Growing More and More in 2008

 

Mark 4:30 Again he said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade."

 

Jesus did not envision a stagnant, sedentary or stationary kingdom, but rather an expanding, flourishing, and growing one.  It would grow and grow and become the largest and most impacting entity in the world.  As we trace his kingdom throughout the book of Acts, that is exactly what happened…it grew and grew and touched more and more lives.

 

And now, more than 2000 years later, it is encouraging to see his kingdom continuing to grow and flourish.  There have been good news stories pouring in from continents around the world of new churches being planted, older churches being strengthened, and new Christians being born.  Jesus kingdom is alive and well in the 21st century.

 

It is also encouraging to see that kind of growth here in St. Louis.  Last year was our fourth consecutive year of positive numerical growth and our greatest one in the past decade.  But much more important was the spiritual and relational growth that many of our members, families, family groups, and ministries experienced.

 

So where do we go from here?  Like, Jesus envisioned 2000 years ago, we grow more and more!  This is our congregational theme for 2008, “Growing More and More”. To help us stay on track, we have asked each of our members to pray for the following items throughout the year:

 

G—God to be the greatest passion of our hearts and lives

R—Repent of sin quickly

O—One another relationships strong

W—Work to save the lost

I—Increase our financial giving

N—New staff intern for the youth ministry

G—Grow the church to 325 members

 

Let’s all commit to being the expanding, flourishing, thriving, growing church that Jesus envisioned more than 2000 years ago!  To God be the glory.

 

John Lusk