“Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.” Isaiah 43:5
“… and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:20
Sermon Series: I AM, Bread of Life, Light of the World, Door, Good Shepherd, Resurrection & the Life, The Way, The Truth (EACH TOPIC WILL LINK TO THE SERMON SERIES FOR THAT MONTH)
Pastor Jeff: “I want you to think about your home as a source of Living Water, a source of refreshment, peace and hope and joy and grace, freely distributed to people who are thirsty. I’m talking about spiritual thirst. Yeah, physical thirst, too. But I’m talking about deep, spiritual longing. Parched. Their souls are dry. They need a source of Living Water and you are a Household Well.
A Household Well:
— Welcomes In Jesus: Looking for Him, expecting Him, ready to open the door and let Him in. Have a conversation, to sit down and dine with Him. Welcomes in Jesus. Doesn’t keep him at arm’s length.
— Engages with Neighbors: We understand as God’s representatives, as Christ’s witnesses in the world, that He has put people around us. Why? So that we can have friendships? Yes, but more than that, so we can love them, so we can serve with them, so that we can relate to them, so that we can hear their stories and share ours. So that we would have an opportunity one day, when the time is right, when God leads us to speak, to share the Good News. With those that are already Jesus followers? Yes. And with those that are far from God, who haven’t yet discovered the love of Jesus.
— Listens for Insight: Both to God, to Jesus, whom we are welcoming in, and also for insight in those engaging conversations with our neighbors. We look and listen for insights about the world and about God and about ourselves.
— Loves to Try: We’re not perfectionists. We love to experiment. We love to just try new things in reaching and engaging. We don’t hunker down and shut down. We love to experiment and risk because we know that, in living out God’s purpose for our lives, we can’t fail.”
Actions and Activities: Our current journey is learning how to be Household Wells who bring Living Water to our communities.
- Experimenting with how to merge our online community and in-person communities, through online membership classes, website redesign and a new hybrid worship model
- Madison mission trip
- Delight book club
- Bike/Run with Pastor Jeff
- Creating spaces to re-engage in community for our in-person members, including picnics, playdates for children, bonfires and youth gatherings