New Starts

New things are brewing in my midst. I wish each of you could see them from where I'm sitting. God is at work in powerful ways and he has been faithful to provide the people and the resources necessary for fulfilling his vision at Mt. Bethel.

We are in a period of great transition. As I type, the members of the Lay Leadership Committee of the church are praying for, planning with, and contacting various servants that will comprise our leadership team for 2009 - some of which will serve in these positions through 2011. In addition, we are sending off our beloved choir director, Rachel Nichols. Rachel will be missed by the people of Mt. Bethel and the choir will definitely be affected by the loss of her gifts. I'll miss the opportunity to prepare for worship with her and bounce ideas off of her. Despite her departure, we move forward and look ahead to what God has planned next.

2009 will bring with it a core leadership team that is committing to meet regularly outside of doing business to pray together, study the word together, and support one another in the challenges that we will face. We will also find ourselves with a new choir director to bring a new set of gifts to our worship experiences and "potentially" an additional staff person to help us reach younger families.

Charge Conference is scheduled for early next month and once the new leadership has been affirmed by the congregation and all things are final, we look forward to beginning these next steps. I can hardly wait.

In many of my monthly pastors meetings, the standard practice before getting down to business is to have one pastor share a devotion/word of encouragement. In my meeting today, which I gleaned alot of good information from, the most poignant influence came from the devotion that wasn't an official part of the business.

The scripture shared came from Exodus 16. The Israelites, following God's vision and the leadership of Moses found themselves in the wilderness with no means for sustenance. They began to turn on Moses in their desperation, but after hearing from God, Moses told them of how God would provide - HE RAINED BREAD FROM HEAVEN!

How true is this in following the Spirit of God? God calls us out to the wilderness where all seems lost by our efforts and success seems bleak and then, miraculously, what and who we need is made available. That's why we rely on FAITH in God and not just understanding of God.

My prayer is that we continue to follow God into the wilderness of Henry County - that we faithfully and obediently do what he calls us to do and without hesitation. If we stick to the plan, God will provide.

What is God calling you to do? Where is he sending you? Don't think you've got to have all the answers before proceeding - you'll never get moving. Answer the call, count on God, celebrate what God is doing for us and through us.