serving

I sit in my office early on a Sunday morning wondering how the ministry fair will go. The battle of consumerism in the church is such a real fight in America today. I am encouraged though at progress in key areas.

Our outreach director told me that many ministries are actively seeking ways to reach out beyond the walls of the church. In this way, sunday school classes, small groups, men's, women's, young adults, seniors, teens, children, seniors, and others won't just see their groups as meeting their needs. Growing as a disciple does require learning and building relationships with each other. We don't need to justify or debate the value of these. It's just that they were meant to be in connection with serving others outside the walls of the church.

Just as a plant needs soil, water, and sunlight to grow through photosynthesis, so a disciple grows through the different connections of the church working in harmony with each other. We use the Hand of Fellowship to describe this harmony of disciple growth (Worship Service, Sunday School, Small Groups, Social, Serving). Growing in our relationship with God and with other Chrisians is supposed to be expressed in a growing love and care for our world.

If we just focus on personal growth, then we mistakenly veer into a self-centered Christianity, which is a contradiction. If we just focus on the physical needs of others, without the sharing of Jesus Christ, we miss the point that the transforming change Jesus brings is what our world needs. It isn't either or, it is both/and.

So, I pray today will help connect us with the balance of the Bible in making disciples.