courage to my ministry personally and our mission corporately.  They are not, by far, the only leaders we have but they are deserving of ‘double honour’ as 1 Timothy commands.

I am praising Jesus!

Challenges

The year has of course had challenges. 

Though in some ways our engagement with the MOD has increased, the formal ‘OCM Chaplaincy’ role I have had for the last few years is being made nationally redundant later this year.  There may actually be some advantages to this as we work on a new mechanism to allow me access. 

As we grow I have expected to find a challenge to some of my primary focusses – will I neglect praying or become casual about preaching or disengaged pastorally or fail to offer a God-discerning lead?  I hope I have served the gospel well by maintaining a right focus on ‘prayer and ministry of the Word’ (Acts 6:4).  I think I have, not least because of the leaders who encourage, enable and insist on that!   

I am praising Jesus!

And next

On the latest ‘Pray Continually’ my favourite day is 30^th.  It’s a great way to launch you into the pages that follow:

“Pray for new ventures, steps of faith and ways we could be used by God to initiate new mission or rejuvenate stagnated churches.  Pray we would have open ears and obedient wills to God’s calling.  ‘It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known…"  (Romans 15:20)”

‘Not to us O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory…’  (Psalm 115:1)

Alex

What kind of children are we birthing as a church?

We are moving forward in 2016 to initiating three new 'churches' - we call them congregations in the sense they are all part of the whole that is Beacon Church.  But in terms of they will serve their communities and love one another they would be what the Bible thinks of as a 'church'.  It's a good moment to remind ourselves of some core realities - not least the question of why church?  What is its purpose and point?  What kind of children are we birthing as a church?

Why did God create the church?

In Ephesians 3:10 the Bible makes an incredible claim about God’s intention for the church:

[God’s] intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known…

Slightly earlier it says the ‘boundless riches of Christ' have been ‘kept hidden in God’ (3:8-9).  Now they are being made know ‘through the church’!  The church exists to display ‘the manifold wisdom of God’ and ‘the boundless riches of Christ’!  The ultimate purpose of the church is to give the world an accurate experience of God’s wisdom and riches in Christ – both when we are together and when we are in our ordinary lives.

If the church is meant to put God on display, what is it meant to be like to show God accurately?

What is the church meant to be like?

The New Testament has four pictures that describe the people called ‘church’.  Our values of loving people, courageous in mission, Bible saturated and Spirit dependent flow from them.

The church is like a loving family. 

902 times the church is described as a family with us as brothers and sisters and God our loving parent. 

I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters’ says the Lord Almighty. (2Corinthians 6:18)[1]

For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.  (Matthew 12:49-50)

Sometimes the church is described as being the bride of Christ – Jesus is our husband and we, collectively his bride.

This is a profound mystery [marriage] – but I am talking about Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:32)

I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so to present you as a pure virgin [or bride] to him.  (2Corinthians 11:2)

Let us rejoice and be glad and give him the glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.  (Revelation 19:7)

These both emphasis love, safety, acceptance and belonging.  They emphasis the care of God and care of one another.  The church should be a place that can embrace and accept people whatever their background or life experiences, even when there are substantial areas of disagreement or major differences in behaviour which we feel unable to endorse.  The adoptive nature of God’s family means it should be multi-cultural, multi-generational, multi-ethic and multi-faceted.  All are welcome.  Everyone is given space to belong, every contribution is valued, every life important. 

Belonging to the church means becoming part of this family of God locally – committing to being loved by and being ready to love your new family.  It means accepting God as your Father.

The church is like a fruitful farm. 

For example the church is like an ‘orchard’ – either of grapes or olives:

I am the vine, and my Father is the gardener…you are the branches.  (John 15:1,5)

…if the root is holy so are the branches…share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself superior to those other branches…  (Romans 11:17-24).

Or a field of crops.

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow…you are God’s field.  (1Corinthians 3:6-9)

But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understand it.  (Matthew 13:1-30)

I tell you open your eyes and look at the fields.  They are ripe for harvest.  (John 4:35).

These emphasis the church as a place of growth and fruit in both mission and maturity.  A place ready to try all sorts of new initiatives and ideas.  Farmers especially do this in a famine: diversify, try new techniques, and courageously experiment without losing sight of the main fruit – belief in Jesus.  The church needs to be growing.  The church needs to be able to adapt to changes in environment so it continues to be fruitful, taking risks and embracing change for the sake of gospel fruit.  The church should strive for innovation and creativity as a movement seeking to win and mature people in Christ and influence society for good. 

Belonging to the church means being committed to helping others know and grow in Jesus and desiring that for yourself.  It includes accepting that the church will change.

The church is like a fortress of Bible truth. 

For example the church as a building, temple or house.

You are…God’s building.  (1Corinthians 3:9)

…you are being built into a spiritual house… (1Peter 2:4-8)

But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house.  And we are his house.  (Hebrews 3:6).

…you are…his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.  In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.  (Ephesian 2:19-22)

In 1Timothy 3:15 the metaphor of the church as a building relates to our approach to Bible truth. 

…God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and buttress of the truth.  (1Timothy 3:15)

The church is described both as a pillar (holding the truth high) and a buttress (holding the truth firm).  God is the Architect and Jesus is the ‘cornerstone’ – the building block that all others have to line up to for the building to be straight and true and strong.  The church values the Bible, placing it central in its corporate and individual lives, aligning and submitting to its teaching even when that goes against the grain of society.  Proclaiming it (a pillar) and defending it (a buttress).

Belonging to the church means being committed to the Bible – hearing it taught in church, seeking to be obedient to what it says, and doing our best to tell it to others. 

The church is like a healthy, complete body. 

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ…And so the body is not made up of one part but of many…As it is there are many parts but one body…Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is part of it. (1Corinthians 12:12-27)

And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way…grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.  (Ephesians 1:22-23 & 4:15-16)

These emphasis the church unified because of the work of God the Spirit and our need to be dependent on him.  It shows that all in the church have been given a gift by God to pass on to others so together we are whole. 

Belonging to the church means being part of a unified body, doing our part to serve and complete the whole.  It means realising all have something to contribute and being ready to serve with our contribution and gift.  The church is constantly seeking to release people into the gifts.  The Spirit is the gift giver and the unifying glue in this one body. 

So to display God to the world (the reason the church exists) our prayer is to be used by God to birth churches that are:

• A loving family with God as Father with an ability to embrace, welcome and show hospitality to all.
• A fruitful farm with God as the Farmer with courage and creativity in mission, trying new ways to reach and mature people in Jesus from all walks of life, both in the UK and overseas.
• A strong fortress of Bible truth with God as the Architect and Jesus as the Cornerstone with the Bible saturating all aspects of our life together.
• A Spirit-enabled body with Jesus as the Head with Spirit-dependent living and serving others as hallmarks of our unity as one.

What does it mean to be a member of a church?

Is it about a monthly meeting?  Is it just for those who are keen?  How do I qualify?  Does it matter, really?

As we start the new academic year it might be worth a moment’s reflection – whether you are a member of a church or not.  If you would like to consider being a member of our church or would like to refresh your understanding of membership drop Alex a line (pastoralexharris@gmail.com) or come along to the Beacon International Centre at 7.30 on September 23^rd.

But here’s something to get you thinking…

Is ‘membership’ even in the Bible?

Yes, ‘membership’ is in the Bible.  The New Testament assumes a clarity about who is part of the church is.[i]  Commands to leaders assume those leaders know who they are leading and are responsible for; the New Testament letters are written to ‘the church in….’ which assumes both the church internally and society externally knew who was meant; and in Acts we read of a number of times of people being sent out ‘by the church’ or of issues arising ‘in the church’ as a defined group.[ii]  We may want to acknowledge there are some blurred edges to this group but nevertheless there seems a clear implicit assumption that the church knew who it was. 

Chester and Timmis summarise this well:

To be a Christian is by definition to be part of a community…the New Testament assumes commitment to real people in real local churches with all their faults and foibles.[iii]

Belonging in church

There are of course lots of ways to belong to church, all to be celebrated and all part of our journey with Jesus.

Some are fans positive about the church and what it does but who are watching and appreciative as opposed to part of the adventure of faith themselves. 

Some are friends further along than just spectators.  They are engaged with faith and with church but perhaps not fully committed – either to Jesus or to the church. 

All can be family by trusting Jesus as their Lord and Saviour and then committing to this local church as their immediate brothers and sisters to help them follow Jesus.

We obviously long for people to move from fans to friends to family and celebrate and respect all levels of belonging.  But it is the ‘family’ level we now turn to. This is our vision of how we relate, love and lead within the context of being brothers and sisters.  This is membership.

This family relationship is defined by love:  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.  (John 13:34-35)  But what does this love look like?

A wonderful word in the Bible to describe this: Koinonia[iv]

This is the Greek word translated as membership, partnership, or fellowship in English.  One definition has it: 

The New Testament describes bonds so vital and genuine that a deep level of intimacy can be experienced among the members of a local church…The word has such a multitude of meanings that no single English word is adequate to express its depth and richness…It is a complex, rich, and thoroughly fascinating approach to building community or teamwork.[v]

In Luke 5:7 it is used to describe the fishermen Jesus first called.  They are family linked biologically as two sets of brothers.  They are partners linked financially and socially.  They are mutually-reliant on each other, linked physically in a dangerous and demanding profession.  So a commitment to become a member is a commitment to others of this magnitude.  After 50 years leading in the local and global church John Stott can write:

Our growth into maturity, according to the purpose of God, takes place in the context of a family group…it is lone members of the congregation who hold themselves aloof from a more intimate Christian fellowship, who are likely to stunt or damage their spiritual progress.[vi]

Koinonia is both about rules in an organisation and relationships that are organic.  It is more enduring that a legal document and more tender than an informal relationship.  More binding than both ink and blood.

It is expressed by 59 ‘one another’ verses in the New Testament: to love, to be at peace, to encourage, to correct one another, and so the list goes on.  You can see the full list in the footnotes.[vii]

Summary

The weight of the Bible’s material on membership is toward being a committed band of brothers and sisters helping each other and loving each other so the world can see through our relationships what God is truly like.  Therefore:

It is about real support in each other’s lives.

Sometime called pastoral care but perhaps better simply called ‘loving each other’ this is the heart of church membership.  It is truly, practically, lovingly, bravely and enduringly being brothers and sisters who are commitment to seeing Jesus reflected in each other and ready to correct and be corrected when we drift from that.  It should be both organic and relational, and organised and central.  So any structure around membership is mostly about creating the environment where relationships can flourish and steering people toward committing to love each other come what may, including the necessary tough love we all need at times.  It is about being family.

It is about a public, verified statement of your faith as genuine.

Leeman answers the question ‘What is church membership’ like this:

It’s a declaration of citizenship in Christ’s kingdom.  It’s a passport.  It’s an announcement made in the pressroom of Christ’s kingdom.  It’s the declaration that you are official, licensed, card-carrying, bona fide Jesus representative.[viii]

When we accept someone as a member we are saying to them and to the world – you are a Christian; look here if you want to see a representative of Jesus.  It is about mission.

It is about purposeful support of the church family’s mission.

It means being delighted in getting involved as and how you can in all sorts of ways in the corporate life and mission of the church.  It means contributing in time and skills, money and wisdom as Jesus’ family together on his mission, sharing an agreed vision and carrying an appropriate part of that shared burden.

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[i] Jonathan Leeman, Church Membership (Crossways, 2012) chapter 2 ‘Membership sightings in the New Testament’ is a good summary.

[ii] It’s worth noting here we butcher the biblical meaning of the word ‘church’ in English.  It can mean the people, the building, an individual church, the churches across a town, the global church, the universal church of all believers across time and space, the ‘national, Anglican church, etc.  In Greek it simply and only means ‘a gathering of people’.

[iii] Tim Chester and Steve Timmis, Total Church (IVP, 2007) p.84-85

[iv] John Stott, The Living Church (IVP, 2007) has a brilliant, short chapter on the meaning and implications of this word.  Chapter 5: Fellowship: The Implications of Koinonia (p.91ff)

[v] New Bible Dictionary (IVP)

[vi] John Stott, The Living Church (IVP, 2007) p.92

[vii] 1. “…Be at peace with each other.” (Mark 9:50) 2. “…Wash one another’s feet.” (John 13:14) 3. “…Love one another…” (John 13:34) 4. “…Love one another…” (John 13:34) 5. “…Love one another…” (John 13:35) 6. “…Love one another…” (John 15:12) 7. “…Love one another” (John 15:17) 8. “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love…” (Romans 12:10) 9. “…Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10) 10. “Live in harmony with one another…” (Romans 12:16) 11. “…Love one another…” (Romans 13:8) 12. “…Stop passing judgment on one another.” (Romans 14:13) 13. “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you…” (Romans 15:7) 14. “…Instruct one another.” (Romans 15:14) 15. “Greet one another with a holy kiss…” (Romans 16:16) 16. “…When you come together to eat, wait for each other.” (I Cor. 11:33) 17. “…Have equal concern for each other.” (I Corinthians 12:25) 18. “…Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (I Corinthians 16:20) 19. “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (II Corinthians 13:12) 20. “…Serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13) 21. “If you keep on biting and devouring each other…you will be destroyed by each other.” (Galatians 5:15) 22. “Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:26) 23. “Carry each other’s burdens…” (Galatians 6:2) 24. “…Be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (Ephesians 4:2) 25. “Be kind and compassionate to one another…” (Ephesians 4:32) 26. “…Forgiving each other…” (Ephesians 4:32) 27. “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” (Ephesians 5:19) 28. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21) 29. “…In humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3) 30. “Do not lie to each other…” (Colossians 3:9) 31. “Bear with each other…” (Colossians 3:13) 32. “…Forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.” (Colossians 3:13) 33. “Teach…[one another]” (Colossians 3:16) 34. “…Admonish one another (Colossians 3:16) 35. “…Make your love increase and overflow for each other.” (I Thessalonians 3:12) 36. “…Love each other.” (I Thessalonians 4:9) 37. “…Encourage each other…”(I Thessalonians 4:18) 38. “…Encourage each other…” I Thessalonians 5:11) 39. “…Build each other up…” (I Thessalonians 5:11) 40. “Encourage one another daily…” Hebrews 3:13) 41. “…Spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” (Hebrews 10:24) 42. “…Encourage one another.” (Hebrews 10:25) 43. “…Do not slander one another.” (James 4:11) 44. “Don’t grumble against each other…” (James 5:9) 45. “Confess your sins to each other…” (James 5:16) 46. “…Pray for each other.” (James 5:16) 47. “…Love one another deeply, from the heart.” (I Peter 3:8) 48. “…Live in harmony with one another…” (I Peter 3:8) 49. “…Love each other deeply…” (I Peter 4:8) 50. “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” (I Peter 4:9) 51. “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others…” (I Peter 4:10) 52. “…Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another…”(I Peter 5:5) 53. “Greet one another with a kiss of love.” (I Peter 5:14) 54. “…Love one another.” (I John 3:11) 55. “…Love one another.” (I John 3:23) 56. “…Love one another.” (I John 4:7) 57. “…Love one another.” (I John 4:11) 58. “…Love one another.” (I John 4:12) 59. “…Love one another.” (II John 5)

[viii] Jonathaon Leeman, Church Membership (Crossways, 2012) p.64

What kind of church - our ambition

Vision – where God is taking us.

Values are about who God is making us.  Vision is about where God is taking us.  One is identity – who we are.  The other is about ambition – where we’ll be.

We’ve talked about our values for the last month.  But what about vision?

Proverbs 29:18 says: 

‘Where there is no vision the people perish; but happy is he who keeps the law.’  (NKJV)

Vision here means ‘a God-given image of the future of a magnitude it terrifies us’.  Sometimes it is translated ‘prophetic vision’ (ESV) or ‘divine revelation of the future’ (AB). 

Perish means to ‘waste our energy in directionless franticness’ and is sometimes translated ‘cast off restraint’ (NIV) as in lose focus and waste resources.  It is the idea that without a clear sight of where God is calling us we risk wasting our potential and abandoning the legacy for God that we could leave.

It ends with ‘…happy is he who keeps the law.’ The word law is the usual word for the Bible.  It’s making clear the parameters for any vision are set by God’s Word.  It’s a timely, contemporary vision set from the timeless, eternal truths of the Bible.

Where will the Beacon be in 10 years?

How do we find our vision for the next ten years?  Is it already emerging – organically and organisationally? 

A Journey Together

As leaders we have begun to seek to see something of the future God has for us.  To sense where he may be taking us over the next 5-10 years.  Over the rest of this year we want to join together is seeking and seeing this future and so in various meetings and groups we will be inviting people to discern together God’s call upon us.

But we would like to share an image, a word and a question that we feel may be important.

An image of Beacons.  A number of different locations and sites and buildings and communities.  All the one church of Beacon, with the same values but living out that identity in the particular context and circumstances they find themselves in.  Maybe this is in starting new things (that is in our blood) or maybe by rejuvenating what has stagnated or struggled.

A word – pioneer.  That’s about innovation, development, initiative.  A Nehemiah-esq entrepreneurial spirit.

A question that has been raised by two external and independent sources - ‘Is God calling us to transition from being a local church to a regional movement?’ 

What next?

Will you participant in the discussion?  We need every willing voice if we are to see and hear clearly.  We’ll be telling you how over the next few months.

Will you partner in the practicalities with time, talents, and money?

Will you pray for the harvest, after all ‘the harvest is full but the workers are few.’ (Matthew 9:38)

Will you pursue Jesus personally, whatever that means for you?