This Is What I Heard ...

This is what I heard ... some people in church world actually say:  

“I need to be ministered to” as if the life of a Christian is something that happens to you, instead of something you make happen through you for others.

"I want to go where I am fed" ... instead of going where you can feed yourself and better yet learn to feed others.

“I didn’t get anything out of the service,” as if that was its chief purpose—your edification, not God’s glory.

This is what I heard ... Jesus say:

“I did not come to be served, but to serve, and give my life as a ransom for many.”

“Whoever wants to be first must become last.”

“Whoever wants to be great among you must be the slave of all.”

“Not my will but yours be done.”

Let's make sure we SOUND more like Jesus!

From Wishin' to Mission

"You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8)

I've heard people in church world say, "I wish that we would sing more hymns."  Or, "I wish that the pastor didn't wear jeans."  Or, "I wish that we would have more to offer."  It's easy to think that way when we view church as something which we consume.

Notice that in Jesus' mission to His disciples, there was no "wishin."  It was purely mission.  Jesus didn't train His disciples to be consumers, but rather contributors.  "You will be my witnesses," Jesus said.  It was an expectation.  Jesus expected His disciples to witness the things they had seen and heard to those who hadn't seen and heard.

They saw Jesus heal the hurting, give hope to the hopeless, bring love to the unlovable and forgiveness to the shamed.  They saw Jesus die and then three days later rise again from the dead.  They saw the risen Savior with their own eyes.  The resurrection changed everything!  The resurrection meant that Jesus was the real deal.  The resurrection meant that Jesus saved them, and us.

We have good news to share.  We are witnesses.  We are witnesses of Jesus' saving power and love.  We have stories to share about what Jesus has done for us.  Let's stop wishin and be focused on Jesus' mission.

I have a special mission opportunity for you.  I need people who are willing to contribute to Jesus' mission by helping me walk the streets of Green Bay and go door to door and introduce ourselves to our neighbors near our Green Bay campus.

Anticipated Time Commitments

1.     Doing Ministry:  2 hours a week on Wednesday evenings throughout the summer.

2.     Meetings/Training: When Scheduled (will last one hour).  Our training session will be Wednesday, June 3 at 6pm.

Responsibilities/Duties

Wednesday Nights

Come each Wednesday night to the Green Bay campus by 6pm.  

- Pray.  

- Receive a map of your assigned area.

- Receive your survey questions (4 quick questions that help us find out more about our neighbors.)

- Receive the "take-a-way" to give to those who are interested.

- Go and meet our neighbors!

- Come back to the Green Bay campus and pray over those we just met.

Weekly Communication

1. Read the weekly Pastor’s Blog to stay current on service opportunities, ministry wins and future events.
2. Read and review any correspondence from lead pastor, campus pastor and team captain of your specific area of ministry.

Our goal is to get to know our neighbors of the Green Bay campus and share with them that we are starting a new service for them on Sunday, September 13 at 10am at our Green Bay campus (1167 Kenwood, Green Bay).  But more importantly we are going to listen to them, pray with them and spread Jesus' love to them.

Are you interested?  Talk to Jesus about it in prayer.  Then talk to me about it.  Contact me at chris.johnson@stmarkdepere.com by Monday, June 1 to let me know if you are interested.

Is Jesus calling you to Green Bay???

Starting a new church plant or ministry is one of the most rewarding and fruitful things you can do to advance the Kingdom.  Imagine knowing that God is using you, yes you, to reach someone who doesn't know Him ... yet.  Do you think Jesus is calling you to be part of something most congregations never get a chance to do?  As you know, St. Mark will be launching a 6th worship service on Sunday, September 13th at 10am at our Green Bay campus.  We will need 50 people from St. Mark (everyone 16 years + counts, bring the young ones too!) to attend, serve at and launch this new outreach.  In the coming weeks you will have an opportunity to sign up.  Is Jesus calling you???  

The position description is below:
(subject to tweaking)

St. Mark Home Missionary

A St. Mark Home Missionary will help establish a neighborhood church presence in the Green Bay area, offer a new worship service and serve people intentionally in Jesus’ name.

Ministry Area	Home Missions
Position	Home missionary
Accountable To	Campus Pastor & Host Team Captain
Ministry Target	Members & Guests
Position is	Volunteer
Position May be Filled By	Anyone 16 years +
Minimum maturity Level	Active Attender
Length of Service Commitment	Sept. 2015 thru March 2016

Anticipated Time Commitments

1.     Doing Ministry:  2-4 hours a week (including weekend service), other work can be done from home.  You are expected to service in one area of ministry at least once a month in addition to attending this worship service weekly.

2.     Meetings/Training: When Scheduled (will last one hour).

Responsibilities/Duties

Weekend Services

Come each Sunday to the Sunday 10 am service at the Green Bay site ready to meet and serve worshippers. Make sure you arrive at least 30 minutes early.

All home missionaries will be placed on a rotating schedule to serve in a specific area of ministry to which they committed themselves.  Position descriptions will be available for all positions. 

Weekly Communication

1. Read the weekly Pastor’s Blog to stay current on service opportunities, ministry wins and future events.
2. Read and review any correspondence from lead pastor, campus pastor and team captain of your specific area of ministry.

Your child is going to abandon their faith

Well, maybe. It depends. There is a unique phenomenon that I run into in a regular basis. Couples connect, they get married, and they have children. Along with children comes a renewed desire to reconnect with a church. Again and again I hear, a foundation with church is so very important for children. I agree wholeheartedly. To grow healthy adults, children need to be nourished by the Holy Spirit through God's Word from an early age. The problem I keep witnessing is what happens as those same children grow older. Children are continually, predictably abandoning their faith as they journey into adulthood. As Pastor of Discipleship at St. Mark for the last 6 years here is one of the recurring problems I see.

Some parents are convinced that religion and church is important for their kids... not themselves. I don't want to beat up on parents too much but I do want to be honest. If time with God is not your priority it will not be for your children either. They are watching you and the time with pressing things (Facebook, sports, work, chores, etc.) that surpass the most important things (praying and listening to Jesus) will influence their view of God. If He is just another extra thing that can be forgotten in the business of life then that is what they will live out. More is caught than taught. Have you been caught loving Jesus, talking about Jesus, singing to Jesus, going to Jesus for the sins of today? Yeah, I have my moments where just the opposite is true. I'm thankful for Jesus' forgiveness for my shortcomings as a parent. I'm also thankful that my children still look to me to guide them in setting their priorities. I can show my children just how valuable my Savior is everyday in big and small ways.

We recently asked parents to go through their Cross Training (Kinda like Sunday School on Wednesdays) lesson at home with their children during the Lent season. When they came back we surveyed them to see how it went. Here is what we found from the 60 parent's responses.

The majority of families who invested the time in God's Word for themselves and their child benefited marvelously. One dad said, "I was amazed that my son actually listened to me and even remembered what we talked about 7 weeks ago."

As a dad who has a busy life I've resolved to read a little potion of the Bible at the breakfast table with my family. (Yes, that means I have to get up a little earlier, Ugh, but it is worth for the quality time with Jesus and the kids.) I've also resolved to verbally bring Jesus into the conversation at little spots throughout the day, when I have opportunity to praise God for something good, go to him for help, or confess to him a specific sin. Lord willing these will be the memories that last with my children. Lord willing these will be the things that lead my children to trust Jesus the rest of their life.

I'm curious to hear what has helped you connect your family to Jesus time?