NewSpringer’s…stay with me…this IS going somewhere! :-)
I am a dreamer…and according to Ephesians 3:20 I am allowed to dream big!!! I am sick and tired of Christians who refuse to ask God for big things…He is capable of moving mountains and we ask Him for help to repaint the restrooms in our church and maybe, if He really moves, we can repave the parking lot!
But God has put it inside of me to dream big; in fact, I think He has put that inside all of us. Take a look at this awesome world we live in…the beauty of a waterfall…the awe of an amazing sunset…the sound of the ocean…the fact that there are so many things that leave us blown away—yep, God dreamed big when He created this planet.
And then there is the church! Jesus said in Matthew 11:12 that the kingdom should forcefully advance, not through violence or making up stupid Christian bumper stickers…but by people realizing that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to heaven…and the church is RESPONSIBLE for getting that message to the world.
Then Jesus followed it up with saying in Matthew 16:18 that He would build His church…and in Matthew 28:18-20 He COMISSIONED us to go and make disciples. This did not mean to go and sit in a room with a handful of people—all of whom look, act and think like you—and discuss the finer points of theology and make predictions as to when Christ will return.
NO—the bottom line is this—WE CAN’T MAKE DISCIPLES WITHOUT FIRST SEEING PEOPLE CONVERTED TO CHRIST!!!
Jesus dreamed big…and we see the results of His dream come true in the book of Acts 2:41…please look at that—3,000 people in ONE DAY! In Acts 4:4 it grew to about 5k. In Acts 5:14 Luke just stopped counting…we see in Acts 6:1 and Acts 6:7…as well as several verses following that the church didn’t just grow—it EXPLODED!
(So much for those who claim numbers do not matter—if that is the case then why does Luke, who wrote the book of Acts, led and inspired by the Holy Spirit, keep talking about how the church GREW all through the book? Hmmmm…..)
Jesus dreamed big…and He still does today…and so should we…
So—NewSpring—let’s dream BIG for Easter (this coming Sunday!)
Let me make you a promise…our staff has put in EXTRA time and effort to make sure this Sunday is going to be off the hook. We understand that people are so open to being at church this weekend…and we want them to see that church can be exciting…fun…relevant…and it can also be a place where they can encounter the LIVING GOD!
So let’s dream big…and here is where you come in…
What if we made an effort this week to literally invite everyone that we know...AND everyone we see to come to NewSpring this weekend. (Remember—five services, two on Saturday at 4 & 6 and three on Sunday at 9:15, 11:15 and 1:15.)
Seriously…what if we made just one more attempt to invite that person that always says no?
What if we were so passionate about this that by the time this week is over—every waiter or waitress, every person at the grocery store, every cashier at the mall, every person everywhere had received a personal invitation to come to NewSpring this weekend?
Folks…THAT CAN HAPPEN!!! IT CAN! But it is going to take all of us being intentional and going for it.
I once read in a survey that an overwhelming percentage of the unchurched population said that they would come to church if someone would invite them to go along with them. And guess what—that is something EVERY ONE OF US CAN DO! AND…in doing so we are all partnering together with the God of the universe in reaching people for Christ!
Would you be willing to do that? Would you be willing to pray and ask the Lord who He wants you to invite? Would you be willing to be open to issuing a personal invitation to every place of business you go to this week?
Like I said—we are pulling out all the stops…this weekend is going to be one where God is going to ROCK some people’s worlds!!! And He is inviting you to be a part of this by inviting people to church. Folks…don’t show up at NewSpring empty handed this weekend…INVITE, INVITE, INVITE!!! Let’s dream big!!!
Two more things…
#1 - We are anticipating the services on Sunday at 9:15 and 11:15 being absolutely SLAMMED. If at all possible please try to make plans to attend on Saturday at 4 & 6…or Sunday at 1:15. PLEASE! :-)
#2 - I promise you that you are going to HATE IT if you miss our Easter service! I know many are out of town and have said, “I can just watch it on the internet when I get back.” While that is true…the one thing I know is that AFTER you watch it you are going to say the same thing that people said after watching our Christmas Eve service online, “I WISH I HAD BEEN THERE!” :-)
See you this weekend!