A Church That Matters

40 Days of Prayer 

A Church That Matters

"While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? ....   Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you." 

Acts 17:16-23 NIV

"People tend to think things will stay the same if nothing is changed. They underestimate the pervasive presence of change in the world. Keeping things externally "the same" hardly prevents change. The church may keep doing what it has always done before, but the effectiveness and meaning of those practices will probably be radically altered. If we want to maintain the same allegiance to the truth, the same effectiveness in communication, and the same faithfulness to our purpose, we must continually change." Randy Pope, The Intentional Church

Tim Keller states that this passage in Acts in an example of knowing and speaking into the culture God has placed one's church to minister. Paul observed and took note of what was going on in Athens (the city was full of idols) and 'day by day' he spoke boldly about the good news of Jesus' resurrection. Paul found a unique and winsome way to speak God's truth into their lives. This is the mission of Grace Redeemer: not to be yet another church, but to first observe and know the people of Crestview and then winsomely reveal the grace of Christ. We desire to be, as Randy Pope describes, "a church that matters, a church that influences, and a church that impacts people and her community....a transformational church." As we come to an end of our 40 days of prayer and seeking God's wisdom and guidance for the future of Grace Redeemer, we end (or rather begin) with this challenge. Do we know our community? Are we a church that matters?

We have spent 40 days in prayer and seeking the Lord's guidance as go forward into this new location of ministry. Once we are approved and begin the physical work, it can become all too easy to be distracted from ministry and focus solely on the many details of construction - when do we pour the concrete? - who is going to build the wall? - are we going to paint? - what color is the carpet going to be? So, as we begin the necessary work let's not stop praying for the Lord's ministry through us. Pray that God will transform Grace Redeemer into a church that matters to Crestview. Here is a guide that Randy Pope suggests from his book, The Intentional Church:

• Who are the people of our community? Are they churched with some understanding of God or are they outside the church with no concept of God? What do they believe about God?
• What are the needs of the people in our community?
• What is the turnover rate of people in our community? How does this affect their needs?
• What percentage of the people in our community are young, old, married, single?
• Does our community have a large percentage of single parents, working moms?
• What successful ministries or volunteer organizations in our community can we or should we come alongside?

It is not necessarily our call to be ALL these things to this community, but may we prayerfully seek that unique and winsome ministry that enables us to effectively speak the Good News of His grace. May we become to Crestview a church that matters.