I really should be ashamed to refer to this as a weekly greeting. It should be renamed to irregular ramblings from the desk of a counter-intuitive pastor.
With that said, I have been thinking a lot about a question that a friend put to me during coffee a few weeks ago: “ How would you describe your occupation without using typical language for your position?”
My answer would be, and I think this is what I said to him at the time, was something akin to this: I see myself as one whose task is to orient folks worldview around God and His provision of grace in Jesus.
I think about these things as I really step back and think about what God has been doing with youth & families the past three years here at Emmanuel. Consistent growth within our programs on Wednesday nights. A fully “engaged” family during Sunday morning worship. And really what I am most excited about: Ignite groups. We have grown to seven groups, with perhaps more on the horizon.
To me this is the heartbeat of it all, these Ignite groups. Growth for our youth in their relationships with the Lord, and connections with the families of the kids. Whether equipping parents, or just seeking to connect parents to Jesus and His family ( the church) this is the goal of connecting with the families of these kids.
How do you see yourself in relation to your role within the church, and the church’s role within the community? The crux of it all revolves around what Tom shared in his greeting this week. Emmanuel exists for these reasons:
to CELEBRATE God’s presence (worship)
to DEMONSTRATE God’s love (ministry, service)
to COMMUNICATE God’s word (evangelism)
to ASSIMILATE into God’s family (fellowship)
to EDUCATE God’s people (discipleship).
And couple that with these principles that make Emmanuel unique:
a climate of acceptance
authentic worship
Biblical preaching
individual spiritual growth
clear purposes in all we do
everyone ministering
servant-leaders
a simple structure
So…..Where is Emmanuel? What is Emmanuel? Where do you see yourself within Emmanuel? What is the hope that Emmanuel gives to the community of Hermann, and how do we do it?
Questions to ask as we enter into this period of transition to a new senior pastor, and as we prayerfully wait upon God during this period.
Rounding Out the Calendar
-Baby dedications on November 9th right after the 10:15 service
– Overflow Lantern Festival & Bonfire on November 7th from 6-10 PM. Meet up at the church at 5:30 & we will head out to the Bjorklands from there
– JAM Talent Show on November 9th after the service that Sunday
– Seedling Christmas Party on 12/3
-Overflow/JAM Christmas Party on 12/10
-We will have some children share some of the Scriptures they’ve memorized this semester with Lisa Horstmann’s Sunday School class during Sunday service sometime soon. Keep a look out!
-If interested in Overflow, JAM, Seedling, Ignite or our parenting class running this Fall, feel free to contact me
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