As a Pastor, it is extremely gratifying to see the Body of Christ work as it is designed to operate. And over the past few days, I’ve been privileged to do just that.
Our annual Congregational Meeting is always more than just a business meeting—it is a celebration of God’s hand of blessing on our church. To look back at this past year is to observe the many ways in which the Spirit of God has moved in our midst. But this year, it was especially exciting to see our church come together in a tremendous sense of unity of spirit and purpose.
The church budget, church officers and the selection of a new deacon were all affirmed unanimously, with nearly 2/3 of our membership casting their ballots.
We also rejoiced in the news that we have reached an agreement in principle to purchase the Spring Hill Plaza shopping center. When finalized, this will give us nearly 20,000 square feet of worship and ministry space to call our own. This will include about 1800 square feet of space dedicated to our Youth Center—a great place for teens to study God’s Word and fellowship together. An additional 4000 square feet will be leased out to others until we need it, and we’ll have an option to purchase additional land adjacent to the shopping center property.
At this time, our Elders view this as an interim step to allow us to grow to a sufficient size to support construction of new facilities on our 35 acres of property on 169 Highway.
Only God knows the future, and we’re trying hard not to get ahead of Him. So we’ll take this step-by-step, sensitive to the leadership of His Holy Spirit. We are at the very early stages of this process, with lots of potential hurdles to overcome to make this a reality. But we’re trusting in Him to open and close doors as He sees fit.
As exciting as all this is, it is only a part of the work of the church. I have also been privileged to see God’s people work in much quieter ways. I arrived at the hospital to pray with a dear church member facing surgery, only to find several members of her Life Group already there, praying for her and lending support to her family. It is further proof that the folks at Life Spring really do understand what the Body of Christ is all about. Ministry is not confined to the pastors or staff—it is the duty and privilege of each person to minister to others.
In so many ways, I am blessed to serve alongside such saints. We are not a perfect church—far from it. But even in our shortcomings and imperfections, we’re in it together.
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