This past week Bethany and I took the kids shopping.  With cooler temperatures on the horizon, we knew we had to get our kiddos some clothes for their winter wardrobe.  When you have young children in the home, this is typically an annual occurrence.  Temperatures begin to drop, and parents begin to realize that none of their kids’ clothes fit from last year.  Old jackets are too tight, pants are too short, and moms and dads flood to the same stores to frantically keep their kids warm.  And on those days every parent is reminded of an uncomfortable truth: kids are expensive!  In fact, the USDA estimates that the average parent spends nearly $300,000 on each of their children from birth to 18.  This number of course does not include college, weddings, and future expenditures to help our children launch into independence.  The reality is as our children continue to grow, their need for resources continues to grow with them.

It’s amazing how this same truth applies to the church: as our church family begins to grow, our need for more resources continues to grow with it.  These types of resources can be vast and broad, from high-ticket items like facilities and AV resources, to more curriculum and programs to meet ministry needs.  However, the biggest resource that growing churches need is people.  Church family, you are our greatest resource in the church.  We are in the people-business and it takes people to minister to people.  And for us to reach this city and minister to those that God brings our way, we need a fresh wave of volunteers to step up and meet the needs of our church family.  And this is the way God designed His church to grow.  You and I were not made to sit in the bleachers at church, we were made to get in the game.  Peter reminds us, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10).

When you professed Christ in your life, the Holy Spirit sealed you and enabled you through the power of His presence.  He came into your life to serve as a guarantee for your future inheritance (Ephesians 1:14), but also to equip you with a spiritual gift(s) to contribute to the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:7-8).  If you are a born-again believer, God has given you at least one spiritual gift, and for many of you, he’s given you many spiritual gifts.  I would simply ask you, “are you using it to serve one another?”  If not, this Sunday is a great opportunity for you to change that.

Due of our present growth, we have lots of pressing needs in our church.  Our volunteer teams are thin, and we need people to rise up to help us meet the needs of our church in both of our worship services.  So this Sunday after each of our worship services, we are going to have a condensed ministry fair in the Great Hall.  We are focusing on 5 specific ministry areas that are our present greatest needs.  I will talk more about this on Sunday, but I would encourage you to go ahead and begin praying over what area God might be calling you to step up in.  We presently need volunteers added to the following service teams: Greeters, Ushers, Guest Information/Check-in, Media Ministries, and Kids Care. 

I trust that you will commit to serve as a “good steward of God’s varied grace,” and make plans to use your gifts to build up His church.  What an exciting opportunity to come alongside God and be a part of what He’s doing in this church family!  Trust me, it’s always more fun to be in the game than to be a spectator.  I look forward to seeing you this weekend as we unpack Daniel chapter 5.  Invite a friend and I look forward to seeing you there.

Last week I finally found the time to knock out some yard work around the house.  As you all know, we have been in the process of settling into our house this past month, and for the last several weeks, I have been focusing on the inside of our home.  However, last weekend I was able to shift my attention to the outside since most of my indoor projects had been checked off the list.  So I spent a few hours outside knocking out small projects from pulling weeds, to trimming hedges, to doing the typical mow/edge/blow lawncare maintenance.  But I also made time to plant a small shrub in our backyard.  We had brought it with us from Houston in a pot, but I wanted to get it into the ground so we could watch it take root and fully grow at our new home.  However, I know that growth will be a process.  It will not grow immediately, as it will take time for those roots to adjust to the new soil.  But I also know that when it does fully take root, it will certainly bear fruit and flourish in the years to come.

In the Scriptures, Jesus says our church’s growth is likewise contingent on the health of our roots.  If we want to see our church grow, we must each independently focus on our own roots in this season.  Jesus reminds us in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”  In this famous verse, Jesus gives both a promise and a warning.  He promises that if we abide (or root ourselves) in Him, we will bear much fruit.  The fruit of the spirit will begin to manifest itself more fully in our individual lives, and the Spirit of God will manifest Himself more clearly in the life of our church.  Churches grow when its members are fully committed to the reign and rule of Jesus Christ in their lives.  We as a church family then begin to bear fruit.  Marriages are healed, children are discipled, sin is broken, and lives are forever changed.  That is the kind of fruit that we all want to see at ABC, but it will only come if we daily plant ourselves in Him.  As followers of Christ, we can only control the depth of our faith, and He then takes care of the width.  As we go deeper in Him, it’s amazing to then watch how He widens our impact for Him.

But I also said the verse comes with a warning.  Jesus boldly reminds us that apart from him, “you can do nothing.”  If we do not plant ourselves daily in him, we will never see the spiritual fruit we want in our lives.  Sin will continue to trip us up, our flesh will fail, and our relationships will begin to hurt.  Simply put, we cannot walk in faith without a daily dependence in Him.  Likewise, if we do not take root in Him individually, our collective church will never bear the fruit we want to see.  It will not grow, lives won’t be changed, the next generation won’t be reached, and the church will not be alive unless we fully devote ourselves to Him.  Church growth begins with each of us.

Fortunately, we are beginning to see some amazing fruit in our church.  I do believe many of us are planting deep roots, and because of that, God is blessing our church family.  We have seen nearly a 40% increase in attendance in the last 8 weeks.  Our contemporary service had over 160 people last Sunday, and every week it is averaging more people than it had at this time last year, pre-pandemic.  We have multiple baptisms scheduled for this month, and we’ve joined new members the last several weeks.  We had over 30 first time visitors fill out cards on campus the past 3 weeks.  New staff members have joined our team, dozens of new deacons have been recommended, and giving has been tremendous.  I hope you can see that God is moving, and our church is bearing amazing fruit.

But that being said, I don’t want us to lose focus on the cause.  Firm roots lead to a fruitful harvest.  Commit yourself to be more fully rooted in Him this week than you were last.  And if you do, I truly believe the best is yet to come.  Invite a friend to join you this Sunday, and I hope to see you in Worship this weekend.