building community

One of the biggest things we do at our church is create community as we interact with people every day, not just during worship. I walk out of the building we use, and I continue to ask God to fill me with big vision and His dreams. And it happens again. More pieces. More stuff to honor God with.

I hate saying no. I love saying yes. This is in regards to helping me. These are tough, tough times. Job lose is a daily issue. Needs on top of needs is a daily issue. Know what else is a daily issue? God is still God and still offering His best and real hope to any who will accept it.

"The person who loves the people around them creates community everywhere they go." --- D Bonhoeffer

By creating community around the marching orders of demonstrating the love of God to our community we are a living and breathing testimony of Jesus. That's my calling. That's what I believe I am to lead other people to do. We are touching lives one at a time for a cause much bigger and far outside of what we can do on our own. Offering hope creates community.

Have you noticed that when the people of God get together to accomplish a great task that the effort and the overflow often leads to more and more people learning about God? It is like a bomb going off and seeing the results, what is left behind. We have a saying that we began with at The Community Fellowship ... we are to get the attention of the people around us and while we have their attention, tell them about Jesus. That is huge. And that creates real and living community. Lets off hope in Jesus' name and see if that is the outcome.

1 Timothy 4:10 nlt

This is why we work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers.

Ephesians 2:12 nlt

In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.

Matthew 12:21 nlt

And his name will be the hope of all the world."

Offering hope creates community as we share the love of God with those we meet.

NOTE: this post was originally shared in February of 2009

Have you heard of EDITH BURNS?

Edith Burns was a wonderful Christian who lived in San Antonio, Texas . She was the patient of a doctor by the name of Will Phillips. Dr. Phillips was a gentle doctor who saw patients as people. His favorite patient was Edith Burns. One morning he went to his office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns. When he walked into that waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her. Edith Burns had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved. Dr. Phillips walked into that office and there he saw the head nurse, Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith when she was taking her blood pressure. Edith began by saying,"My name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Beverly said, "Why yes I do." Edith said, "Well, what do you ...

wash feet, sharing hope

John 13:4-5,14 NLT So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him… 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. Jesus set the example we follow. He served. He valued and gave value to others. That is why we choose to serve. For 18 years our church has shared an outreach called back2school, and for 16 of those years we have chosen to give students brand new shoes and socks as well as washing their feet. It is one of the most important parts of this event. Washing feet is a humbling experience where both the give and the receiver learn how to share some moments that might change their lives. Jesus said we should do this. See the verse above. Follow His example, do what He did, and give far more than you will ever know....

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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