Wednesday, May 23, 2012

A Time For Change


This Sunday (May 27) marks a big change in our ministry at Life Spring. Barring unforeseen circumstances, this is the last time that we will worship in just one service on our Spring Hill Campus at 10:15. For almost 6 years, we’ve met each Sunday at 10:15 for worship & the study of God’s Word (except for snow days or special services). But as our congregation has experienced significant growth since moving into our new facilities last Fall, it is time for us to add a second service to accommodate our new worshipers. Starting June 3rd, we’ll have Worship Services at 8:00 & 10:45, and Bible Study Classes at 9:30.

While this will significantly change the way we worship and serve, it is really a good thing, and our people seem to understand this. We realize that it will stretch our resources. We know that it means that we might not always get to worship with our friends or family. For many people, it will mean being at church for almost 5 hours on Sunday mornings.

But I’ve heard no negative feedback. That’s not to say that everyone is happy about it, but I think everyone “gets it”. We see what God is doing in so many lives, and we are excited to be a part of it.

I’ve been in church all my life. I’ve served in all kinds of volunteer positions—youth director, Sunday School superintendant, Children’s Church Director, Missions Treasurer, Adult Bible Fellowship teacher, Elder, and for most of the past 20 years, Pastor. I’ve been in small churches—averaging fewer than 100 in attendance—as well as large churches running 1500 or more on Sundays. But I have never been privileged to be a part of a movement in which God is so clearly and unmistakably at work.

It’s not just numbers, though it is gratifying to see new people walk through our doors every week. But it is the stories of the ways that God is moving in the hearts and lives of people who desperately want to walk in an intimate way with the Master. It is people confessing their sins and accepting Christ as Savior. It is people who have strayed from the Truth who seek to return to the Father. It is men desiring to be Godly husbands and women wanting to become more deeply immersed in God’s Word. It is young people willing to take a stand for righteousness even though that puts them at odds with their peers. It is families committed to putting God first.

We’ve experienced some rough patches as a young church, and we’ll experience more. But I sure am enjoying this season of life where God’s people willingly submit to His Word and anxiously seek out His will. I am thrilled to be the Pastor at Life Spring, and I can’t wait to see what He’ll do next with us and in us and for us and through us. 

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